Before you spend a euro on Meta Ads, you need three things: a checkout that works, accurate conversion tracking, and a connected product catalogue. Without them, advertising simply sends people to a place that loses sales.
Advertising does not fix an e-shop that fails to convert. It magnifies it — problem included.
Not sure whether you are ready?
Request a free readiness check and we will tell you what is missing before you open a campaign.
What you need before you start
| Requirement | Why |
|---|---|
| Meta Pixel installed | Without it you cannot tell what produced sales |
| Conversions API | Covers what the pixel loses to browser restrictions |
| Connected product catalogue | Essential for dynamic ads |
| Verified domain | Required by Meta for measurement |
| A checkout that works on mobile | That is where nearly all the traffic arrives |
| A conversion rate of at least 1% | Otherwise fix the site first |
That last row is the most important check. If your e-shop converts below 1%, the same money returns far more spent on your checkout first.
The structure that works
Three campaigns. Not fifteen.
| Campaign | Who it targets | Share of budget |
|---|---|---|
| New audience | People who do not know you | 60%–70% |
| Retargeting | People who viewed a product or abandoned a basket | 20%–30% |
| Existing customers | Your customer list, for new products | 10% |
The second nearly always shows the best return per euro — but its audience is small, so it cannot be the main one. The first is what feeds the second.
The beginner’s rule: start with one new-audience campaign and one retargeting campaign. Add a third only once those two run steadily.
How much budget do I need?
The minimum is not set by Meta but by the arithmetic of learning: the system needs enough conversions per week to optimise.
| Scenario | Indicative monthly budget |
|---|---|
| Testing, small catalogue | €300 – €500 |
| Steady operation, mid-sized e-shop | €600 – €1,500 |
| Seasonal peak (Black Friday, holidays) | 2× to 3× normal |
Below €300 a month the data is too thin to draw conclusions. That money does more in organic channels — see the comparison in Google Ads vs SEO.
Where to aim: the benchmarks
The international ecommerce averages below give you an order of magnitude. They are in dollars and mostly reflect large markets.
| Metric | Average | Top 25% |
|---|---|---|
| CTR | 1.93% | 2.78% |
| Conversion rate | 2.7% | 4.1% |
| ROAS | 3.4× | 5.2× |
A note on the Greek market: cost per thousand impressions is typically well below international averages, because competition is lighter. That means a smaller budget buys more impressions — but also that you should not compare your cost per acquisition against US figures.
The only metric that truly matters: ROAS above your break-even point. If your gross margin is 40%, you need a ROAS above 2.5× just to avoid losing money.
The creative that works
On Meta, creative is now the single biggest performance factor — more than targeting.
- The first 3 seconds decide whether anyone sees the rest. Open with the product in use, or with the problem.
- Vertical video for Reels and Stories, square for feed. Not the same file everywhere.
- Customer-generated content often outperforms professional production.
- On-screen text, because most people watch with the sound off.
- Three or four variations per campaign, not one.
Refresh creative every 3–4 weeks. A drop in performance almost always comes from creative fatigue, not targeting.
Want a campaign plan for your products?
Tell us what you sell and your average basket and we will propose a structure and budget.
How do I know it works?
Three levels of measurement, from the most optimistic to the most honest.
- ROAS inside Meta. Useful for comparing campaigns against each other, but it credits itself with sales that would have happened anyway.
- Analytics data. Shows what the visitor did on your site, independent of Meta.
- Blended ROAS: total revenue ÷ total ad spend. The harshest and most useful number.
The practical test: pause your campaigns for a week and see how far revenue falls. The gap is their real contribution.
The seven mistakes that burn budget
- Advertising before fixing checkout. You are paying to fill a leaking bucket.
- Too many ad sets on a small budget. The system never gets to learn.
- Editing every two days. Every change restarts the learning phase.
- No retargeting. You give up the cheapest audience you have.
- One creative for months. The audience tires of it and performance falls.
- Optimising for clicks rather than purchases. Cheap clicks, no sales.
- No catalogue connection. You lose dynamic product ads, among the most efficient formats for e-shops.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a separate account for Instagram?
No. Both platforms run from the same Meta account. You can still choose where your ads appear.
How quickly do I see results?
First sales can come within days. Reliable conclusions need 3–4 weeks of steady operation.
Do ads work if I only sell through Instagram?
They work far better with your own store, because you can measure and retarget. The route is in from Instagram shop to e-shop.
What is the Conversions API and do I need it?
It sends conversion data from your server to Meta, covering what the pixel misses. Yes, you need it.
Should I outsource management or do it myself?
Under €500 a month, usually do it yourself. Above €1,000, management pays for itself.
The first step
Before opening a campaign, place a test order from a phone and check it registers correctly as a conversion.
If it does not, everything else is guesswork — and advertising without measurement is just expenditure.
For the levers that grow revenue without an ad budget, see increasing e-shop sales.
Next step
Book a free 30-minute call with the team at The Dev Alley. We will check whether your e-shop is ready to advertise and what budget makes sense.