Common Media Buying Mistakes (and How to Fix Them)

Media buying is part science, part art, and-let’s be honest-part luck. If you’re throwing money into the digital ether and seeing little return, you might be making some classic mistakes. Let’s break them down (and fix them).

1. Blindly Trusting the Algorithm AI is great. Until it’s not. Relying entirely on automation is like letting a Roomba do your taxes-it won’t end well. The algorithm optimises for engagement, but that doesn’t always mean conversions. Just because an ad is getting clicks doesn’t mean it’s working.

Fix: Stay in control. Regularly check performance, tweak targeting, and question the data. Look beyond surface-level metrics and analyse actual conversions and return on ad spend (ROAS). A human touch is still necessary.

2. Ignoring Audience Fatigue Ever had an ad stalk you around the internet? Your audience feels the same. Seeing the same creative 25 times doesn’t drive conversion-it drives irritation and ad blindness. You’re burning budget showing ads to people who have already made up their minds.

Fix: Rotate creatives. Cap frequency to avoid overexposure. Leverage dynamic creative optimisation (DCO) to serve fresh, relevant variations of your ads. Test different ad formats, headlines, and imagery to keep engagement high.

3. Chasing Vanity Metrics Likes, shares, and impressions look impressive in reports, but are they paying the bills? High engagement without conversions is just noise. If your campaign isn't translating into sales, it's not working.

Fix: Focus on metrics that matter-ROAS, customer acquisition cost (CAC), and conversion rates. Set up proper tracking with UTM parameters, pixels, and offline conversion tracking. Measure actual business impact, not just digital applause.

4. Setting and Forgetting Campaigns Launching and ghosting your campaign is a rookie move. Digital ad landscapes shift FAST-what worked last month might be burning money today. Changes in competition, platform updates, and shifting user behaviour all impact performance.

Fix: Check in regularly. Monitor performance metrics daily and adjust bids, creatives, and targeting as needed. Use automation smartly-set rules for budget pacing, CPA limits, and underperforming ad pausing, but don’t rely on autopilot.

5. Overcomplicating Targeting Hyper-segmentation sounds fancy, but if your audience size is smaller than your lunch order, you’re bidding in a limited auction with sky-high costs. Worse, over-targeting can exclude potential high-value customers.

Fix: Start broad and refine based on performance. Test larger audience segments before layering on restrictions. Use interest-based, behavioural, and lookalike audiences to scale efficiently while maintaining relevance.

6. Ignoring Post-Click Experience You nailed the ad, got the click… and then? A slow site, confusing UX, or a checkout process that requires a PhD will send users running. Your media buying efforts mean nothing if users drop off before converting.

Fix: Speed up load times. Simplify navigation. Optimise landing pages for conversions with clear CTAs and frictionless checkout. A/B test different landing page elements to see what resonates best with your audience.

7. Not Testing Enough (or Testing Too Much) A/B testing is 🔑, but running 100 variations on a $500 budget? That’s just chaos. On the flip side, running ads without any testing means you’ll never know what’s actually working.

Fix: Test strategically. Focus on meaningful variables-headlines, CTAs, creatives, and audiences. Give each test enough budget and time to reach statistical significance. Learn, iterate, and scale.

The Takeaway Media buying isn’t just throwing money at platforms. It’s strategy, adaptability, and a healthy dose of skepticism. It’s about making smart decisions, tracking what matters, and optimising for real results.