I was sitting with a local spa owner staring at their Facebook ads dashboard.
The numbers were all over the place, the phone was quiet, and every ad sounded like a pushy sales pitch.
They kept asking, “Should I just turn all of this off?”
The truth is, nothing was “broken.”
Meta quietly changed the rules with its new AI system, Meta Andromeda, and the old way of running Facebook ads is not enough anymore.
What small business owners need to know about the new way Facebook Ads work.
(And the real answers to “How much do Facebook ads cost?” “Are Facebook ads worth it anymore?” and “How do beginners even run Facebook ads?”)
This blog will help you understand what changed and what to do next.
Here is what you will learn:
• How Meta Andromeda affects Facebook ads and why your results may feel unpredictable
• How much Facebook ads really cost and whether they are still worth it
• How beginners should run Facebook ads today and what the 3-2-2 method means
• Why creative and format diversity matter more than ever and what to test each week
This guide is written for small business owners who have some budget, want better results, and need a simple framework that does not waste money.
How Much Do Facebook Ads Really Cost?
Small business owners come to me with great products and tight budgets, and this is always one of the first questions: How much does it cost for an ad on Facebook?
The honest answer is that Facebook does not charge a flat rate. The cost changes depending on competition, placements, seasonality, your creative, your offer, and your audience quality. Meta Andromeda made this even more true because the system now prioritizes relevance over anything else.
So let’s break down the cost questions people ask most.
How much do Facebook ads really cost?
Most local businesses in Palm Beach County see CPMs (cost per 1,000 impressions) anywhere from 8 to 25 dollars. If your niche is competitive, CPMs can go higher. If your creative is weak, CPMs can go higher. If your audience is too small, CPMs can go higher.
This is why the question How much do Facebook ads cost per 1,000 impressions? matters. Without knowing your CPM, you cannot understand how much reach you are buying or whether your ads are entering the auction enough to compete.
Is it worth paying for Facebook ads?
When you use the right creative mix and a clean structure, yes. Facebook ads remain one of the most affordable and scalable ways to reach local customers. What changed is how Meta decides which ads get shown and which ones get throttled.
Is ten dollars a day enough for Facebook ads?
Yes, if your only goal is testing creative. No, if your goal is scaling. Ten dollars a day is not enough to gather meaningful data quickly. It can work, but it requires patience.
Is five hundred dollars enough for Facebook ads?
For small businesses in Palm Beach Gardens or Palm Beach County, five hundred dollars can be enough to enter a testing phase. It is not enough to scale, but it is enough to discover what messages and formats your ideal customer reacts to.
This is where the right strategy becomes more important than the budget.
How to Run Facebook Ads as a Beginner
If you are brand new to Meta Ads Manager or Facebook Ads Manager, the rules are different now. You do not need complicated funnels. You do not need retargeting ads on day one. You do not need seventeen audiences.
You need two things:
• A simple testing system
• Creative variety
How do beginners run Facebook ads?
Start with a single testing campaign and a single scaling campaign.
Inside your testing campaign, you launch new creatives weekly. Inside your scaling campaign, you only place ads that have already proven themselves.
What is the 3-2-2 method for Facebook ads?
It is a simple creative structure that works well with Meta’s algorithm.
• Three hooks
• Two bodies
• Two CTAs
This gives you multiple variations inside a single concept without overcomplicating your workflow. It also helps Andromeda find the best combination for each user.
How much do 1,000 clicks cost on Facebook?
Clicks vary by industry, but most small businesses see one dollar to three dollars per click. Rather than chasing clicks, focus on your CPA (cost per acquisition). The click is only valuable if the person is the right person.
How Much Do Facebook Ads Cost Per 1,000 Impressions?
This question connects directly to your creative quality. If Meta Andromeda sees your ad as relevant, your CPM will be lower. If your ad looks too promotional or repetitive, your CPM will rise.
What affects your CPM?
• Weak creative
• Repetitive formats
• No variety
• “Salesy” messaging
• Targeting too narrowly
• Running only bottom-of-funnel ads
The system punishes ads that feel like ads. That is why I always encourage small business owners in Palm Beach Gardens to review the Facebook Ads Library to see what top brands are doing. They lean heavily on content that looks native, natural, helpful, or story-driven.
What is the twenty percent rule on Facebook ads?
This rule used to limit how much text could appear on an image. It is no longer a hard rule, but too much text can still reduce performance. You want clean visuals, simple messages, and content that blends into the feed.
Why Meta Andromeda Rewards Creative Diversity
You shared two graphics that highlight something most small businesses overlook:
• Format diversity
• Message diversity
These two concepts fuel Meta Andromeda.
What is format diversity?
Format diversity means having different creative types running at the same time.
• Short videos
• User-generated content
• Static images
• Carousels
• Native-style posts
• Educational videos
• Product demos
This matters because people do not consume content in one way. Some scroll stories. Some prefer Reels. Some pause for statics. When you only run one type of creative, Meta has fewer options to place your ad where people actually spend time.
What is message diversity?
Message diversity is about the angle.
You cannot run ads that all say the same thing in the same tone.
Here are angles to test:
• Emotional angle
• Problem-solving angle
• Fast results angle
• Problem awareness angle
• Testimonial angle
• Local community angle
• Behind the scenes
• Educational and soft value
The more angles you offer, the easier it is for Meta Andromeda to match the right message to the right person at the right time.
The Weekly Testing Framework That Gets Better Over Time
Your account needs freshness. You cannot run the same ads for three months and expect results. You also cannot wait for old ads to fail before creating new ones.
Here is the workflow I use with small businesses that have tight budgets:
• Launch four to six new ads every week
• Push all tests to cold audiences
• Exclude existing customers
• Let them run for at least seven days
• Promote winners into Advantage+ Sales
• Turn off creatives that fall below your CPA target
This constant flow of signals is what Meta Andromeda uses to improve your delivery.
When to turn off an ad
• After it spends enough money to judge performance and consistently misses the CPA
• When frequency gets too high
• When engagement becomes negative
• When another creative clearly outperforms it
When to move ads into the scaling campaign
• When it hits your CPA
• When it spends enough to trust the results
• When it continues performing for several days
• When it gains positive social proof
Once it becomes a winner, move it into Advantage+ Sales and let Meta scale it to the right people.
For Local Businesses: Why Creative Matters More Than Targeting
If you are looking for SEO in Palm Beach Gardens, remember that your website and your content quality influence your ad performance more than you might think.
Meta Andromeda reads signals.
Google Search reads signals.
Your customer reads signals.
When all three line up, everything becomes easier.
Summary
Meta Andromeda did not make Facebook ads harder. It made them smarter. Your job now is to give the system enough creative variety and clear data to help it find the right people.
Small businesses win when they:
• Test weekly
• Use multiple formats
• Avoid sounding overly promotional
• Push tests to cold audiences
• Promote winners into Advantage+ Sales
• Know their average CPM and CPA
• Respect the learning phase
• Build diversity in both formats and angles
If you want help building a creative testing system or aligning your ads with your SEO and local marketing in Palm Beach Gardens, just let me know. I can walk you through the strategy step by step.