Creative Analytics
Ads Manager tells you how each ad did. It doesn’t tell you which idea is winning. Actionbook reads your Meta ads from the last 14 days, tags each creative by format and hook, and gives you one list: scale, pause or rework, each with its reason.
Built for
- Founders reviewing their own Meta ad creatives each week
- Performance marketers deciding which creatives to scale or pause
- Agencies explaining creative results to a client
Key insights
- Creatives marked scale, pause or rework, each with the reason
- Top and bottom creatives by cost per purchase
- Which formats, hook types and video lengths work
- Thumb-stop and hold rate for each video
- Creatives with rising frequency and falling CTR
What is the creative analytics dashboard?
Creative analytics for your ads means measuring which ad creatives work, not just which campaigns: the hook, the format and the video itself. Actionbook reads your Meta Ads Manager in your browser, ranks every active creative by cost per purchase, and groups them by format, hook type and video length. It tracks thumb-stop and hold rate, and flags creatives that are tiring out. This ad creative analysis gives you a scale, pause or rework list.
How to do creative analytics for your Meta ads
A weekly creative review takes five steps. The dashboard above follows them.
1. Pull the last 14 days by ad
Spend, impressions, CTR, purchases, cost per purchase, ROAS and frequency, plus 3-second video plays and ThruPlays.
2. Set a minimum spend
An ad with little spend has a cost per purchase you can’t trust. Leave those out of the ranking and say how many.
3. Tag each creative
Format (UGC video, static, carousel), hook type (problem, testimonial, offer, demo) and video length. Then compare groups, not single ads.
4. Check hold and fatigue
Thumb-stop rate is 3-second plays over impressions. Hold rate is ThruPlays over 3-second plays. Rising frequency with falling CTR means the ad is tiring out.
5. Decide on each creative
Scale what wins, pause what costs most with enough spend, and rework what has a strong hook and a weak hold.
Who the creative analytics dashboard is for
Founders running their own Meta ads
You make the ads and buy the media, and the weekly review is you scrolling Ads Manager.
- One list of what to scale and what to pause
- The hooks that win, in plain words
- Three briefs for next week
DTC and app performance marketers
You test many creatives a week and need to read the pattern, not each ad.
- Cost per purchase by format, hook and length
- Thumb-stop and hold rate per video
- Fatigue flagged before cost climbs
Small agencies
You owe each client a creative review and a reason for every change.
- Winners and losers with the minimum spend shown
- A reason and the numbers beside every action
- Formulas in the data notes
How the creative analytics dashboard works
Step 1: Click Build with Actionbook and name the ad account
The last 14 days by default. Ask for another window instead.
Step 2: Stay signed in to Meta Ads Manager
Actionbook reads it the way you see it in your browser. It never pauses, edits or launches an ad.
Step 3: Run it before each weekly review
Each run reads the window again and compares it with the same length before it.
Creative analytics dashboard FAQ
What is creative analytics?
Measuring how each ad creative performs, so you know which images, videos, hooks and formats to make more of. It works below the campaign level: two ads in the same ad set can differ several times over in cost, and the creative is usually why.
What does the ad creative analysis cover?
Every active ad in the window: spend, CTR, cost per purchase, ROAS and frequency, plus thumb-stop and hold rate for videos. Each creative is tagged by format, hook type and video length so groups can be compared.
How are thumb-stop rate and hold rate calculated?
Thumb-stop rate is 3-second video plays divided by impressions. Hold rate is ThruPlays divided by 3-second video plays. Both formulas are in the data notes.
How does it spot creative fatigue?
It looks for creatives whose frequency rose and whose CTR fell across the 14 days, and shows both lines.
How does it decide what to scale, pause or rework?
It compares each creative’s cost per purchase with the account average. Well under it is scale, well over it is pause. A video with a strong hook and a weak hold, or a creative that is tiring out, is rework. Creatives close to the average keep running, and ads under the minimum spend get no action.
How are hooks and formats tagged?
Actionbook reads each ad’s first line and creative type and assigns the tags. The section is labeled “Our read”, and you can ask for different tags in the chat.
Which ad platforms does it read?
Meta Ads Manager.
Will it pause or change my ads?
No. It only reads. The scale, pause or rework list is for you to act on.
How is this different from the Google & Meta Ads Performance playbook?
That one compares channels and campaigns. This one goes inside the campaigns to the creatives: hooks, formats, video hold and fatigue.
Is this related to the agency called Creative Analytics?
No. This page is about the practice of analyzing ad creatives.
