For interests, Meta is increasingly pushing to use its own algorithm (see Adventage+ below). Currently, you can combine Adventage+ with interest targeting.
Custom Audience: Great for retargeting and re-engaging with existing customers. It's built on data you already have:
email database,
Website visitors – using Meta Pixel you can target people who viewed specific pages or abandoned carts,
Users who interacted with your page – for example, people who responded to your posts or visited your profile.
Lookalike: Facebook finds new users who are similar to your existing customers or users in your own circle. It works based on patterns of behavior, demographics, and interests. You can set the similarity percentage – from 1% (most similar) to 10% (broader but less accurate). Ideal for expanding your customer base.
Expanded Audience (Advantage+): Allows Facebook’s algorithm to automatically expand your ukraine phone number data targeting beyond your defined parameters if there’s a chance for better results. Works best when optimizing for conversions, especially purchases.
Tips for working effectively with audiences
Be specific, but not too narrow (don't make circles too small). Meta helps you determine the right circle size.
Test different circuits to see what works best.
Experiment with different similarity percentages for lookalike audiences.
Practical example for setting up user groups
If you have an e-commerce store selling cosmetics, your circuits for an Adventage+ shopping campaign might look like this:
Basic target group: Women aged 18–45 with an interest in makeup, natural cosmetics and skin care.
Custom Audience: Users who viewed a specific product or abandoned a cart in the last 30 days.
Similar audience: People similar to your most frequent customers (e.g. based on an uploaded database).
Extended reach: Activate Advantage+ if you want to give the algorithm more room to find new customers.
Meta Ad Placement
In this step, you will automatically be offered Advantage+. Use this for your advertising campaign, but to promote your post, turn on manual settings and promote only on the social network for which you optimized the post.