The highs and lows of integrating Thread buys into Ads Manager
During the initial test, the option to transact on Threads is integrated into Meta Ads Manager, according to the announcement, so media buyers can simply check a box to include Threads ads. The integration comes with both pros and cons: on one hand, this integration provides a painless means of trying out the offering. On the other, some anticipate that the option to opt out of Threads ads in the future will be difficult.
“Each time Meta releases a new targeting capability, product, or placement, they find a new way to obscure the buyer’s ability to find the control switch for that component within the campaign set-up module,” said Allie Lichtenberg, founder and CEO at AD LUCEM, an independent media buying consultancy. “Meta doesn’t want buyers to be able to fine-tune their own setups and autonomously decide how to deliver their own campaigns.”
“At some point, Meta will likely just add Threads as an inventory source into campaigns without media buyers ever knowing,” she predicts.
AD LUCEM is not part of Meta’s initial tests for the tool, but Lichtenberg said that the consultancy will be open to running tests for clients that express interest down the line.
Threads users, meanwhile, aren’t embracing the planned changes to the app’s experience.
In response to Mosseri’s post announcing the rollout of ads, one user wrote: “Instagram is now drowning in ads so you rarely see content from the people you follow. If you do that to this platform, I’m gone.” Another wrote: “How many social networks do we need to abandon and how many more subscriptions should we have to pay until y’all understand we don’t like ads????”
