Feature: creative fatigue
Creative fatigue: catch ads as they wear out
Creative fatigue is when the same people have seen an ad so often that they stop responding to it; Kortex spots it from frequency rising while click-through falls, and proposes what to do about it.
What is creative fatigue?
It is the drop in response that comes from showing the same ad to the same people too many times.
An ad that worked well starts to cost more for each result. Usually nothing in the ad changed; the audience got used to it. The longer it runs past that point, the more budget it uses for less return. The term and its neighbours are in the glossary.
How do you know an ad has creative fatigue?
Frequency rises while click-through rate falls.
Frequency is how many times, on average, each person has seen the ad. When it climbs and click-through falls at the same time, people are seeing the ad again and acting on it less. That pair is the signal Kortex looks for.
How is a tired ad different from a bad ad?
A tired ad used to work and has declined; a bad ad never worked.
They need different fixes. A tired ad might come back after a rest or be replaced with a fresh version of the same idea. An ad that never worked should usually stop. Kortex tells the two apart from the ad's own history before it proposes anything.
What does Kortex propose when it finds fatigue?
Usually pausing the tired ad, and where it helps, a fresh ad to take its place.
You approve the pause before it happens. Kortex can also make new image ads from your products, which launch paused for you to review and switch on.
Why check for fatigue every day?
Because fatigue builds gradually, and a weekly check catches it after days of wasted spend.
In busy periods such as festive sales, frequency can climb faster than usual. Daily checks catch the turn earlier. For a full list of reasons ROAS falls, see why your Meta ROAS dropped.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
What frequency is too high for a Meta ad?
There is no single number. What matters is the trend: frequency rising while click-through falls means people are tiring of the ad.
Does Kortex pause fatigued ads automatically?
No. It proposes the pause with the numbers behind it, and a person on your team approves it.
Can Kortex make replacement ads?
Yes. Kortex can make image ads from your products in your colours and type, and launches them paused for review.
Read next
- Ad creationKortex makes image ads from your products, in your brand's colours and type, and launches them paused in Meta so a person reviews each one before it runs.
- AI agent for Meta AdsKortex is an AI agent for Meta Ads. It checks your Facebook and Instagram ads daily, finds where ROAS leaks and proposes the fix. You approve every change.
- Ads glossaryROAS, MER, CPA, frequency, the learning phase and more, in plain words.
- Why your Meta ROAS dropped: a checklistA checklist for when Meta ads ROAS falls: tracking, attribution, CPM, creative fatigue, the learning phase, budget shifts and what happens after the click.
Start each day with the fixes, not the dashboard.
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