/Advertising
Question
TikTok ads feel like a slot machine - am I doing something wrong?
Posted by •12/10/2025
Started running TikTok ads 3 weeks ago after everyone said Facebook is "dead" and TikTok is where it's at.
My experience so far:
- Day 1-3: 4 sales at €12 CPA (amazing!)
- Day 4-7: 0 sales, same spend
- Day 8-10: 2 sales at €45 CPA
- Day 11-15: 1 sale
- Day 16-21: turned it off, cried a little
Total: €380 spend, 7 sales, €54 average CPA on a €35 product
The inconsistency is killing me. One day it works, next day same ad same budget same everything and nothing. At least with Facebook I felt like I could diagnose what was wrong. With TikTok it feels completely random.
Are others experiencing this? Is this just "how TikTok is" or am I missing something fundamental?
For context: selling a pet product, targeting pet owners, creative is me actually using the product with my dog.
My experience so far:
- Day 1-3: 4 sales at €12 CPA (amazing!)
- Day 4-7: 0 sales, same spend
- Day 8-10: 2 sales at €45 CPA
- Day 11-15: 1 sale
- Day 16-21: turned it off, cried a little
Total: €380 spend, 7 sales, €54 average CPA on a €35 product
The inconsistency is killing me. One day it works, next day same ad same budget same everything and nothing. At least with Facebook I felt like I could diagnose what was wrong. With TikTok it feels completely random.
Are others experiencing this? Is this just "how TikTok is" or am I missing something fundamental?
For context: selling a pet product, targeting pet owners, creative is me actually using the product with my dog.
3 Replies
•12/10/2025
The creative feedback is useful. My video is definitely more "here's the product, here's how it works" style - pretty straightforward demo.
Maybe I need to reframe it as content first, product second. Like "watch my dog's reaction when..." type of hook?
Also the point about not judging single days helps mentally. I was literally checking stats every hour and driving myself crazy.
Still feels wild that this is considered "normal" variance though. Coming from a background where I expected marketing to be somewhat predictable.
Maybe I need to reframe it as content first, product second. Like "watch my dog's reaction when..." type of hook?
Also the point about not judging single days helps mentally. I was literally checking stats every hour and driving myself crazy.
Still feels wild that this is considered "normal" variance though. Coming from a background where I expected marketing to be somewhat predictable.
•12/10/2025
If the variance is stressing you out, here's an alternative approach: don't put all your eggs in TikTok.
For a pet product, you might also try:
- Google Shopping (people search for pet products all the time)
- Pinterest ads (huge pet community there, often cheaper than TikTok)
- Even Facebook with proper interest targeting
Having 2-3 traffic sources means when one platform has a bad day/week, others might pick up the slack. Also protects you if one platform decides to ban your ad account randomly (happens more than you'd think).
TikTok can be great for scale but it shouldn't be your only channel, especially at your budget level.
For a pet product, you might also try:
- Google Shopping (people search for pet products all the time)
- Pinterest ads (huge pet community there, often cheaper than TikTok)
- Even Facebook with proper interest targeting
Having 2-3 traffic sources means when one platform has a bad day/week, others might pick up the slack. Also protects you if one platform decides to ban your ad account randomly (happens more than you'd think).
TikTok can be great for scale but it shouldn't be your only channel, especially at your budget level.
•12/10/2025
Controversial take: TikTok rewards viral-style content. If your creative doesn't look like something that COULD go viral organically, the algorithm doesn't push it.
You said you're using the product with your dog. That's good! But is it:
- Shot vertically in 9:16?
- Native TikTok feel (not polished ad look)?
- Hook in the first 1 second?
- Some kind of surprise/transformation/reveal?
The ads that work on TikTok often don't look like ads. They look like content that happens to feature a product.
Compare this to Facebook where polished, professional-looking ads often outperform. Different platforms, different creative rules.
You said you're using the product with your dog. That's good! But is it:
- Shot vertically in 9:16?
- Native TikTok feel (not polished ad look)?
- Hook in the first 1 second?
- Some kind of surprise/transformation/reveal?
The ads that work on TikTok often don't look like ads. They look like content that happens to feature a product.
Compare this to Facebook where polished, professional-looking ads often outperform. Different platforms, different creative rules.
•12/10/2025
Welcome to TikTok ads lol. You're not doing anything wrong - this IS how TikTok is, at least compared to Meta.
The variance is brutal and it's because:
1. The algorithm is more volatile - it's constantly testing and learning
2. User behavior on TikTok is more impulsive - they buy on a whim or don't buy at all
3. Creative fatigue hits FAST - what worked yesterday is old news today
My approach that helped stabilize things:
- Never judge a day in isolation. Look at 7-day rolling averages.
- Have 3-5 different creatives running at all times. When one dies, another usually picks up.
- Expect CPAs to fluctuate 50-100% day to day. If your AVERAGE over 2 weeks is profitable, you're winning.
Also real talk: "Facebook is dead" is what people say who never learned Facebook properly. It's harder, yes. Dead? No. Many people still do very well there, it's just not as easy as 2019.
The variance is brutal and it's because:
1. The algorithm is more volatile - it's constantly testing and learning
2. User behavior on TikTok is more impulsive - they buy on a whim or don't buy at all
3. Creative fatigue hits FAST - what worked yesterday is old news today
My approach that helped stabilize things:
- Never judge a day in isolation. Look at 7-day rolling averages.
- Have 3-5 different creatives running at all times. When one dies, another usually picks up.
- Expect CPAs to fluctuate 50-100% day to day. If your AVERAGE over 2 weeks is profitable, you're winning.
Also real talk: "Facebook is dead" is what people say who never learned Facebook properly. It's harder, yes. Dead? No. Many people still do very well there, it's just not as easy as 2019.