21-ads-audit-global

Ads Audit (Global) — Health Score & Action Plan

Difference from 03-performance-eval-global:

• 03 evaluates current performance (CPM, ROAS, funnel) — diagnoses symptoms.
• 21 audits account configuration (setup, structure, tracking, creative) — scores 0-100 and finds systemic issues.

Insight before numbers. Lead with judgment; illustrate with metrics.

---

For Newbies — Start Here

What is an ads audit? A structured review of your ad accounts (Meta, Google, TikTok) to find leaks, misconfigurations, and missed opportunities. The output is a Health Score (0-100), a list of Quick Wins, and a 7-day Action Plan.

When do you need one?

• ROAS dropped suddenly (>20% week-over-week).
• New account inherited from another agency or in-house team.
• Spending >$5K/month with no clear performance review process.
• Pixel/CAPI showed errors or duplicate events.
• About to scale spend by 2-3x and want to verify foundation.
• Dropshipping store with attribution confusion (Shopify vs Meta vs Triple Whale numbers don't match).

What you'll need before starting:

1. Read access to ad accounts (or screen-share / data export).
2. Last 30 days of spend, impressions, clicks, conversions, ROAS.
3. Pixel/CAPI status (Events Manager, GA4, TikTok Events).
4. Region context (US, EU, SEA, LATAM) — benchmarks differ widely.
5. Business model (DTC e-com, B2B SaaS, lead gen, dropshipping) — optimization rules differ.

How long does it take?

• Quick audit: 2-3 hours (Health Score + Quick Wins).
• Full audit: 6-10 hours (Health Score + 84 checkpoints + 7-day plan + creative review).

---

Step 0 — Read Context + Select Region Variant

Before audit, pull two contexts:

1. Product context — call product-marketing-context-global if not already in conversation. This gives the auditor: pricing, target CAC, business model, current channels.
2. Region variant — load the appropriate file:

Region	File	Currency	Key benchmarks
US / North America	variants/01-us.md	USD	Meta CPM $7-12, Google CPC $1-3, ROAS 3-5x
EU / UK	variants/02-eu.md	EUR / GBP	Meta CPM €5-10, Google CPC €1-3, ROAS 3-4x
SEA (VN, TH, ID, PH, SG, MY)	variants/03-sea.md	USD-equivalent	Meta CPM $1-2, Google CPC $0.30-1, ROAS 2-3x
LATAM (BR, MX, AR, CO, CL)	variants/04-latam.md	USD-equivalent	Meta CPM $0.50-1.5, Google CPC $0.20-0.80, ROAS 2-3x

Why region matters: A $5 CPM is excellent in US but terrible in Vietnam. Audit grading without regional context produces false positives or false negatives.

---

Information Gathering

Ask up to 4 questions:

1. Which platforms? Meta / Google / TikTok / multi-platform — and what % of total ad spend each represents.
2. Industry + business model? (DTC e-com, dropshipping, B2B SaaS, lead-gen, local service, course/info-product.)
3. Monthly ad spend + region? (e.g. "$15K/month, 70% US, 30% Canada".)
4. Can you share data? Either paste tables, share a Looker Studio link, or grant view access to the ad account.

Auto-pull via MCP (if connected)

If user has connected an MCP server, pull data directly:

Platform	MCP recommended	Key tools used
Meta Ads	Meta Official MCP (mcp.facebook.com/ads)	ads_insights_anomaly_signal, ads_insights_auction_ranking_benchmarks, ads_get_dataset_quality, ads_get_opportunity_score
Google Ads	Google Official MCP	GAQL: campaign performance, search terms, quality score
TikTok Ads	AdsMCP / tiktok-ads-mcp-server	Performance reports, creative library
Cross-platform	Adspirer ads-mcp	Unified analytics across 175+ tools

Sample Meta Insights fields when MCP unavailable:

fields=spend,impressions,clicks,ctr,cpc,cpm,actions,cost_per_action_type,
       purchase_roas,frequency,reach
date_preset=last_30d
level=adset
breakdowns=age,gender

Sample GAQL query for Google audit:

SELECT campaign.name, campaign.status, campaign.bidding_strategy_type,
       metrics.impressions, metrics.clicks, metrics.cost_micros,
       metrics.conversions, metrics.cost_per_conversion,
       metrics.search_impression_share
FROM campaign
WHERE segments.date DURING LAST_30_DAYS
  AND campaign.status != 'REMOVED'
ORDER BY metrics.cost_micros DESC

---

Health Score Framework (0-100)

Formula

Health Score = Σ(Check_pass × Severity_weight × Dimension_weight)
             / Σ(Check_total × Severity_weight × Dimension_weight) × 100

Severity weights

Severity	Multiplier	Meaning
Critical	5.0×	Active money/data loss — fix today
High	3.0×	Major impact — fix within 7 days
Medium	1.5×	Best practice gap — fix within 30 days
Low	0.5×	Optimization — fix when possible

Grade scale

Score	Grade	Meaning
90-100	A	Excellent — maintain & scale
75-89	B	Good — a few improvements needed
60-74	C	Average — needs serious investment
40-59	D	Poor — significant performance leaks
<40	F	Critical — likely losing money in real time

6 Dimensions

1. Account     (10%) — billing, permissions, BM/MCC structure, account warnings
2. Campaign    (15%) — objectives, separation (cold/warm/retarget), budget allocation
3. AdSet/AdGroup (20%) — audience, budget, scheduling, exclusions, learning phase
4. Ad/Creative (25%) — diversity, freshness, hook quality, format mix
5. Tracking    (20%) — pixel/CAPI/server-side, event quality, attribution model
6. Optimization (10%) — bid strategy, ML signals, budget pacing, automation rules

---

84 Checkpoints (Universal Core)

Region-specific benchmark numbers live in the variant files. The checkpoint logic is identical worldwide.

Dimension 1 — ACCOUNT (12 checks, weight 10%)

#	Check	Severity
A01	Business Manager / MCC structured (single source of truth)	High
A02	Account billing healthy (no failed charges in 30d)	Critical
A03	No active account warnings or restrictions	Critical
A04	Domain verified (Meta) or website verified (Google/TikTok)	High
A05	iOS 14.5+ Aggregated Event Measurement configured (Meta)	High
A06	Brand safety / suitability set (Meta + Google)	Medium
A07	User access roles minimized (no over-permissioned users)	Medium
A08	Spending limit set per account (prevents runaway charges)	Medium
A09	2FA enabled on all admin accounts	High
A10	Conversion API token rotated within 12 months	Low
A11	Account currency matches market currency	Low
A12	Tax/VAT configuration correct for region	Low

Dimension 2 — CAMPAIGN (14 checks, weight 15%)

#	Check	Severity
C01	Cold / warm / retarget campaigns separated	High
C02	Campaign objectives match real business outcome	Critical
C03	No more than 3-5 active "core" campaigns	Medium
C04	Campaign Budget Optimization (CBO) used appropriately	Medium
C05	No overlapping audiences across active campaigns	High
C06	Brand vs non-brand campaigns separated (Google)	High
C07	Search vs Performance Max separated (Google)	High
C08	iOS / Android segregation when economics differ	Low
C09	Budget allocated proportionally to ROAS-by-funnel-stage	High
C10	Naming convention consistent (Brand_Funnel_Geo_Date)	Low
C11	Campaign-level frequency caps set (where supported)	Medium
C12	Holiday/promo campaigns tagged & sunset-dated	Low
C13	Negative geo / language exclusions set	Medium
C14	Brand keywords campaign exists with good QS (Google)	High

Dimension 3 — AD SET / AD GROUP (16 checks, weight 20%)

#	Check	Severity
S01	Daily budget ≥ 5× target CPA per ad set	Critical
S02	Not editing ad sets currently in Learning Phase	High
S03	Audience size 1M-50M for cold prospecting (Meta)	High
S04	Audience overlap between ad sets <25%	High
S05	Lookalikes built from quality seeds (purchasers, not clickers)	High
S06	Negative keywords list maintained (Google)	High
S07	Match types appropriate (Broad+Smart Bidding, or Phrase/Exact)	High
S08	Search term report reviewed within 14 days	High
S09	Exclusion of past purchasers from acquisition campaigns	Critical
S10	Placement: Advantage+/automatic where appropriate	Medium
S11	Ad scheduling matches actual peak-conversion hours	Medium
S12	Bid strategy matches account stage (Lowest Cost early, Cost Cap mature)	High
S13	Demographic restrictions justified by data (not prejudice)	Medium
S14	TikTok-specific: SmartTargeting tested vs manual	Medium
S15	Quality score average ≥6/10 (Google)	High
S16	Ad set count per campaign ≤5 (Meta) for ML efficiency	Medium

Dimension 4 — AD / CREATIVE (18 checks, weight 25%)

#	Check	Severity
AD01	At least 10 truly different creatives per active ad set	High
AD02	No single creative running >21 days continuously	High
AD03	Frequency <3.5 on cold audience	High
AD04	All 3 formats present (video / image / carousel)	Medium
AD05	Videos have sound/music (TikTok-critical)	Critical
AD06	First 3 seconds hook tested (Hook Rate >25%)	High
AD07	Captions / on-screen text present (sound-off viewing)	High
AD08	UGC / review-style creative present (≥1)	Medium
AD09	CTA explicit in creative (voice or text)	High
AD10	Vertical 9:16 used for Stories/Reels/TikTok	High
AD11	Resolution ≥720p (1080p preferred)	Medium
AD12	RSA: ≥8/15 headlines, ≥4/4 descriptions filled (Google)	High
AD13	Asset strength "Good" or higher on RSA (Google)	Medium
AD14	Sitelink / callout / call extensions present (Google)	Medium
AD15	Landing page load time <3s on 4G	High
AD16	Landing page mobile-first design verified	Critical
AD17	Creative-to-LP message match (no bait-and-switch)	High
AD18	Compliance: no policy violations (alcohol, health, financial)	Critical

Dimension 5 — TRACKING (16 checks, weight 20%)

#	Check	Severity
T01	Pixel/Tag installed on all relevant pages	Critical
T02	Purchase / Lead / KeyEvent firing accurately	Critical
T03	Conversion API (CAPI / Enhanced Conversions) deployed	High
T04	Event Match Quality ≥6.0 (Meta)	High
T05	No duplicate events (deduplication ID set)	Critical
T06	UTM parameters present on all paid links	Medium
T07	GA4 linked to Google Ads + GA4 linked to BigQuery	High
T08	Conversion windows aligned across platforms	High
T09	Server-side tracking layer (GTM SS, Stape) considered	Medium
T10	Triple Whale / Hyros / Northbeam reconciled vs platform (DTC)	High
T11	TikTok Pixel + Events API both firing	High
T12	View-through and click-through windows documented	Medium
T13	Cross-domain tracking working (multi-domain checkout)	High
T14	First-party data collection (email/phone) for CAPI matching	High
T15	Cookie consent compliant (GDPR / CCPA / LGPD)	Critical
T16	Bot/spam traffic filtered from conversion data	Medium

Dimension 6 — OPTIMIZATION (8 checks, weight 10%)

#	Check	Severity
O01	Automated rules in place (pause low ROAS, scale winners)	Medium
O02	Budget pacing reviewed weekly	Medium
O03	Creative refresh cadence set (≥30% new every 14 days)	High
O04	A/B testing framework defined (one variable at a time)	Medium
O05	Reporting cadence: daily skim, weekly deep-dive	Low
O06	Diagnostics tab reviewed (Quality, Engagement, Conversion)	Medium
O07	Performance reviewed by funnel stage (TOFU/MOFU/BOFU)	High
O08	Stop-loss thresholds defined per campaign	High

---

Quick Wins Decision Tree

After scoring, surface the top 5-10 actions a user can do today (<15 minutes each).

START → Is any Critical check failing?
        ├─ YES → Fix in next 24 hours (account-level issues first)
        │        ├─ A02/A03 (billing/warning) → fix immediately
        │        ├─ T01/T02/T05 (tracking broken) → fix before any more spend
        │        ├─ S01 (budget < 5× CPA) → increase budget or pause
        │        └─ AD18 (policy violation) → revise creative
        │
        └─ NO → Score Critical/High Quick Wins by impact:
                 ├─ Pause "wasted spend" keywords / ad sets (>$200 spend, 0 conv)
                 ├─ Add exclusion of past purchasers from cold campaigns
                 ├─ Refresh top-frequency creative (>3.5 freq)
                 ├─ Enable CAPI / Enhanced Conversions
                 ├─ Add UTM parameters to untagged ads
                 └─ Connect GA4 ↔ Google Ads if not linked

Each Quick Win must include: action, expected impact, time required, owner.

---

Dropshipping Audit Checklist (Special Section)

Dropshipping has unique audit needs: high creative volume, thin margins, attribution opacity, and compressed test cycles. This section augments — not replaces — the 84 universal checkpoints.

1. Creative Testing Velocity (the #1 dropshipping killer)

Check	Pass criteria	Severity
New creatives launched per week	≥10 (winning store benchmark)	Critical
Creative-to-spend ratio	1 winning ad funds 4-5 tests	High
Hook variations tested	≥3 hooks per product	High
UGC creator pipeline active	≥2 UGC creators delivering weekly	High
Cycle time from brief to launch	<72 hours	High

Failure mode: A store running 2-3 creatives "until they die" instead of testing 10+/week is starving Meta's algorithm and ad fatigue compounds. Fix: build a creative ops calendar (see 06-ugc-egc-brief-global).

2. CBO vs ABO Setup

Check	Pass criteria	Severity
Testing layer uses ABO (Ad Set Budget)	≥3 ad sets, $20-50/day each	High
Scaling layer uses CBO (Campaign Budget)	Top winners only, single CBO	High
Budget reallocates within 3-7 days of clear winner	Document rule + execute	Medium
No mixed CBO with non-comparable ad sets	Audit campaign structure	High

3. Pixel + CAPI Dual Tracking (post-iOS 14.5 critical)

Check	Pass criteria	Severity
Pixel + CAPI both firing on Purchase event	Verified in Test Events	Critical
EMQ ≥7.0 (dropshipping should beat 6.0 floor)	Events Manager	High
Email + phone + first-name + last-name passed via CAPI	Backend integration	Critical
Server-side tracking via Stape/GTM SS for AOV>$50 stores	Verified deployment	High
iOS attribution gap reconciled with Triple Whale or Hyros	Compare last 30 days	High

4. Landing Page CRO Signals

Check	Pass criteria	Severity
Mobile load time <2.5s (LCP)	PageSpeed Insights	Critical
Add-to-Cart rate ≥6% (sessions → ATC)	GA4 / Shopify	High
Checkout conversion ≥40% (ATC → Purchase)	GA4 / Shopify	High
Hero matches winning ad (creative-LP message match)	Manual review	Critical
Trust badges, reviews, return policy visible above fold	Manual review	High
Exit-intent + abandoned cart sequence active	Klaviyo / equivalent	High

5. Attribution Accuracy

Check	Pass criteria	Severity
UTMs use consistent schema (utm_source/medium/campaign/content)	URL builder doc	High
Triple Whale / Hyros / Northbeam connected	At least one MMP active	High
Platform-reported revenue vs Shopify revenue gap <15%	Reconciliation report	High
Post-purchase survey ("How did you hear about us?") active	Order form / KnoCommerce	Medium
Customer LTV tracked, not just first-order revenue	Cohort report quarterly	High

6. Profit Margin Tracking

Check	Pass criteria	Severity
Net margin per order calculated (after COGS, ad spend, fees)	Spreadsheet or Lifetimely	Critical
MER (Marketing Efficiency Ratio = total revenue / total ad spend) tracked daily	Dashboard	High
Break-even ROAS documented and visible	Operations dashboard	Critical
Refund/chargeback rate <5%	Shopify reports	High
Profit-per-customer rising or flat (not declining)	90-day cohort	High

Dropshipping cross-reference: When auditing dropshipping accounts, also call 29-dropshipping-mastery-global for product-fit and supply-chain audit beyond ad-account scope.

---

Output Structure

# Ads Audit: [Brand / Product]
Audit date: [YYYY-MM-DD]
Region: [US / EU / SEA / LATAM]
Auditor: [Agency / In-house]
Spend audited: [$ — last 30d]

## Executive Summary

| Platform | Score | Grade | Top issue |
|----------|-------|-------|-----------|
| Meta Ads | [n]/100 | [A-F] | [1-line] |
| Google Ads | [n]/100 | | |
| TikTok Ads | [n]/100 | | |
| **Aggregate** | **[n]/100** | **[Grade]** | |

## Critical Issues (fix in 24 hours)
[List failed Critical checks with remediation steps]

## Quick Wins (today, <15 min each)
[Top 5-10 actions, sorted by impact]

## By Dimension

### 1. Account — [score]/10
[Pass/fail per check, with screenshots if MCP-pulled]

### 2. Campaign — [score]/10
[...]

[Continue for all 6 dimensions]

## By Platform

### Meta Ads — [score]/100
[Breakdown by dimension]

### Google Ads — [score]/100
[...]

### TikTok Ads — [score]/100
[...]

## Dropshipping Audit (if applicable)
[6 sub-sections from Dropshipping Checklist]

## 7-Day Action Plan

| Day | Action | Platform | Owner | Expected outcome |
|-----|--------|----------|-------|------------------|
| Day 1 | [Quick wins + Critical fixes] | | | |
| Day 2-3 | [High priority] | | | |
| Day 4-5 | [Tracking + creative] | | | |
| Day 6-7 | [Setup + test deploy] | | | |

## 30-Day Forecast
[Realistic improvement estimate if all Critical/High fixed]

## Appendix
- Raw data exports
- Screenshots
- MCP query logs (if used)

---

Cross-references

When you need	Call skill
Diagnose current KPIs and funnel	03-performance-eval-global
Deep data analysis (descriptive→prescriptive)	13-data-analysis-global
Refresh creative after audit finds fatigue	05-ad-copy-global + 06-ugc-egc-brief-global
Reverse-calc budget after fixing tracking	10-reverse-kpi-calc-global
Dropshipping product/supply audit	29-dropshipping-mastery-global
Set up A/B test for fixes	19-ab-test-setup-global

---

Quality Checklist (before delivery)

• Region variant loaded and benchmarks contextualized
• All 84 checks scored (no skipped)
• Health Score calculated per platform AND aggregate
• Critical issues separated and fix-in-24h flagged
• Quick Wins ≤15 min each, sorted by impact
• Dropshipping section included if business model = dropship
• 7-day Action Plan with owner + expected outcome per row
• 30-day forecast realistic (not over-promise)
• No "improve creative" without specifying WHICH creative + WHY
• No scaling recommendation when Critical tracking fails
• No edits suggested for ad sets in Learning Phase
• Cross-references called when needed (e.g. 06 for creative)

---

Region Variant References

Load the appropriate file before scoring:

• variants/01-us.md — United States, Canada
• variants/02-eu.md — European Union, UK
• variants/03-sea.md — Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia
• variants/04-latam.md — Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile

Each variant contains: healthy CPM/CPC ranges, ROAS targets per business model, common red flags, region-specific compliance gates, and tracking platform peculiarities.