Ciaran Finn

Your Glow Up

Managing Director at Your Glow Up, an award-winning DTC performance creative agency.

Lowering acquisition costs and scaling 8-9 figure DTC brands through performance ad creative.

Find out more at www.yourglowup.io.

Managing Director

Blue Finn Media

Founder & CEO of an award-winning performance marketing agency for eCommerce brands.

We partner with growth-focussed eCommerce brands, taking a CMO-based approach to hitting revenue goals through paid advertising, performance creative and growth consulting.

Learn more here: bluefinnmedia.com

scale & send

The DTC eCommerce events company that your agency tells you not to worry about.

Co-Founder

Kensington Media House

👉 Strategic Director at leading Retention Marketing Agency, Kensington Media House
👉 Regularly achieving 35%+ revenue driven through Email & SMS with no additional ad spend 
👉 Over $60 million generated with Email & SMS for clients across the US, UK, EU, & Asia

Strategic Director

Whilst at university, I founded and ran a lead generation business under the "Rank & Rent" model.

I created highly converting funnels for a specific business niche, focussing on the core pain points of their ideal customers. I'd then use SEO to begin driving traffic to my funnels and generating leads. 

From here I optimized in two ways:
1. Improved my SEO marketing to drive more traffic at a faster rate.
2. I increased the conversion rate of the funnels through landing page optimization and split-testing offers, angles, landers.

These leads were then tracked using call softwares and CRMs, and to monetize:
1. I sold leads on a cost-per-lead basis
2. Or I rented the entire funnel for a flat fee, allowing businesses to receive exclusivity on all leads that the funnels generated.

Despite having fun and learning a lot during this period, I realised I preferred the faster impact of paid advertising vs organic SEO. This led me to a career as a performance marketing consultant, and ultimately founding my next business, a performance marketing agency called Blue Finn Media.

Funnel Builder & SEO Expert

LeadX Ltd

After 2+ years working as an Account Manager part-time whilst at school, I'd finished school and was ready for a full-time role.
 
Within a few days of switching full-time as an Account Manager, I was offered to join the group's head office as a Talent Acquisition Executive, and within the first month I was promoted to the role of Talent Acquisition Consultant.

Here I was responsible for headhunting specific executive positions and strategic recruiting for team members across all departments, including organising 60+ person recruitment events and achieving company-wide recruitment and talent acquisition KPIs.

This was for all consumer brands under the LeadX Holding group, including digital marketing agencies such as Ropto, with 1000+ employees across the group.

This was a performance based role and my bonuses were tied to my team's performance, meaning I was regularly assisting and leading other team members to ensure we hit our bonuses as a team every month.

Talent Acquisition Consultant

Aged 16, I began working as an Outbound Sales Representative at LeadX.

Despite being part-time and still at school, I was quickly top of the team and was promoted to Account Manager.

My role was heavily commission based and involved lead management and sales on behalf of the company.

Account Manager

Helping DTC Brands Scale 5+ New Ad Creatives Every Week // $150M+ In Trackable eCom Sales // DM me CREATIVE and let’s chat

DTC Brands: Click the button in my featured section below 👇

Founder & CEO

Founder & CEO of an award-winning growth consulting and performance marketing agency for eCommerce brands.

We partner with growth-focussed eCommerce brands, taking a CMO-based approach to hitting revenue goals through paid advertising, performance creative and growth consulting.

Learn more here: bluefinnmedia.com

The hierarchy of importance for paid social is now:

1. Good Creative
2. Good Offer
3. Good Landing Page
4. Good Media Buyer

The right combination of creative and offer will make any media buyer look good.

--

P.S. - We're growing super fast and are hiring media buyers and creative strategists right now - click this link to see all of our open roles and apply https://lnkd.in/dTXEw5dw

HIRING Media Buyers & Creative Strategists - See My Featured Post For More Info! // Scaling DTC Brands with Performance Creative & Media Buying // $500M+ In Trackable DTC Sales

Media buying tip:

Before you increase your ad spend, fix these 4 things 👇

𝟭. 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲

→ Keep campaigns consolidated and organized
→ Eliminate audience overlap
→ Align each campaign to a single optimization goal
→ A clear structure helps Meta read signals faster

𝟮. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗵𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲

→ Allow campaigns 5–7 days to stabilize
→ Maintain consistent budgets during learning
→ Review data only after the learning period ends
→ Stable inputs create reliable outcomes

𝟯. 𝗕𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

→ Direct spend toward proven creatives and audiences
→ Scale budgets gradually (20–30% at a time)
→ Use automated rules to control pacing and spend
→ Monitor MER to understand true performance

𝟰. 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗽

→ Track performance with UTMs
→ Identify where your best conversions originate
→ Recycle high-quality audience data into new tests
→ Strong data loops train the algorithm to perform better

—

These 4 habits compound over time.

That’s how you build scalable, predictable media buying systems.

I’ve been seeing a lot of brands completely shaken by the Andromeda update.

So let’s clear the air on what it actually is…

Andromeda isn’t some boogeyman who’s only purpose is to terrorize your CPM’s

Andromeda is just an iteration on the Meta algorithm that has gotten smarter at matching creative to people.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁:

Meta is now fully behavior-driven.

It studies how people interact with content on the platform and uses that to decide who sees your ads.

The manual controls you used to rely on? They matter less than ever.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀:

𝟭. 𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗻𝘀

The days of building 15 different campaigns with split audiences are over.

Meta learns faster when it has one consolidated environment.

The winning setup:

→ 1-2 campaigns (testing + scaling)
→ Broad targeting or Advantage+
→ Let creative do the heavy lifting

𝟮. 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴

Meta now matches specific creatives to specific people.

If you're only 2-3 angels with a few hook variations, you're limiting what the algorithm can learn.

You need an arsenal of different concepts on a weekly basis:

→ UGC
→ Product demos
→ Founder stories
→ Customer testimonials
→ Problem / solution focused
→ Podcast style ads

The algorithm finds what each individual person responds to most and serves that.

𝟯. 𝗩𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝘃𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲

They launch 5-10 ads per month and wonder why nothing scales.

Here's the reality: you need volume to find winners.

→ 20-30 new concepts per month minimum
→ 4-5 variations of each concept
→ Test for a week and pick out the winners

More tests = more data for Meta to learn from = more winners.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗼𝗺 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲:

Meta's Andromeda rewards:

→ Clean account structure
→ Diverse set of creatives
→ Constant iterations & improvements

This is the only path to growth for DTC eCommerce brands in 2026 and beyond.

I can predict which ad accounts will scale by just looking at 4 metrics.

𝗔𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟮𝟱𝟬+ 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝟱 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀, 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗳𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱:

The ones that scale past $300k/month all have these 4 metrics dialed in.

These 4 building blocks are what actually make up your ROAS.

Instead of flying blind, these to see consistent, predictable results:

𝟭. 𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗸-𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 (𝗖𝗧𝗥)

Your creative either stops the scroll or it doesn't.

Double your CTR from 1% to 2%? You've doubled your traffic without spending an extra dollar.

→ Industry benchmark: 1.5-2.5%

𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙯𝙚 𝘾𝙏𝙍:

• Better hooks
• stronger visuals
• clearer messaging

𝟮. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗥𝗮𝘁𝗲 (𝗖𝗥)

The percentage of clicks that actually buy.
Most accounts break here.

𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙯𝙚 𝘾𝙍:

• Match your ad to your landing page
• Remove checkout friction, show pricing in ads
• Avoid clickbait ads that destroy CR

𝟯. 𝗔𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗢𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗩𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲 (𝗔𝗢𝗩)

Most brands ignore it completely.
When it can be a complete game changer.

𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙯𝙚 𝘼𝙊𝙑:

• Create product bundles
• Have Tiered pricing
• Implement free shipping thresholds

𝟰. 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲 (𝗖𝗣𝗠)

Most brands think they can't control CPM.

They're wrong.

𝙃𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝘾𝙋𝙈:

• Make ads that look native to the platform
• Drive organic engagement
• Use trending formats

These 4 metrics make up the 𝗥𝗢𝗔𝗦 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘅.

Brands that optimize all 4 scale profitably and consistently.

We have a custom ROAS Matrix calculator we’ve used to help audit 250+ accounts.

It shows you exactly which metric is killing your performance.

And today I'm giving it away for free.

To get access, all you need to do is:

1. Connect with me Ciaran Finn
2. Comment ‘ROAS’ below

And I’ll send the ROAS calculator straight over to you.

Feel free to repost if you find it valuable, to help someone in your network discover how they can improve their ROAS without anymore headaches.

We've whitelisted 1500+ Meta ads in the past 6 months.
But 95% of brands have no idea how to do it properly.

I'm giving away our internal Whitelisting Cheatsheet that we use with every client - completely FREE.

This is the exact step-by-step system we follow to launch whitelisted ads for 7 and 8-figure DTC brands, which has helped us reduce CPAs by an average of 35% across our client portfolio.

This cheatsheet includes everything:

✅ The 3 types of whitelisting (and when to use each one)
✅ Pros and cons of each whitelisting method
✅ Real examples from brands like Dr. Squatch and Mirror
✅ The 8-step process to launch whitelisted ads
✅ Step-by-step Facebook Business Manager setup guide

We've spent the last 2 years perfecting this process across hundreds of creator partnerships.

This training is worth thousands to brands that implement it correctly.

Today, you can have it for 100% free.

To get access, all you need to do is:
1. Connect with me Ciaran Finn
2. Comment 'WHITELIST' below
   
And I'll send the Whitelisting Cheatsheet straight over.

DTC Growth Expert // $700M+ In Trackable DTC Sales // Scaling 7-9 Figure DTC Brands

Ads that look organic and native to the platform are the best performing creatives in 2025.
 
But most brands only run ads from their own brand page.
 
Thats where whitelisting can be a complete game changer.
 
Whitelisting lets you run ads through creator profiles, third-party pages, or publisher accounts instead.
 
The result? Your ad shows up in someone's feed looking organic.
 
It bypasses ad blindness completely.
 
We've seen this single strategy reduce CPA by 30-40% for brands spending $100k+/month on Meta.
 
There are three main whitelisting strategies:
 
→ Influencer whitelisting — running ads through creator profiles. Most effective but requires partnerships.
 
→ Third-party page whitelisting — creating pages like "DTC Growth Hub" to run ads from. Easiest to set up.
 
→ Publisher whitelisting — building editorial-style pages with listicle landing pages. Most scalable long-term.
 
Each one works differently depending on your brand, offer, and creative style.
 
Hundreds of 8-figure DTC brands use influencer whitelisting to scale past seven figures.
 
The strategy isn't complex. But the setup process is where most brands get stuck.
 
That’s why we’ve put together our internal Whitelisting Cheatsheet that breaks down all 3 strategies, includes real brand examples, and shows the exact step-by-step process we use to launch whitelisted campaigns for our clients.
 
I’m giving it away for completely free today, so f you want it:
 
• connect with me (Ciaran Finn)
• comment 'WHITELIST' below.
 
I'll send it over to you in the DM’s

I audited 8 accounts spending $100k/month in October.
Here's the one mistake I saw in most of them:

They were scaling winners too aggressively.

Let me explain:

A brand hits a winner — 2.8x ROAS at $8k/day spend.

They get excited.

Double the budget overnight.

Two days later?

CPA jumps 60%. ROAS tanks to 1.4x.

What happened?

They exceeded the ad's saturation point.

Every winning ad has a ceiling — a maximum efficient spend threshold before performance collapses. 

Most brands don't know where that ceiling is.

So they scale blindly and burn through budget watching their "winner" turn into a loser.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝘅 𝗶𝘁:

→ Increase budget by 20-30% every 48 hours (not overnight)
→ Monitor CPM and frequency daily during scale
→ When performance starts declining, pause the increase
→ Duplicate the creative with new hooks instead of pushing the original further

Smart brands scale horizontally (more winning ads) not vertically (forcing one ad to do everything).

We took one fashion brand from $300k/month to $800k/month in four months using this exact approach.

Controlled budget increases. Creative iteration. No aggressive scaling.

Most brands think scaling = more budget.

It doesn't.

Scaling = more winning ads at sustainable spend levels.

We kill 80% of our ads within 72 hours. The other 20%?

They become winning concepts that scale.

Here's the exact 4-stage framework we use to separate winners from losers in under a week:

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝟭: 𝗣𝗿𝗲-𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗦𝗲𝘁𝘂𝗽

ABO campaign structure (not CBO).

One concept per ad set. 4-5 variations of each concept.

Broad targeting only.

Why ABO? Because we need clean data on each concept.

CBO pushes budget toward early winners before you have clean data.

ABO forces equal spend across all concepts so you can actually see what performs.

Budget per ad set: 3x your AOV minimum.

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝟮: 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟳𝟮-𝗛𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗼𝘄

Launch all concepts simultaneously.

Monitor two metrics only: CPA and ROAS.

Ignore soft metrics like hook rate and CTR at this stage.

They don't pay your bills.

After 72 hours (or when each ad spends 3x AOV), categorize:

→ Winner: CPA below target
→ Loser: CPA above target

Kill losers immediately.

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝟯: 𝗥𝗮𝗽𝗶𝗱 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴

Duplicate winners into your scaling campaign.

But here's what most brands get wrong: they turn off the winning ad in the testing campaign.

Don't do this. That ad is making you money.

Instead, let it run in both campaigns.

Increase budget by 20-30% every 48 hours in the testing campaign.

Watch for saturation signals.

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝟰: 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝘅𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

Most brands move on to the next batch of creative without understanding why ads won or lost.

We analyze every element:

→ The creator
→ The angle
→ The format (video vs static vs GIF)
→ The hook
→ The messaging

We document hypotheses on why each ad performed the way it did.

These learnings become the foundation for the next testing round.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁:

Every test produces data.

Every winner becomes a template.

Most brands treat testing like throwing spaghetti at a wall.

We treat it like a science experiment.

That's how you scale creative profitably.

2 years ago, I used worked 14-hour days and only hit 80% of my tasks.

Today, I work 8-9 hours and move faster than ever.

Here’s what changed:

I used to wake up and just react.

→ Emails at 7AM
→ Client call at 8AM
→ Deep work at 9AM
→ More emails at 10AM

By noon, I was mentally cooked.

By 5pm, I was a zombie.

I thought I was just "busy."

Turns out I was burning energy in the wrong order.

Here's what I do differently now:

I divide my day into 3 work blocks.

Each block has one purpose - and I never mix them.

𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗕𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝟭: 𝗗𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 (𝗛𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝟭-𝟯)

This work block starts right after I wake up when my brain is sharpest.

No meetings. No Slack. No emails.

Just coffee and the most important work that moves the business forward.

Anything related to: Strategy, Growth, Big decisions gets put into this bucket.

𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗕𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝟮: 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 & 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 (𝗛𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝟰-𝟳)

This is when I'm with my team.

Client calls. Internal strategy sessions. Problem-solving.

All the collaboration that requires my attention gets stacked here.

𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗕𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸 𝟯: 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 & 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻 (𝗛𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝟴-𝟵)

This is when I close the loop.

→ Review what got done today.
→ Identify what didn't get done and why.
→ Have a 1-on-1 with my business partner.
→ Plan tomorrow's priorities.

I never start a day without knowing exactly what needs to happen.

And I never end a day without knowing where we stand.

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀:

Energy isn't constant throughout the day.

Your best thinking happens when you're fresh.

Your best collaboration happens when your mind is primed.

Your best planning happens when you can reflect.

Most people try to do all three at once, all day long.

That's why they're exhausted and unproductive.

Structure your day around your energy, not your to-do list.

You'll get more done and feel better doing it.

At 16, I trained twice a day chasing a career as a professional kickboxer.

Six days a week. For years.

I never made it pro.

But those years taught me everything I needed to build a 7-figure agency:

𝟭. 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗻

Punches hurt. Rejection hurts more.

But you can't become a great fighter if you flinch.

And you can't build a great business if you avoid rejection.

You’re going to get hit. You’re going to get rejected.

The best fighters & entrepreneurs know how to keep moving forward.

𝟮. 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗹𝗹 𝗴𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝘁.

In the ring, your cardio either holds or it doesn't.

No amount of talent saves you when your body can’t keep up.

Business works the same way.

If you're not sleeping well, eating right, or moving your body—you'll burnout.

Treat yourself like a professional athlete - that’s how you outlast competitors.

𝟯. 𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝘆 𝗮𝘀 𝗺𝘂𝗰𝗵 𝗮𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻

The best fighters don't just train. They study.

They watch their own fights.
Their competitors.
The legends.

Business is the same.

You can outwork people.

But if you're not constantly learning, someone smarter will outmaneuver you.

𝟰. 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝘀

Every fighter has a style.

They have strengths, and they have weaknesses.

The worst thing you can do is try to be good at everything.

Find what you're naturally better at. Then make it undeniable.

In business, I stopped trying to be everything to everyone.

I doubled down on what I did best and hired people better than me to fill the gaps.

That's when things scaled.

Looking back, I can confidently say fighting has taught me more than any business book ever could.

PS. Anyone else feel the same about their sport?

The best creative strategists in 2026 won't just make pretty ads.

They’ll think like CMOs.

Here's what that actually means:

Six years ago, creative strategists wrote briefs and came up with concepts.

That was the job.

Today, that same person will get outperformed by someone who understands unit economics.

The role evolved. But most people haven't adapted.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗖𝗠𝗢𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁:

They don't care if your hook is clever.

They care if it drives down CPA.

They don't care about your aesthetic.

They care if it moves MER.

They don't optimize for views or engagement.

They optimize for profit.

If you're making creative decisions based on what "looks good" instead of what the data says works, you're operating like it's 2019.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆:

They start every brief by analyzing the last 30 days of performance data.

→ Which angles drove the lowest CPA?
→ Which hooks had the highest conversion rate?
→ Which formats scaled past $10k/day spend?

They understand the brand's unit economics before pitching a single idea.

Most importantly, they translate customer research into creative strategy.

There’s a strategic “Why” behind every concept they plan.

They read through post-purchase surveys, customer reviews, competitor reviews, comments, and testimonials — extracting the exact pain points, objections, and language their customers use.

They know soft metrics inform iteration, but hard metrics determine winners.

Hook rate tells them where to improve. CPA tells them if it's worth improving.

𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲:

You don't need to become a media buyer.

You need to understand what makes creative profitable.

Ask your media buyer these three questions weekly:

→ Which ad angles are hitting target CPA?
→ What's the average CPA by creative format this month?
→ Which concepts are scaling past $5k/day?

Use those answers to inform your next creative brief.

And lead your creative strategy with performance insights baked in.

That's how you stay valuable in 2025.

𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝟰 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 𝗺𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗥𝗢𝗔𝗦...

And most brands have absolutely no clue.

They blame creative. They blame the algorithm. They blame everything except the real problem.

After auditing 250+ ad accounts over the last 5 years, I can predict which brands will scale past 8-figures by looking at just 4 metrics.

These 4 metrics are what actually make up your ROAS:

→ Click-Through Rate (CTR)
→ Conversion Rate (CR)
→ Average Order Value (AOV)
→ Cost Per Mille (CPM)

Brands that optimize all 4 scale profitably and consistently.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺:

Most brands don't know which of these 4 metrics is their bottleneck.

Is your CTR killing your traffic?
Is your CR too low?
Is your AOV leaving money on the table?
Is your CPM bleeding budget?

You're flying blind.

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝘄𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗢𝗔𝗦 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘅 𝗖𝗮𝗹𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿.

This is our internal tool that shows you EXACTLY which metric is killing your performance.

We've used it to audit 250+ accounts spending anywhere from $10k to $500k per month.

It tells you:

✅ Which metric is your biggest bottleneck
✅ How much revenue you're leaving on the table
✅ Exactly where to focus to increase ROAS
✅ What "good" looks like for your account size

One of my clients told me I should be charging at least $2k for this calculator.

But today I'm feeling nice, so you can have it for 100% free.

To get access, all you need to do is:

1. Connect with me Ciaran Finn
2. Comment 'ROAS' below
   
And I'll send the ROAS Matrix Calculator straight over.

PS. As a bonus, I'll include a video guide showing exactly how we use the ROAS Matrix equation to identify your bottleneck and fix it 🎁

This one lifestyle change has made me more money than anything else.
(It’s probably not what you think.)

I grew up believing that hard work meant long hours.

That's why I prioritized working hours over everything else.

I needed to work a minimum of 12 hours a day to feel like I was giving it my all.

There was only one issue - I was averaging 5-6 hours of sleep per night.

I convinced myself it was necessary.

But I was just putting in more time doing less quality work.

Here's what changed:

Instead of prioritizing work - I started to prioritize sleep.

The more your business grows
The bigger your organization gets
The more your decisions count.

Your job as a CEO is to make good decisions consistently.

And you can't do that if you’re not getting the sleep you need.

That's why sleep is now the cornerstone of my daily routine.

Here's what it looks like:

→ I go to bed at the same time every single night
→ I have my last meal of the day 4 hours prior to bed
→ Blue-light glasses go on 4 hours before I sleep
→ Phone goes away 2 hours before bed
→ I read a paperback book to wind down - no screens
→ Bedroom stays at 19°C

To make sure I’m getting high quality sleep on a nightly basis, I track everything with an Oura Ring.

My target: 9 hours in bed, minimum 8 hours of actual sleep.

The result:

→ Clearer thinking in strategy sessions
→ More patience with my team
→ Better decisions under pressure
→ No burnout by Thursday

Sleep isn't a luxury. It's the foundation everything else is built on.

If you're grinding on 5 hours and wondering why you feel stuck - start here.

Here's what nobody tells you about having a business partner:

People assume having a partner means doing half the work.

Wrong.

It means doing twice the work - but for something bigger than either of you could build alone.

When our agencies merged into Linear, people asked if it was scary giving up control.

It wasn't scary. In fact it was the smartest decision we ever made.

Here's why:

𝟭. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿'𝘀 𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁𝘀

I see problems he doesn't

He sees opportunities I miss.

When you're building solo, you only have your own perspective.

𝟮. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗱𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁

Running an agency will break you some days.

But when you have a partner who's in it with you, you're not carrying it alone.

We take turns being the optimist when the other needs it.

𝟯. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿

Two people making decisions is slower, right? Wrong.

When you trust someone completely, decisions get faster because you're not second-guessing everything alone.

𝟰. 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁-𝗶𝗻

There's no hiding from your partner. If I'm slipping, he calls it. If he's off track, I call it.

You can lie to yourself.

You can't lie to your partner.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆:

Partnership isn't for everyone.

If you need total control, can't handle being challenged, or don't want to share wins—go solo.

But if you find the right person who shares your vision, has complementary strengths, and is willing to 
carry you when you can't carry yourself?

You'll build something neither of you could have built alone.

That's what we've done with Linear.

And I wouldn't change it for anything.

PS. Shoutout to Evan Carroll for being a legend.

Black Friday is in 3 days.

But many brands are unsure about their ads…

I consult several DTC brands on their Meta strategy, and every year I see the same mistake.

BFCM is the most competitive window of the year.

CPMs spike, attention is scattered, and generic creative gets buried.

The brands that win Black Friday aren't spending more.

They're running creative specifically designed for BFCM buying psychology.

It's not too late to fix this.

That's why I'm giving away our Q4 Creative Strategy Cheatsheet today.

This is the exact playbook we use internally at Linear to prepare our clients for BFCM.

It includes everything:

✅ The 4 types of creative that outperform during BFCM
✅ Real examples of each creative type
✅ BFCM-specific hooks that convert holiday shoppers
✅ Offer stacking strategies for Black Friday
✅ Last-minute creative pivots you can make this week

Last BFCM, our clients generated multi-7 figures using this exact cheat sheet.

To get access, all you need to do is:

1. Connect with me
2. Comment 'Q4' below

And I'll send the Q4 Creative Strategy Cheatsheet straight over.
—
Feel free to repost if you find it valuable, to help someone else crush it this BFCM ♻️

There’s one thing behind the success of 250+ DTC brands we’ve worked with.

It’s simple, but almost no one does it:

Creative testing done the right way.

It’s one of our strongest levers, despite all the constant updates Meta has been throwing at advertisers.

Every week we run experiments.

New hooks. New formats. New angles. New offers.

Most agencies and brands don’t do this.

They find one “winning” creative and ride it for months until performance dips massively.

That’s why I get so many questions like:

“What should I test?” 
“How do I actually test it?” 
“How often do I need to launch something new?”

Here’s how we approach it, step by step, in a way that actually works.

1. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁:
   
We start with the angle, not the edit. If the story doesn’t click, no amount of fancy visuals will save it.

We experiment with:

→ Pain points and frustrations
→ Desires and dreams
→ Emotional triggers like curiosity, FOMO, or humor

Once the angle works, we layer in visuals, formats, and CTAs.

—
2. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁
   
Only test one variable at a time. Changing too much at once is the fastest way to waste money.

Our setup looks like this:

→ 3–5 variations per concept
→ Equal budgets for 3–4 days
→ Metrics we track: thumb-stop rate, watch-through rate, add-to-cart cost.

ROAS only comes last.

—
3. 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗼𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁
   
We launch new experiments every week, even if the current ads are performing. Creative fatigue is invisible until it hits, and by then it’s too late.

Having 2–3 fresh ads ready at all times keeps the account healthy.

—

4. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲
   
We kill ads fast, usually within 5-7 days if the metrics underperform.

We scale winners slowly, increasing budgets 20–30% per day to maintain efficiency.

—
Save this post and implement it, and I guarantee your creative performance will improve more than you think…

Probably more than most agencies could deliver in months.

If you're thinking about starting an agency, here's what no one tells you…

Some days will test everything you've got.

Campaigns that were printing money suddenly stop working.

The algorithm changes overnight.

Team members need guidance when you're still figuring it out yourself.

And through it all, you're the one who has to have the answers.

𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗱𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂:

When you get it right, nothing else compares.

→ You build a team of people who trust your vision
→ You solve problems that directly grow businesses
→ You develop skills most people will never have
→ You create financial freedom for yourself and your team
→ You earn the respect of clients who see real results
→ You get to choose who you work with and how you spend your time

The reality:

Running an agency will push you harder than anything else.

You'll face setbacks that make you question everything.

But every challenge you overcome makes you sharper.

Every client win validates the risk you took.

Every team member you develop becomes proof that what you're building matters.

Most people quit when it gets hard.

But the ones who push through build something most people only dream about.

If you run an agency, you already know this.

Keep going. The hard days are what make the wins worth it.

Had 6 back-to-back BFCM calls with 8-figure brands 
 
Here's what I told all of them:
 
𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗥𝗢𝗔𝗦 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱.
 
With 20-30% discounts and spiking CPMs, your margins aren't what they were last week.
 
If you haven't re-run your unit economics with BFCM margins, you're about to scale into a loss without realizing it.
 
𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝗘𝗥 𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗹𝘆.
 
During BFCM, your returning customers flood back.

They were buying anyway - your email list did the work.
 
Blended MER will look incredible, but it's not reliable data.
 
The metric that actually matters is aMER - new customer acquisition efficiency.

That tells you if your ads are actually working, or just capturing demand that already existed.
 
𝗔𝗢𝗩 𝗶𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝘂𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗖𝗣𝗠𝘀 𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗸𝗲.
 
CPMs will jump 40-60% by Friday morning. You can't control that.
 
What you can control: how much each customer spends.
 
Brands with strong AOV strategies (bundles, free shipping thresholds, post-purchase upsells) stay profitable at high CPMs.
 
𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸-𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗖𝗣𝗔 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗼𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘀.
 
Calculate this now: What's the maximum CPA you can afford at your BFCM margins and still make first-order profit?
 
Write it down - when your CPA crosses that line, you scale back.
 
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿.
 
The week after BFCM, CPMs crash 30-40%.

But buyer intent stays high - gift card redemptions, returns turning into exchanges, people spending holiday cash.
 
Smart brands hold 15-20% of their BFCM budget for this window.
 
We're now 48 hours out from BFCM - the prep is over.

Now it's just about staying disciplined.
 
Make sure to protect your margins.

The difference between great agencies and average ones?

It's not creative. It's not media buying.

𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗹𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀.

Great agencies audit the account ruthlessly before doing anything else.

Here are the 4 core components of every successful audit:

𝟭 - 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆

• what campaigns have been tested before
• which creative angles have been exhausted
• previous agency mistakes to avoid repeating
  
𝟮 - 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀

• current CPA and ROAS benchmarks
• seasonal trends and peak periods
• which metrics actually matter to the business

𝟯 - 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗚𝗮𝗽𝘀

• what ad formats haven't been tested yet
• competitor strategies that could be adapted
• content assets available vs. what's needed
  
𝟰 - 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗕𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗸𝘀

• why previous attempts to scale failed
• budget constraints and growth targets
• team capabilities and resource limitations

If you can understand the full context of what you're walking into,

Your strategy will be 10X more effective from day one.

You'll know exactly where the opportunities are.

Master this audit process - and watch your ramp time get cut in half.

Last week I audited a brand spending $400k/month on Meta.

They had outstanding creative, but their ROAS was 1.8x.

Creative was excellent. Hooks were strong. CTR was solid at 3.2%.

But when I looked at their funnel, the problems were obvious.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗻:

𝟭. 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗮𝗴𝗲

→ Ad mentioned "20% off" but landing page showed "15% off + free shipping"
→ Two different value props competing with each other
→ People were bouncing before they even scrolled

𝟮. 𝗟𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰

→ Product page assumed people already knew what the product did
→ No clear explanation of benefits above the fold
→ Lead time was 4-6 weeks (not mentioned until checkout)

𝟯. 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵

→ 71% cart abandonment rate (their industry average is around 60%)
→ Shipping cost only revealed at checkout
→ No email capture for abandoned carts

𝟰. 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴

→ 92% of budget on cold traffic
→ Only 8% on retargeting
→ No strategy for warming up traffic before the purchase

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲'𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝘅𝗲𝗱:

On the ad account side, we immediately:

→ Aligned the offer across all ads and landing pages (consistent 20% off everywhere)
→ Called out lead times clearly in the ad copy and on landing pages
→ Shifted the budget to 75% cold traffic, 25% retargeting

Then I walked the client through what needed to change on their site:

→ Add benefit-focused sections at the top of their product pages
→ Optimize their abandoned cart email flow

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁:

Same creative. Fixed foundation.

→ ROAS went from 1.8x to 2.7x in 5 weeks
→ Conversion rate increased by 32%
→ Cart abandonment dropped to 63%

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗻:

When ROAS drops, most brands immediately test new creative.

But if your CTR is decent and people are clicking, creative isn't your problem.

Your funnel is leaking.

1. Make sure your ad offer matches your landing page exactly
2. Explain your product clearly for people who've never heard of you
3. Remove checkout friction and capture abandoned carts
4. Build a proper retargeting strategy

Then scale with creative.

taplio

Ciaran Finn's Linkedin Analytics

Ciaran Finn

Performance ScoreCiaran Finn's LinkedIn Performance

Ciaran Finn's Best Posts (last 30 days)

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

.css-6ytdur{background-image:linear-gradient(284deg, rgba(39, 43, 72, 1) 0%, rgba(33, 47, 183, 1) 100%);color:transparent;-webkit-background-clip:text;background-clip:text;}Ciaran Finn's Linkedin Analytics

Ciaran Finn

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Ciaran Finn's LinkedIn Performance

Ciaran Finn's Best Posts .css-1emoo84{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:400;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);}(last 30 days)

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Ciaran Finn's Linkedin Analytics

Performance ScoreCiaran Finn's LinkedIn Performance

Ciaran Finn's Best Posts (last 30 days)