Meta’s Testing Automated Creative Variations for Reels

This could be interesting. Facebook is currently testing a new, automated process that will help you optimize the performance of Reels posted by a business page, by experimenting with different variations of the content, without you doing a thing.

As you can see in this example, posted by Radu Oncescu, some Facebook Page managers are being prompted to try out “Auto A/B” testing within the Reels posting flow, which will create variations of your Reel and sample them with audience segments.

As per the pop-up:

“We’ll test different versions of your reel with various captions, covers and more and distribute the top performer for you.”

It’s the latest update to Meta’s evolving automated creation options, with the platform also experimenting with auto-generated templates for Reels promotions, which help to optimize your creative into the best-performing Reels formats.

Meta also added caption A/B testing for Reels creators last November, which is a similar, but more manual variation of the same.

This one, however, takes more control out of your hands.

As it leans further into AI, Meta continues to add more elements into its Advantage product suite for ad partners, including improved ad creation and placement options, based on Meta’s systematic understanding of performance.

Indeed, eventually, you won’t even need to create an ad at all, with Meta’s system taking product info from a URL and populating a campaign, in alignment with creative best practices.

That’s the ideal vision of its Advantage suite, though many marketers will probably want to rely on their own audience understanding and nous to come up with the most resonant, creative campaigns.

Though if Meta’s systems produce better results, it may be worth trying. Not all Page managers have access to this new option as yet, but when it does become available, it’d be interesting to test, and cross-match the results against the performance of your own creative, versus the one that Meta recommends.

Theoretically, Meta’s systems should be able to come up with better options, based on broader understanding of what works with Facebook and IG users. But again, it does feel like putting a little bit too much trust in the robots just yet.

Either way, it’s another consideration. Meta’s currently testing the option with selected Pages.