1 Jan – 28 May 2026
€95,470.88 in Meta ad spend. €573,222.05 in tracked sales.
Tracked in Meta Ads Manager.
Facebook & Instagram ads · E-commerce
Facebook ads
for online shops.
A practical plan.
For an online shop, Facebook and Instagram ads work best with three parts: campaigns that find new customers, ads that bring back people who viewed products or left a basket, and offers for past customers. All three depend on accurate purchase tracking with the order value. Judge results by profit after ad spend, not by clicks.
By Malta Digital · Published · Updated · 5 min read
Start with tracking
Start with
purchase tracking.
For e-commerce, tracking is the foundation. Meta needs to know which people bought and how much they spent, so it can find more buyers like them.
- The Meta Pixel and Conversions API installed, ideally through your shop platform’s official integration.
- ViewContent, AddToCart, InitiateCheckout and Purchase events firing correctly.
- The order value and currency sent with each purchase.
- Events counted once, not twice.
Check whether the order value sent to Meta includes VAT and delivery. Either is fine, but you need to know which, so you compare results with your own figures properly.
Product catalogue
Connect your
product catalogue.
A catalogue is a feed of your products, with names, prices, images, links and stock status. Shopify, WooCommerce and most shop platforms can sync it to Meta automatically.
With a catalogue connected, Meta can show each person the products they viewed, or products similar to them, in a single ad that updates itself. These catalogue ads are often the most efficient part of an online shop’s account.
Keep the feed clean. Wrong prices, missing images or out-of-stock items in ads waste money and annoy customers. Check the catalogue for errors in Commerce Manager.
The structure
A simple structure.
01
Find new customers
Broad audiences with strong product video and images. Let Meta find buyers, guided by your purchase data.
02
Bring back visitors
Catalogue ads for people who viewed products or added to basket but did not buy.
03
Sell to past customers
New arrivals, bundles and seasonal offers for people who bought before.
04
Test creative
Keep testing new images, videos and angles. Creative is the biggest lever you control.
Meta’s automated sales campaigns (Advantage+) can combine finding new customers and retargeting in one campaign. They work well once you have steady purchase data. Smaller shops often start simpler.
Retargeting
Bringing back
visitors who left.
Most visitors leave an online shop without buying. Retargeting reminds them, and it is often where the best return comes from.
Product viewers
Show the products they looked at, with a reason to come back such as reviews or delivery information.
Basket abandoners
The warmest audience. Remind them quickly, while the decision is still fresh.
Checkout abandoners
Often a doubt about delivery cost, timing or payment. Answer it in the ad.
Frequency
Small retargeting audiences see ads often. Refresh the creative so reminders do not become irritating.
Ads are not the only reminder. Basket-recovery emails from your shop platform work alongside them and cost far less.
Creative
Creative that sells.
Show the product in use
Video of someone using, wearing or unboxing the product beats a plain packshot.
Answer the doubts
Size, fit, materials, delivery time, returns. Put the answers in the ad.
Customer reviews
Real reviews and photos from customers, with permission.
Clear offer
Free delivery over a set amount, a bundle or a launch offer. One offer per ad.
Measuring
What to measure
for an online shop.
Return on ad spend (ROAS)
Tracked sales value divided by ad spend. Useful, but it ignores your margins.
Profit after ad spend
Gross profit on the orders, minus ad spend and fees. The number that matters.
Average order value
Bundles and free-delivery thresholds can raise it, which makes every sale more valuable.
Repeat purchases
Customers who buy again make the first sale’s ad cost worth more.
Malta specifics
Selling online
from Malta.
Delivery to Malta and Gozo
Local customers expect quick delivery. Say clearly how long it takes, including to Gozo.
Selling abroad
If you ship to other EU countries, set up separate campaigns per market, with prices and delivery times for each.
Prices with VAT
Consumers in the EU should see the final price including VAT. Malta’s standard rate is 18%.
Payment and trust
Familiar payment options, a local address and clear returns help smaller local shops compete with large marketplaces.
Seasons
Planning the year
for an online shop.
November and December
Black Friday and Christmas. Competition for attention is high, so prepare creative and offers early and build audiences in October.
Summer
Visitors, outdoor and travel products. Residents’ routines change in the hottest months.
September
The school year starts. A busy time for children’s products, stationery and routines.
Quieter months
A good time to test new creative and products while attention is cheaper.
Delivery times matter around holidays. Say clearly when the last order date is for delivery before Christmas, in Malta and in Gozo.
Common mistakes
Mistakes online
shops make.
- Running ads before purchase tracking works.
- Spending most of the budget on retargeting a tiny audience.
- Using only plain product photos with no video or context.
- Judging the account by ROAS without checking margins.
- Advertising products with low stock or long delivery times.
- Ignoring past customers, who are often the easiest to sell to.
Results
What results
can look like.
These are results from campaigns we manage, including e-commerce, tracked in Meta Ads Manager.
2025
€217,048 in tracked sales. 9,384 website sales.
Tracked across the year in Meta Ads Manager.
1–9 June 2026
€6,523.92 in spend. €38,550.54 in tracked sales.
Nine days of campaigns, tracked in Meta Ads Manager.
Platform-attributed purchase value is not profit. These examples are not a guarantee of future results.
A few straight answers
What you might be wondering.
What is the best Facebook ads strategy for e-commerce?
Accurate purchase tracking, a connected catalogue, campaigns to find new customers, catalogue ads for people who viewed products, and offers for past customers. Keep testing creative.
Do I need a product catalogue for Facebook ads?
Not to start, but it helps. A catalogue lets Meta show each person relevant products automatically, which is often efficient for retargeting.
Should the purchase value sent to Meta include VAT?
Either works, but be consistent and know which it is. When comparing results with your accounts, remember that VAT is not revenue for your business.
How long before e-commerce ads become profitable?
It depends on margins, prices and creative. Campaigns need time and purchase data to learn. Judge by profit after ad spend over weeks, not days.
Do you build online shops as well?
Yes. We build websites and online shops with tracking set up, and manage the ads that bring visitors to them.
Keep reading
Related guides.
What is a good ROAS for Meta ads?
Why there is no universal number, how to work out break-even ROAS, and how VAT changes the maths.
Meta Pixel and Conversions API explained
What the Pixel and the Conversions API do, why the Pixel alone misses sales, and how to check your setup.
Facebook ads not working?
A practical checklist for ads that are not running, or running without results.
A useful first step
Show us what
you’re running.
We’ll look at your offer, campaigns, tracking and landing page, then explain what we would change first. Initial review at no charge.