Interest Targeting vs Broad Targeting?

If you run Meta ads (Facebook + Instagram), you’ve probably faced this exact question:

• Should we use interest targeting (specific hobbies, brands, behaviours)?

• Or should we go broad targeting (minimal targeting and let the algorithm find buyers)?

Both can work. But they work for different situations and if you choose the wrong one, you’ll either get expensive results or “good metrics” that don’t turn into real leads.

Benefits Of Broad Targeting

In this guide, we’ll explain interest targeting vs broad targeting in simple terms, when to use each, and how to test properly so your next marketing campaign is based on data not guessing. If you want help setting this up professionally, a social media marketing agency singapore can help structure tests and tracking so you scale what actually works.

What is interest targeting?

Interest targeting means you show ads to people based on what Meta believes they’re interested in like fitness, skincare, luxury shopping, home renovation, or “business page admins.”

Pros of interest targeting

Interest targeting can be helpful when:

• Your ad account is new and has limited data

• Your offer is niche and you need a starting point

• You’re testing messaging for different customer types

It’s a common approach when brands start running social media marketing and want more control over who sees the ads.

Cons of interest targeting

Interest targeting can also cause problems:

• Interests can be inaccurate (people don’t always behave how Meta labels them)

• Audiences can become too small and expensive

• You might limit the algorithm from finding better buyers outside those interest boxes

If you notice high CPMs, rising costs, or delivery issues, it could be because the audience is too tight. That’s when many brands start exploring broader setups through meta ads singapore strategies.

What is broad targeting?

Broad targeting means you don’t add interests (or you add very minimal filters). Instead, you rely on:

• Meta’s delivery system

• Your creative (who it attracts)

• Your pixel/event data (what it learns)

Broad targeting is basically saying: “Meta, here’s the goal. Go find people likely to convert.”

It’s a popular approach for brands that already have traffic, conversion data, and strong content often supported by good landing pages and digital marketing services in singapore strategy.

Pros of broad targeting

Broad works well when:

• You have a decent amount of conversion data (leads, purchases, forms)

• Your creatives are clear and call out the right customer

• Your offer is strong and easy to understand

Broad also scales better because you’re not constantly “running out” of audience.

Cons of broad targeting

Broad can fail if:

• Your tracking is weak (Meta can’t learn properly)

• Your creatives are generic (you attract the wrong people)

• Your funnel isn’t tight (clicks happen but leads don’t)

If you’re seeing lots of clicks but poor lead quality, you may need to fix the funnel, landing page, and tracking. In many cases, pairing ads with seo services singapore and site improvements can lift conversion rates meaning Meta learns faster and costs drop.

So… which one should you use?

Here’s a practical rule that works for most brands:

Use interest targeting when…

• You’re new or have very limited pixel data

• You’re selling to a very specific group (e.g., B2B niche roles)

• You need to test different buyer personas fast

If you’re just getting started, interest targeting gives you a structured starting point especially if you don’t have enough data to run broad confidently.

Use broad targeting when…

• Your account has conversion history

• You want to scale budgets without hitting a ceiling

• Your creatives are strong and specific

• Your tracking is set up properly (events, leads, purchases)

This is why many brands prefer broad once they’ve built a system. It often becomes the “default” approach once your campaigns mature.

The biggest factor is not targeting it’s your creative

Targeting is only one lever. Your creative is usually the bigger lever.

If your ad clearly calls out:

• who it’s for

• what problem it solves

• what result they can expect

• proof (reviews, examples, outcomes)

…then broad targeting can work extremely well because the creative “filters” the audience for you.

This is also why content marketing agency support matters. Better content = better click quality = faster learning.

If you need video to build trust, consider using corporate video production to create stronger top-of-funnel assets that warm up cold audiences.

How to test interest vs broad properly

Don’t test 10 things at once. Test one variable.

Here’s a clean structure:

1. Create 1 campaign objective (Leads / Sales)

2. Use the same creative set in both tests

3. Build 2 ad sets:

   • Ad set A: interest targeting

   • Ad set B: broad targeting

4. Run the test long enough to get enough data (not just 1 day)

5. Compare:

   • cost per lead

   • lead quality

   • conversion rate on the landing page

   • spam vs real enquiries

If you want cleaner reporting and decisions, include analytics and tracking from day one.

Paper Cut Collective

Many businesses combine this with social media analytics and reporting so performance is easy to explain and optimise.

When interest targeting and broad targeting should work together

In many cases, the best structure is:

• Broad targeting for scaling

• Interest targeting for testing new angles, products, or niches

• Retargeting for warm audiences who didn’t convert

If you want to expand beyond Meta, you can also build a full funnel across Google with pay per click singapore capturing high-intent searches while Meta builds awareness.

If you’re not sure whether your brand should lean into interest targeting or broad targeting, explore digital marketing singapore services with Paper Cut Collective. We’ll help you structure the tests, improve creative performance, and track what’s driving real leads so you can scale with confidence instead of guessing.