Activation: Custom Campaign in Digital Advertising

Overview

Dynamic Audiences enable customers with CDP Pro to create, sort, and save Dynamic lists of Shoppers with filters and conditions applied. These Shopper lists may be activated within Digital Advertising (DigAd) inside of custom audiences and ad campaigns.
 

Navigation

To access Dynamic Audiences and activate these lists within DigAd, enter the Fullpath Dashboard and click the CDP tab in the left side menu: Dashboard > Audiences > Dynamic Audiences ( dashboard.fullpath.com/shoppers/saved-filters ).

Activate a Dynamic Audience inside DigAd

Inside the Dynamic Audience lists, select the audience to use and click ACTIVATE with Digital Advertising. Activation opens the Custom Campaign build flow described below.

Step 1 — Review the audience

• An OEM compliance message appears for certified program brands (Subaru, Stellantis, Mazda, GM, Maserati, JLR). The Dealer is responsible for ensuring that the content of a Custom Campaign is compliant.

• Campaigns are reported to the OEM as New Inventory spend for co-op purposes, and are intended for New Inventory related campaigns.

• The precise size of the Shopper list varies day to day, as the list is dynamic — Shoppers fall out and are added daily. Fullpath does not guarantee that every Shopper is reached.

Step 2 — Initial setup

Name the campaign. This name is used internally and also appears in some reporting available inside the Google and Facebook ad platforms.
 

Select the campaign goal. The goal determines how the campaign is optimized:

Learn more about optimization strategy:

• Digital Advertising Optimization Strategy Settings

• DigAd Strategic Account Setup: Conversion Optimization Strategy Explained

   

Step 3 — Exclude inventory

• This step determines whether the inventory the campaign focuses on is held off the dealership's regular advertising budget while the Custom Campaign runs. 

• Excluding the inventory prevents the same vehicles from being advertised by both the regular budget and the Custom Campaign at the same time. 

• It identifies inventory to set aside — it does not promote the inventory on the regular budget. This replaces the manual workaround of excluding the same inventory through the inventory filters.

Would you like to exclude the inventory this campaign focuses on?

• Yes, exclude — while this Custom Campaign is active, the selected inventory is not promoted in the System generated New Inventory and Used Inventory objective campaigns. Regular-budget promotion of that inventory resumes when the campaign deactivates or passes its end date.
   

• No, run simultaneously — regular-budget system ads for the selected inventory continue to run in parallel with the Custom Campaign.

   

Which inventory should be excluded?

Be as specific as possible — broad exclusions may reduce campaign performance. Define the inventory segment using the following fields:

Step 4 — Select campaign channels

Select which channel(s) and modes to run for this campaign. Channels include:

• Google Search
• Google Display / DV360
• Performance Max
• Demand Gen
• Social — Meta ad placements on Facebook and Instagram.

Google modes

For Google channels, select either Observation mode or Targeting mode:

• Targeting — ads are shown only to users who fit the specific audience segments selected. Use case: when the target audience is well understood and the goal is to maximize ad effectiveness for that group.

   

• Observation — ads are shown to everyone, broadening the intended audience. Use case: when the goal is to understand how different audience segments perform, even without strictly targeting them.

Social modes

When selecting Social channels, choose Targeting mode, Conquest mode, or Additional Social Targeting Options:
 

• Targeting — reaches specific, well-defined audiences using detailed targeting options such as demographics, interests, behaviors, custom audiences (data on existing customers), and lookalike audiences (new users similar to existing customers). Use case: when there is a clear understanding of the ideal customer and the goal is to maximize campaign effectiveness.
   
• Conquest — uses broad targeting, automatic placements, or no targeting at all to reach a wider, more general audience, including those outside the typical customer base. Use case: when the goal is to increase brand visibility, explore new markets, or test new audiences.
  
  
   
• Additional Social Targeting Options — lookalike audiences and interests:
   
  • Lookalike audiences find new users similar to the best existing customers (by behavior, interests, demographics), using machine learning from the dealership's data for broader reach. Best for: scaling campaigns, finding new customers, expanding reach efficiently, leveraging existing data.
     

  • Interest targeting reaches people based on specific interests, liked pages, or activities they have engaged with. It is more manual. Best for: niche audiences, testing new audience hypotheses, early-stage campaigns.

     

The key distinction is data vs. declaration: lookalikes use the dealership's data (what people do); interests use declared interests (what people say they like). Lookalikes often outperform interests for scale and relevance, though a mix can be effective.

Destination URL verification results

After entering the URL for verification, the AI returns one of the following results:
 

• "Credit-content free" — no credit-related content is detected on the page; proceed. >> GOOD TO GO
   
• "The URL entered did not meet the requirements for no credit-related content" — credit-related content is present, and targeted audiences cannot be driven to that page. >> ADJUST PAGE CONTENT OR USE A DIFFERENT URL
   
• "Site can't be scraped" — the website cannot be scraped due to its settings or security measures. >> SECURITY SETTINGS ON THE WEBSITE PREVENT FACEBOOK FROM VALIDATING
• "AI is not working" — in rare cases the service is temporarily disabled. >> TRY AGAIN LATER

This evaluation is AI-based and may occasionally produce errors. If a non credit-related URL is mistakenly rejected as credit-related, contact AOT to request an override.

Step 5 — Define campaign settings (budget)

The campaign budget comes out of the main DigAd budget.

• Minimum — $300. For in-program Dealers this may vary; Mazda, for example, may allocate down to $20.

   

• Maximum — determined by the remaining, unallocated, and unspent budget on the account.

This budget is separate from any specific Objective or Channel allocations on the account; Custom Campaigns belong to their own separate Objective. If an existing allocation to a Channel does not specify an Objective, that allocation excludes Custom Campaigns.

Selecting a monthly budget means the amount recurs monthly.

Step 6 — Geo-targeting

• Specify a radius around the dealership to target — between 15 and 50 miles — and/or provide ZIP codes to target. 

• ZIP codes are automatically converted into lat/long points to comply with Google's and Meta's specifications.

It is recommended to choose AI and let the Fullpath system and algorithm target the audiences the dealership is trying to engage.

Step 7 — Create ads

• Enter headlines and descriptions for the combination of channels selected; these are A/B tested within the relevant platforms and channels. 

• Alternatively, use the AI feature to auto-generate fields based on the vehicle(s) targeted and the dealership details.

• If the Search channel is selected, enter keywords (a minimum of at least three is recommended).

Keyword strategy — Broad Match: ads may show on searches related to the keyword, which can include searches that do not contain the direct meaning of the keywords.

Step 8 — Add images to the campaign

• Horizontal and square images are required; a portrait size is optional.

• Keep images under 31MB so everything loads quickly and works smoothly on all platforms.
   

Step 9 — Review campaign and launch

• Carefully review all inputs to ensure accuracy before launching campaigns live.

• The Dealer is responsible for ensuring that a Custom Campaign's spelling, syntax, verbiage, offers, and formatting are correct and OEM compliant.
   

Custom Campaigns inside the DigAd Dashboard

Custom Campaigns may be viewed in the Custom Campaigns page nested under the Digital Advertising Activation Menu.

On this page, users will be able to:

• View their active & deleted custom campaigns (including campaign name, audience name, campaign start date, etc.)

• Track campaigns performance

• Perform actions such as edit and delete

• Manage and schedule their custom campaigns

Learn more about the Custom Campaigns page here. 

Custom Campaigns inside Google and Facebook

Custom Campaigns using Dynamic Audiences are viewed and analyzed inside both Google and Facebook:

• In Google — Custom Campaigns are the only running campaigns without the word "ACQUIRE" in the campaign name.

  
   

• In Facebook — Custom Campaigns include "ACQUIRE" and also include "CUSTOM"