Case Study: How We Took a Basketball Brand From Sub-1 ROAS to 3.82 ROAS With Meta Ads

Strategy and Solutions Consulting
6 days ago
3 min read

In the eCommerce sporting space, performance marketing isn’t about spending more — it’s about spending correctly.

Recently, we partnered with a premium basketball accessory brand that was already investing heavily in Meta ads. On the surface, their account appeared “active”: traffic was flowing, clicks were coming in, and website visits looked healthy.

But revenue told a very different story.

The Problem: Optimizing for the Wrong Metrics

Before working with us, the brand had been managed by another agency that focused heavily on vanity metrics:

Clicks
Website traffic
Cost per click
Reach and impressions

The Meta account was optimized for link clicks, not purchases — a critical mistake for any eCommerce brand, especially in a premium category.

On top of that:

Conversion tracking was incomplete
Retargeting audiences were either missing or unusable
There was no structured creative testing framework
Copy had gone stale and lacked intent-driven messaging

The result? Consistent ad spend with ROAS sitting below 1.0

In simple terms: money in, money out — with no clear path to scale.

Our Approach: Rebuilding the Account for Revenue, Not Traffic

Rather than “tweaking” what was already there, we fully reconstructed the Meta Ads account from the ground up.

1. Correct Tracking & Signal Integrity

Before scaling anything, we ensured Meta had the right data to learn from:

Verified purchase events were firing correctly
Cleaned up conversion priorities
Ensured audiences could be accurately built and retargeted

Without clean tracking, even the best creatives will underperform.

2. Rebuilding Audiences & Lookalikes

We then rebuilt the entire audience structure:

High-intent custom audiences (site visitors, engaged users, past purchasers)
Fresh lookalike audiences based on buyers, not clickers
Clear separation between prospecting and retargeting

This allowed Meta’s algorithm to optimize toward people most likely to purchase, not just browse.

3. Introducing Structured Retargeting

Previously, retargeting was either missing or ineffective.

We implemented:

Dedicated retargeting campaigns
Messaging tailored to product awareness stage
Stronger CTAs aligned with purchase intent

Luxury buyers often need multiple touchpoints — retargeting is where ROAS is protected and scaled.

4. Full Creative & Copy Refresh

Creative was another major unlock.

We:

Refreshed all primary ad copy with clear value positioning
Removed generic, low-intent messaging
Introduced structured creative testing to identify winners
Optimized visuals to align with the brand’s premium positioning

This allowed us to learn quickly and feed Meta’s algorithm high-quality engagement signals.

The Results: From Below 1 ROAS to 3.82 ROAS in 3 Weeks

Within the first week of launching the rebuilt structure:

ROAS jumped immediately
Purchase volume stabilized
Spend efficiency improved across campaigns

By week three:

ROAS reached 3.82
The account moved from survival mode to scalable performance
Meta’s algorithm now had clean data and clear learning signals

Most importantly, these results are not the ceiling.

As Meta continues to learn from:

Stronger conversion data
Ongoing creative testing
Refined audience signals

We expect performance to compound, not plateau.

Why This Matters for Luxury eCommerce Brands

Premium sporting brands cannot afford:

Click-optimized campaigns
Poor tracking foundations
Agencies that chase surface-level metrics

Revenue comes from intent, data, and disciplined execution — not traffic alone.

This case study is a perfect example of what happens when:

Ads are optimized for purchases
The algorithm is given clean data
Creative and copy are treated strategically

Final Takeaway

Meta ads don’t fail because the platform doesn’t work. They fail when they’re set up incorrectly.

By rebuilding this account with a performance-first mindset, we transformed wasted ad spend into predictable revenue — and created a foundation that will continue to scale.