Creative
Creative Fatigue
The decline in ad performance that occurs when a target audience sees the same creative asset too many times. Detected through rising frequency paired with declining CTR, increasing CPA, and dropping ROAS. The fatigue curve varies by format: static images fatigue faster than video, and UGC-style content tends to last longer than polished studio content. Early detection is critical because performance degrades exponentially once fatigue sets in. Most brands detect fatigue late.
Why it matters
It is the most common cause of a gradual ROAS decline, and it is often misdiagnosed as an audience or bidding problem, which sends the fix in the wrong direction.
In practice
Fatigue shows in engagement before it shows in conversion. Watch hook rate and CTR against frequency; if engagement is falling while frequency rises, it is the creative.
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