How to Halve New Customer Acquisition Costs with Meta Ads' New Feature: "AI-Powered Value Rules" [2026 Edition]

"I'm running Meta ads, but they keep reaching existing customers"—an increasing number of advertisers are facing this problem.

By utilizing Meta's "AI-Powered Value Rules," which began full-scale operation in 2026, you can significantly improve your CPA while prioritizing reach to new customers.

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# What are AI-Powered Value Rules?

AI-Powered Value Rules is a feature where AI determines in real-time during the Meta Ads auction whether a user is new or existing and what their purchase value is, automatically adjusting the bid amount.

While traditional "Custom Audience exclusion" only removed existing customers, AI-Powered Value Rules actively increase bids for high-value users and automatically suppress wasteful delivery to low-value users.

# How to Set Up (3 Steps)

**Step 1: Upload Customer Data**

Go to Ads Manager → "Audiences" → "Customer List" and upload your CRM customer data (email addresses and phone numbers). The larger your existing customer list, the higher the AI's accuracy.

**Step 2: Enable Value Rules in Campaign Settings**

When creating a campaign, check "Use Value Rules." Selecting "New Customer Acquisition Priority" mode will automatically lower bids for existing customers.

**Step 3: Set Optimization Event to "Purchase"**

For Value Rules to function, you must be tracking "Purchase" events via the Conversions API or Pixel. It is recommended to enable this after accumulating at least 30 purchase events.

# Actual Results (Case Study)

We would like to introduce a case where a health food advertiser handled by our company, CHOKUDORI, implemented AI-Powered Value Rules.

• Before implementation: New customer CPA 8,200 yen / Monthly new acquisitions 42

• - 3 months after implementation: New customer CPA 4,100 yen / Monthly new acquisitions 89

New CPA halved, acquisition count more than doubled were the results. The main factor was the reduction in wasteful delivery to existing customers, allowing that budget to be redirected toward new customer acquisition.

# Common Failures and Countermeasures

**Failure 1: Customer list is too small**
If your customer list is under 500, AI learning will be insufficient. Aim for at least 1,000 or more.

Failure 2: Incomplete conversion tracking
Always use the Conversions API (CAPI) in addition to the Pixel. CAPI compensates for data loss since iOS 14.

**Failure 3: Changing settings during the learning phase**
The first 7 to 14 days after implementation are the 'learning phase.' Making significant changes to targets or budgets during this time will reset the AI's learning.

# Summary

• AI Value Rules is the latest Meta Ads feature for 'maximizing new customer acquisition'

• - The setup is simple, but customer data and CAPI implementation are prerequisites

• - The key is to refrain from changing settings during the learning phase

If you are using Meta Ads for affiliate marketing, please try this out within this month.

'chokudori,' an ASP where you can outsource ad operations on a performance-based model, handles many direct projects utilizing Meta Ads.

▶ https://chokudori.com