# Ad Spend Anomaly Automation Checklist

Use this checklist before automating ad spend, CPA, ROAS, or budget anomaly alerts. The goal is not to let automation change budgets immediately. The safer first version catches unusual changes and routes the alert to the operator before money is wasted.

## 1. Workflow Goal

- Ad platform:
- Account owner:
- Budget owner:
- Alert channel:
- Reporting time zone:
- Review cadence:
- Manual action owner:

## 2. Data Sources

Choose one primary source for the first version:

- Meta Ads export
- Google Ads export
- TikTok Ads export
- Daily Google Sheet report
- Supermetrics or connector sheet
- Manual CSV upload

Do not mix platforms until naming, currency, and attribution windows are normalized.

## 3. Metrics To Monitor

| Metric | Why it matters | Suggested alert |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Daily spend | Catches budget leaks | Alert if spend exceeds expected range |
| CPA | Catches efficiency drops | Alert if CPA is above threshold |
| ROAS | Catches revenue efficiency issues | Alert if ROAS drops sharply |
| CPC | Catches auction or tracking changes | Alert if CPC spikes |
| CPM | Catches audience or auction shifts | Alert if CPM spikes |
| Conversion count | Catches tracking or funnel issues | Alert if conversions drop suddenly |
| Click-through rate | Catches creative fatigue | Alert if CTR drops below baseline |

## 4. Baseline Rules

| Rule | Recommended behavior |
| --- | --- |
| Compare with 7-day average | Good default for small accounts |
| Compare with same weekday | Useful when traffic varies by weekday |
| Minimum spend floor | Avoid noisy alerts on tiny spend |
| Minimum conversion floor | Avoid overreacting to low-volume campaigns |
| Percent change threshold | Start with 30-50 percent depending on volatility |
| Absolute budget threshold | Always alert when spend exceeds hard daily limit |

## 5. Alert Payload

Minimum alert fields:

- Platform
- Account or campaign name
- Date range
- Metric that changed
- Current value
- Baseline value
- Percent change
- Spend amount
- Link to report or account
- Suggested review action

## 6. Test Cases

| Test | Input | Expected result |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Normal day | Spend and CPA near baseline | No alert |
| Spend spike | Spend above threshold | Alert is sent |
| CPA spike | CPA above threshold | Alert includes CPA and baseline |
| Conversion drop | Conversions below threshold | Alert asks operator to inspect tracking |
| Missing data | Empty report row | Error status is logged |
| Multi-currency row | Currency differs from account default | Manual review is requested |

## 7. Handoff Standard

The workflow is ready when the operator can answer:

- Which account and platform are monitored?
- Which metrics trigger alerts?
- What baseline is used?
- What is the minimum spend floor?
- Where does the alert go?
- Who decides what action to take?
- How do we disable the workflow safely?