The most common Telegram Ads mistakes are launching without knowing your acceptable cost per result, promoting an “empty” channel, using one bid for different audiences and splitting the budget across hundreds of ads. Almost all of them lead to one of two outcomes: no impressions, or subscribers who cost more than they bring in. Below are 12 typical beginner mistakes, grouped by stage, and how to avoid them.
Preparation mistakes
1. Not calculating an acceptable cost per result
Many advertisers launch without knowing how much they can pay for a subscriber, lead or sale. Then every number in the stats is “neither good nor bad”. Before launch, work out how much one subscriber or customer brings in on average and derive a target cost per subscriber (CPS) or cost per lead (CPL) from that. Formulas and a worked example are in our article on Telegram Ads metrics.
2. Promoting an unprepared channel
A user taps the ad and lands on a channel with no avatar, an empty description and three posts in a month. They won’t subscribe, and you have already paid for the impressions. Moderation also requires the channel to be public, with an avatar and a description. What to check before launch is covered in how to prepare a channel for Telegram Ads.
3. Ignoring the full cost and the rules for Russia
When you pay through a reseller, the ad budget comes with a fee (usually 15–20%, 25–28% for education, up to 30–33% for crypto). For Russian resellers, 22% VAT is added on top of the fee, plus a currency conversion rate with a markup. If you advertise to an audience in Russia, ads must be labeled under Russian law: an ERID token obtained through an ad data operator and reports to the unified register (ERIR). Many resellers do this automatically, but check in advance — more in Telegram Ads labeling in Russia.
Targeting mistakes
4. Putting everything into one ad
Dozens of channels from different topics in a single ad — and you can’t tell which ones bring subscribers and which only burn budget. Split placements into meaningful groups and run a separate ad for each group. That way you see where results are cheaper and can switch off weak groups without stopping everything.
5. Choosing channels by subscriber count
A big channel doesn’t mean a real, active audience. Before adding a channel to your targeting, check post reach, engagement rate (ERR) and subscriber growth in TGStat or Telemetrio. Sudden subscriber spikes and “dead” posts despite a large base are reasons to exclude the placement.
Bid and budget mistakes
6. One bid for different audiences
The auction runs separately for each audience. Magnetto.pro specialists gave an example: if impressions in one topic clear at €2 and in another at €7, a €3 bid for both will only get impressions in the first. Set bids by channel group or topic and compare them with your acceptable cost per result.
7. Changing the bid every half hour
Sharp changes like €2 → €0.8 → €5 within two days don’t let the algorithm adapt or let you understand what worked. In February 2026 eLama recommended changing bids in 10–20% steps and holding each value for anywhere from 2–4 hours to a day. How to choose a starting bid is covered in the Telegram Ads auction and bids.
8. Running hundreds of ads on a small budget
An article on ppc.world (June 2026) describes an account where a €7 daily budget was split across about 700 active ads — roughly €0.01 each — and most of them barely got impressions. The author suggests a benchmark of at least €0.10 of daily budget per active ad. Cut the number of ads first, then adjust bids.
9. Forgetting media and emoji markups
An image or video raises the minimum bid. According to Kokoc as of June 2026, an image adds 50% with topic targeting and 80% with channel targeting, video adds 70% and 100%, and a custom emoji in the text adds another 20%. If you bid “as if it were a text ad”, a media ad may get almost no impressions.
Ad copy mistakes
10. Writing an ad like a social media post
Telegram Ads moderation is stricter than in many ad platforms. Typical reasons for rejection: caps lock, several exclamation marks in a row, superlatives (“the best”, “number one”), income promises and pushy calls like “click here”. In a text of up to 160 characters, it’s better to state the benefit right away and what the user gets after the click. Details in Telegram Ads moderation.
11. Not testing or refreshing creatives
One ad for the whole campaign won’t tell you what works. Run 3–5 variants of text and media on one audience, keep the best and add new ones every week. On a narrow audience CTR drops over time as people keep seeing the same ad, especially at high frequency.
Analytics mistakes
12. Not tagging traffic
Without tagging you only see impressions and clicks from the ad account, not who subscribed, left a lead or bought. What to use:
- Website — UTM tags in the link and the Telegram Ads pixel with events, see the Telegram Ads pixel.
- Channel — separate invite links per ad group to see subscriptions from each one.
- Bot — links with a /start parameter so the bot can tell sources apart.
Another analysis mistake is drawing conclusions too early. Give an ad at least a few thousand impressions and 3–7 days to account for differences between weekdays.
Pre-launch checklist
- The target cost per subscriber, lead or sale is calculated.
- The channel, bot or website is ready to receive traffic.
- The reseller is chosen with the fee, conversion rate and, for Russia, labeling in mind.
- Placements are split into groups, with a separate ad for each.
- The bid accounts for media markups, and the budget is enough for every active ad.
- 3–5 text variants are ready and comply with moderation rules.
- UTM tags, the pixel, invite links or /start parameters are set up.
FAQ
Why is my Telegram Ads campaign not getting impressions?
Usually because the bid is too low for the chosen audience, the budget per ad is small or the budget is split across many ads. Also check whether you accounted for the media markup and whether the targeting is too narrow.
Why is my ad rejected by moderation?
Common reasons are caps lock, several exclamation marks, superlatives, income promises and pushy calls to action. Ads can also be rejected because the channel has no avatar or description.
How many ads should I run at the start?
As many as your budget can support. A practical benchmark is at least €0.10 of daily budget per active ad. For a test, 3–5 variants per placement group are usually enough.
When can I evaluate the results?
Not before the ad has a few thousand impressions and has run for 3–7 days. Early conclusions are often wrong because of day-of-week fluctuations.
Do Telegram Ads need to be labeled?
If the ads are shown to an audience in Russia, yes: Russian law requires an ERID token and reporting to the ERIR register. Many Russian resellers handle this, but confirm the terms before paying. Outside Russia this requirement does not apply.
How do I tell if a channel has fake subscribers?
Check post reach, ERR and the subscriber chart in analytics services. Sudden subscriber spikes and low views on a large base are signs of inflated numbers.
