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How to reduce Return to Origin (RTO) using Meta events

  • Updated

Introduction:

High Return to Origin (RTO) rates can significantly impact your revenue and advertising efficiency, especially for Cash on Delivery (COD) orders. 

Today, most ad campaigns are optimized using the Purchase event. However, in India 50–70% of orders are COD, and 25–60% of COD orders may convert to RTO. This means ad platforms may optimize for customers who place orders but never accept delivery. To solve this, SmartBiz sends two custom conversion events to Meta: 
a) Delivered – when an order is successfully delivered
b) RTO – when an order is returned to origin.

These signals help Meta’s algorithm identify high-quality customers and avoid low-intent or high-risk buyers.

This article explains how SmartBiz helps you reduce RTO by sending high-quality order outcome signals—Delivered and RTO (Return to Origin)—to Meta. By optimizing your ad campaigns using these signals, you can reach high-intent customers, improve ROAS, and reduce ad spend wastage.

Prerequisites:

Before you start, ensure that: 
a) Your store is connected to SmartBiz
b) You are running ads on Meta (Facebook / Instagram)
c) Your Meta Pixel or Conversions API is connected to SmartBiz.


In this article, you’ll learn:

  1. Benefits of using these signals
  2. How to enable SmartBiz events in Meta
  3. Best practices to reduce RTO
  4. FAQs

1. Benefits of using Delivered and RTO signals

1. Improve Net ROAS: Meta learns to target customers who actually complete the order journey.

2. Reduce ad leakage: RTO signals teach the algorithm to avoid fraud-prone regions and low-intent shoppers.

3. Increase prepaid share: Optimizing for Delivered nudges the algorithm toward customers with higher prepaid likelihood.


2. How to enable SmartBiz events in Meta

Step 1: Open Events Manager

  1. Log in to Meta Business Manager

  2. Go to Events Manager

  3. Select the Pixel / Conversions API connected with SmartBiz

Step 2: Verify SmartBiz events

You’ll see two new events Delivered and RTO_Order. Review and accept these events.








✅ Once accepted, you can start using them for campaign optimization and audience creation.

3. Best Practices to Reduce RTO

  1. Always optimize for Delivered events: This maximizes real revenue, not just order placement.

  2. Maintain sufficient event volume: Aim for 50+ Delivered events per week per ad set for best learning.

  3. Deliver orders within 7 days: Faster delivery improves signal quality within Meta’s attribution window.

4. FAQs

1: Will this work for COD orders?
Yes. This is especially effective for COD-heavy businesses.

2: Can I still use Purchase events?
Yes, but Delivered events should be your primary optimization goal.

3: How long does it take to see results?
You may start seeing improvements once Meta receives sufficient Delivered event data (usually 1–2 weeks).