It is well known that ad creatives play a pivotal role in the success of paid campaigns. But why do some ads captivate and convert while others fall flat? The secret lies not just in the creativity itself but in the strategic process behind it.
With over 15 years of experience crafting creative briefs for mobile and web paid user acquisition (UA) I have developed a methodology ensuring your ad creatives hit the mark every time.
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This article explores this methodology, guiding you through each phase of creating compelling ad creatives. From defining objectives and specifying your target audience to creative production and campaign management, you’ll gain invaluable insights into making your ad creatives stand out.
Related: Learn how to make the perfect ad creatives for app promotion with Facebook App Install Ads.
Compelling ad creatives don’t happen by accident; they result from thorough planning. The foundation of this process lies in the creation of a detailed and comprehensive brief. Let’s break down this foundation into its core components.
A solid brief acts as a roadmap for the entire creative process, ensuring that every element of the ad aligns with the campaign’s goals and audience needs. Here’s why a detailed brief is indispensable:
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Creating an effective ad creative brief involves several critical steps, each designed to focus on the essential aspects of your campaign.
The first step is to set a clear goal for your ad campaign. Whether increasing brand awareness, driving app installs, boosting sales or bring back inactive users, your objective will dictate every other element of the creative process.
Understanding who you’re targeting is crucial. Detailing demographics, interests, and online behaviors helps tailor your message and design to resonate with your audience. Consider creating personas to encapsulate these attributes. Defining your target audience will help you also chose the right channel, that will have an impact on the message and format of the creatives.
What core message do you want to convey? This could include highlighting product benefits, solving a user problem, or showcasing customer testimonials. Your message should be compelling and directly address the needs or interests of your target audience.
The format of your ad (e.g., banner, video, carousel) should align with both your objective and the platforms on which it will be displayed. Each format has its strengths and is suited to different types of messaging and audience engagement.
For example, with a banner you will be able to deliver effectively a simple message like a discount or a special promotion, while with a carousel you have the opportunity to showcase more app features or USPs. With a video, you can tell a more complex story or showcase your app features in detail, or a testimonial story.
Your ad’s visual and tonal style should reflect your brand identity and appeal to your target audience. This includes choosing between real or designed imagery, the tone of voice, and any color schemes or design elements that will make your ad stand out.
Finally, outline any elements you plan to test, such as headlines, images, or calls to action. A/B testing is a powerful tool for refining your ad creative and optimizing performance. These elements need to be included in the brief, so that the design team will be able to plan from the beginning the production of the creatives variations.
Do you want to see ad creatives A/B testing in practice? Check out our case study with Photosì.
| Component | Description |
| Objective | What the campaign aims to achieve |
| Target Audience | Who the ad is intended to reach |
| Message | The core message or value proposition to deliver |
| Format | The type of ad (e.g., banner, video, carousel) |
| Style | Visual and tonal style |
| A/B Testing Plans | Elements of the ad to test for optimization |
Is your app still in development? These are the 15 steps you must take for a successful app launch in 2024 and beyond.
This crucial phase transforms the foundational ideas of the brief into real ad creatives. It’s a collaborative process involving iterative development, feedback, and final asset production.
The journey from concept to reality begins with the first draft. This initial iteration brings the strategic elements of your brief into the visual and textual world.
Feedback is an essential part of the creative process. It’s an opportunity to align the creative team’s output with the campaign’s strategic vision and objectives. Effective feedback should be specific, actionable, and constructive, addressing strengths and improvement areas.
Full-scale asset production begins once the direction is clear and feedback has been integrated. This is where the ad creatives are polished and prepared for launch across the intended platforms.
Discover how our Paid User Acquisition team and designers created many creative concepts that clearly spoke to potential users.
Before launching the assets, conduct final checks to ensure they meet all technical requirements and brand standards. This includes reviewing resolution, load times, and ensuring all links and CTAs function correctly. Once everything is approved, the assets are ready for deployment in the campaign.
Once the ad creatives are crafted, refined, and ready, the next step is to launch and manage the campaigns. This phase is critical, as it involves not just the deployment of your ads but also continuous monitoring and optimization based on performance data.
Launching your ad campaign is an exciting moment. It culminates your hard work in creative development and strategic planning. However, the launch is just the beginning of an ongoing management and optimization process.
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Analyzing data, tweaking campaign parameters, and testing different creatives are all part of refining your approach to maximize results.
Mastering the art of ad creatives is a journey that combines strategic planning, creative execution, and continuous optimization. From the initial steps of crafting a detailed creative brief to the campaign launch and management, each phase plays a crucial role in the success of your advertising efforts.
The methodology outlined here provides a comprehensive framework for developing ad creatives that capture attention and convert. By adhering to this process, marketers and designers can ensure their ads are seen, felt, remembered, and acted upon.
Are you interested in improving your advertising campaigns with high-performing ad creatives?
Contact us today to learn more about our tailored solutions to captivate your target audience and drive conversions.
An ad creative is the mix of images, text, and design used in an advertisement to engage and persuade audiences.
Identify your goal: brand awareness, traffic, leads, app installs, or sales. This guides your creative strategy.
Knowing your audience, and in which platforms to intercept them, helps tailor your ad’s message and design to resonate better and convert.
Customizing ad creatives for each platform based on its unique features and audience behaviors is best to maximize effectiveness.
Regular updates are recommended to keep your ads fresh and engaging, preventing ad fatigue among your audience. Testing and performance data should guide the timing.