The importance of creatives in paid social ads
In the past, creative elements were key, but there was also a strong focus on technical aspects like testing the right lookalike or interest audiences, setting bid caps, and more. Are those days behind us? To some extent, yes, they are. As Meta has grown more expensive and competitive, it has introduced features like ‘Advantage Shopping campaigns’ that simplify ad setup.
Advantage shopping campaign — “PMAX” for your Meta Ads
All you need to do is choose the ads you want to use in the campaign, and you’re ready to go! Yes, it’s that uncomplicated, whether you have a daily budget of $100 or $10,000. But what’s the catch in achieving results with such a simple campaign? It all comes down to the ad level – the creatives (videos, banners, carousels) you present to your potential customers.
So, if we acknowledge the fact that nowadays, media buyers have greater control over the creatives rather than campaign settings, it becomes evident that this is where you can truly make a difference in your ad account. And this is where the real game begins…
What makes a good social media ad? 5 tips for effective social media ad campaigns
Crafting assets for your paid social channel is not easy, but you can follow a few rules:
1. Creatives must capture the user’s attention
The subconscious part of the user’s brain scrolling through Instagram or Facebook gives them a fraction of a second to decide whether to stop at a post. Therefore, you must create something truly exceptional (or just… strange)! Image source: The Ridge
2. Ads must be understandable
If you manage to capture the user’s attention, you must ensure that the product or service you communicate is clear and understandable to the audience. Image source: Jinx
3. Values and advantages
You must convey to the audience why your product or service is exceptional. Explain its features, the benefits it offers, the problems it solves, and how it differs from and stands out from the competition. Image source: GOE2G
4. Don’t focus too much on yourself (the brand)
Focus on the audience and their emotions and problems. For example, Instead of saying that the meal delivery service of the company you’re advertising is “high quality” (which anyone can say), communicate that thanks to your brand’s meal delivery service, busy parents can save time, which they can spend with their children. Appeal to what the audience desires. Image source: Huel
5. Ensure that the audience knows what to do after they become interested in the ad / Straightforward customer journey
Including a clear call-to-action button on the banner, at the end of a video, or within the ad text can significantly improve the click-through rate (CTR). Image source: Nolan Interior
Note: These best practices apply to both banners and videos.
How to build a winning creative strategy in 5 steps
Remembering the above tips is just the beginning. It all sounds a bit complicated, right? It is, but this is why we have a Creative Strategy, which is a process of creating and crafting outstanding social ads.
Creative strategy process step by step.
This process consists of:
- Research — Analyzing the audience and the brand to discover what people love about our products/services, what problems we can solve, and what we should address in our creatives and copy.
- Ideation — Generating ideas for meaningful ads (I’ve discussed where to draw inspiration from in previous posts) and prioritizing tests of these creatives based on their potential effectiveness and impact on results.
- Production (production team)
- Testing and drawing conclusions from tests — Proper testing is crucial for understanding and scaling top-performing assets.
- Iteration — Creating new versions of the best ads to discover if we can further improve them.
Example campaign structure for testing new creatives.
You can begin crafting outstanding creatives by following these steps and remembering the best practices for creating high-performing ads outlined in the previous paragraph!
We shared more details on this topic in the go-to guide for mastering Social Ads Creative Process.
Best practices for creative strategy
Creative strategy is a potent tool in the hands of a knowledgeable marketing specialist. It’s an ongoing process where you continuously learn, scale ads, and adapt them to current trends. Additionally, there are tools available that can simplify the process, such as Motionapp or Foreplay, which we described in detail here: 4 game-changing tools for Meta ads growth
Conclusion
After reading this article, you should now understand why creatives are a crucial aspect of your social ads strategy and why you should pay extra attention to it these days. Remember the elements that lead to creating them, known as Creative Strategy.
With these insights and tools at your disposal, it’s time to unleash your creativity and make an impact in the world of social ads!
