Strangers on the street came closer to target than the founder did

What we learned this week

From the accounts we run

1. 01

   Let strangers say it, not the founder

   On a UK luxury laundry brand, the closest ad to target all week was a street interview: passers-by in London smelling the product on camera, at about 97% of target. Every founder-led ad came in far lower, the founder holding the product at around 60% of target and founder-authority ads at under 40%. Buyers trust a stranger's surprise more than the person who made it.

2. 02

   Answer the question buyers actually type

   Same account: a creator replying on camera to a real comment, 'does it last?', was the second closest ad of the week. The objection is already written for you in your comments. Film the answer and put the comment on screen.

3. 03

   A staged podcast fooled nobody

   On a kids' supplement brand, ten 'two people at a mic' podcast videos spent with no sale between them. The one mechanic that cleared target, at about 1.3 times, was plain social proof. A borrowed format is not a substitute for proof.

4. 04

   Sell the arrival, not the car

   For a London supercar hire company, ads built around the moment of pulling up somewhere in London brought leads in at around a third of the target cost. Fast montages with two-second cuts landed under half target for the third week we have measured them. Occasion ads (milestones, birthdays) got almost no delivery again.

5. 05

   A claim in a headline is not a demo

   On the laundry brand, a static that stated the dose ('one cupful a wash') returned a small fraction of target. Last week the same claim shown working in a video cleared it. If the proof is something you can see, show it moving.

Worked this week: UK

The UK ads that reached the most people

Fussy

A customer counts down six reasons

Fussy hands the camera to a customer in his bathroom: 'I will never go back to a roll-on deodorant, and here's why.' Then six numbered reasons, each with its own proof: a Dragons' Den clip, the founder on the science, a scent compared to a designer fragrance, the refill click, the Tube ads, a 4.8 on Trustpilot. 1.7M reached in 7 days.

1.7M people reached in 7 days / live 15 days / 1,500 ads live on the account

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Cases & Clues

Sell the evening, not the box

Cases & Clues opens on a couple by candlelight with one line on screen: 'POV: We swapped dinner & drinks for solving a murder.' No voiceover, just the night happening. The caption is a customer's five-star quote. 42 days live and 1.7M reached this week.

1.7M people reached in 7 days / live 42 days / 689 ads live on the account

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Blakely Clothing Co.

Mini-me, no words needed

Blakely shows a mum dressing her toddler in the same hoodie, then the same trainers, then the same sunglasses. Not one word is spoken or written. The copy says it all: 'Your favourite hoodie now in mini size.' 1.9M reached in 7 days.

1.9M people reached in 7 days / live 10 days / 5,759 ads live on the account

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OMHU

The before and after is the ad

OMHU's 'living room upgrade' wheels out the old sofa, unboxes the new one from flat packs and builds it in 23 seconds, ending with the owner flat out on it. The copy is two lines, ending 'Because outside is expensive.' 2.3M reached in 7 days, with 56 copies running.

2.3M people reached in 7 days / live 16 days / 1,647 ads live on the account

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Worked this week: US

The US ads brands kept paying for

Welefants

Show the ways people fail first

Welefants' jar opener ad shows the knife tap, the bare-hand twist and the scissors before the product does it in one turn. 'I bet 90% of people have never seen this thing before' does the hooking. 173 days live, 2,882 copies.

live 173 days / 579 ads live on the account

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Stockholm-Lights

One product, every room

Stockholm-Lights carries one cordless lamp from the reading nook to the desk to the patio at dusk, then into a tote bag. Each scene is a reason to buy. The headline is the rating: 4.9/5 from 20,000+ customers. 840 days live.

live 840 days / 174 ads live on the account

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Finsift

Put their names on it

Finsift's Christmas fridge magnet shows ten family names on gingerbread figures, filmed on three different fridges. A personalised gift sells itself the moment the buyer pictures their own names there. 441 days live, 3,578 copies.

live 441 days / 374 ads live on the account

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Marvelousfate-za

Solve the hardest person to buy for

This gift card book ad opens with 'This is probably the best gift you can give an adult', then flips through pages for a meal, a film, a trip. It names a problem every Christmas shopper has. 77 days live, 2,892 copies.

live 77 days / 945 ads live on the account

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