Performance Branding Archives - NoGood™: Growth Marketing Agency https://nogood.io/category/performance-branding/ Award-winning growth marketing agency specialized in B2B, SaaS and eCommerce brands, run by top growth hackers in New York, LA and SF. Tue, 08 Apr 2025 20:21:29 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://nogood.io/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/NG_WEBSITE_FAVICON_LOGO_512x512-64x64.png Performance Branding Archives - NoGood™: Growth Marketing Agency https://nogood.io/category/performance-branding/ 32 32 Importance of Mapping Out User Flows & User Journeys in UX Design https://nogood.io/2025/04/08/user-journey-map-ux-design/ https://nogood.io/2025/04/08/user-journey-map-ux-design/#respond Tue, 08 Apr 2025 20:21:28 +0000 https://nogood.io/?p=45221 Discover how user journey mapping helps create intuitive, user-centered designs by visualizing each step of the customer experience.

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As a designer, it’s always essential to consider the end user and user experience (UX) when designing a new product or optimizing a product feature. There are typically multiple actions a user might want to take, and it’s up to the designer to ensure that those questions or needs are taken into consideration to create a seamless experience. That’s why user flows and user journey maps are key tools to use when creating successful UX experiences.

What Are Task Flows, User Flows, and User Journey Maps?

Although similar in name, there are some key differences between what each of these entail and what instances they apply best to. 

Task flows show a linear path of steps to take to complete a single task.

Diagram demonstrating a task flow

User flows show branching steps and different paths users take based on their decision and choices. The diamonds in the graph represent points at which users make a decision.

Diagram illustrating a user flow

User journey maps show a broad overview of the user’s overall experience and emotions at multiple touchpoints.

Table offering an example of a user journey map

Here’s a comparison chart breaking down the similarities and differences between task flows, user flows, and user journey maps in more detail: 

Table comparing task flows, user flows, and user journey maps

Why Mapping User Flows & Journeys Matters for UX Design

When it comes to creating frictionless and delightful user experiences, taking the time to prepare and think through user flows and journeys is critical. They allow various teams – from designers and stakeholders to developers – to discuss potential user needs and pain points from many perspectives. Taking this bird’s eye view creates space to map out various possible decision points and interactions between the user and their end goal. This is an effective way to evaluate the process as a whole and find ways to reduce user drop off.

Strategic Steps to Map Out User Journeys

1. Define the End Goal & Objective

Think about what the end user is trying to achieve and what their goal is. This can be a feature that has not yet been developed but the team is starting to research. Any larger business goals that also need to be considered should be called out.

For example, let’s take HappyCow, an app with the goal of making it easy for people to find plant-based options wherever they are. Business goals may revolve around acquiring new user downloads as well as getting users to use the app, review restaurant locations they’ve eaten at, and add their own plant-based restaurant options into the app.  

2. Create User Personas

Depending on if there’s one key persona you want to focus on or multiple personas, a different user journey map should be created for each unique persona. It’s important to think about personas separately, since they might not all have the same needs. Their goals and how they want to accomplish them may differ. This step may involve conducting interviews, surveys, or additional feedback to understand a key persona’s needs, pain points, and perspectives.

Following our example, two personas here could be an older demographic group that’s curious about going plant based versus younger college students who already have established diets or allergies.

3. Define User Phases & Visualize Journey

Break down the different steps or phases of the user journey to help visualize the various touchpoints and user interactions. Viewing the journey in these smaller chunks can help you start to understand where changes or improvements might need to be made.

Graphic visualizing the user journey

4. Map User Actions & Emotions

From there, map out the user’s emotional states during each phase or action they’re moving through. Common phases include Awareness, Consideration, Decision, Service, and Loyalty, but phases can vary depending on the type of product feature, or how broad the area of focus is. By tying each phase back to emotions users are feeling, ranging from delight to frustration, there are clear identifiers for opportunities to optimize the design experience.

Let’s take a look at how this would apply specifically to an app like HappyCow:

  • Awareness: A new college graduate recently moved to a new city and realized they don’t know any plant-based options around them. They’re feeling frustrated and maybe overwhelmed. 
  • Discovery: They start looking on social media and Google, coming across HappyCow, which has positive reviews. Some feelings of hope and curiosity arise.
  • Onboarding: The user downloads the app, creates an account, and starts exploring how the app works to find nearby plant-based options. They’re feeling excited as they start exploring this new app and neutral about the onboarding experience. 
  • Search & Exploration: As the user is searching, they start filtering by their preferences of how far they’re willing to travel to get to a restaurant, if the restaurant is fully vegan or has vegan options, and looking at the HappyCow user reviews at those locations. They find a location within a 15 minute walking distance. Feelings are a mix of excitement but also skepticism. They might be thinking, “Were there enough reviews for this place?”
  • Experience & Engagement: The recent graduate walks over and dines at the restaurant, looking at the menu for clearly labeled vegan options. At the restaurant, they’re feeling content seeing there are options for them. 
  • Reflection & Contribution: After the meal, they reflect on the experience and walk back home. After having a positive experience at the restaurant, they feel like adding their own feedback and review. They open up the app and leave a review of their experience at the place. 
  • Retention: The following weekend, the user is thinking again about new places they could take their friends who are visiting and re-open the app to start searching for plant-based options. 

Strategies Behind User Journeys

When creating a user flow or user journey map, it’s helpful to think about the north star. Is there a specific part of the journey you want to improve? Is the goal to reduce drop offs or encourage more retention? What stage of the journey do you want to prioritize? Thinking about the business objective or feature objective is helpful to make the user map as strategic and helpful as possible for you and your team.

It will always be important to understand user pain points and emotional states. Use those indicators to look at which parts of the product or journey should be optimized or refined first. Combining the journey mapping with other research like user surveys or real life interviews allows for cross learnings and further refining the solution. It helps to further confirm or contradict if frustrations or delights are happening where anticipated.

Simplification is also key. Instead of adding more steps or features, sometimes it’s important to think about stripping back and giving the user fewer options so they can more clearly take the next step in a flow. Finding moments to create personalization or relevant recommendations might be more important than just a higher volume of results. Rather than complicating the flow, think about how to help the user focus instead.

User Flow & User Journey Mapping Takeaways

Taking the steps to map out a user journey allows designers to think strategically from the users perspective of what they need. It also provides a space to zoom out and find design opportunities and features that need to be prioritized or iterated on. This is an important strategic step that allows designers to work in sync with developers, product managers, and stakeholders to determine the needs of the product roadmap.

Try using these methods to reflect on a recent feature, brainstorm for new features, or tackle a specific stage of the user journey. Remember these should always be tailored to your specific user needs or company goals. Happy mapping!

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Best and Worst Celebrity Brand Partnerships https://nogood.io/2025/03/21/celebrity-brand-partnerships/ https://nogood.io/2025/03/21/celebrity-brand-partnerships/#respond Fri, 21 Mar 2025 16:40:58 +0000 https://nogood.io/?p=45107 Celebrity brand partnerships can be marketing gold or miss the mark entirely. The right collaboration boosts credibility, sales, and cultural relevance, but the wrong ones can feel forced, inauthentic, or...

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Celebrity brand partnerships can be marketing gold or miss the mark entirely. The right collaboration boosts credibility, sales, and cultural relevance, but the wrong ones can feel forced, inauthentic, or completely out of place.

There’s also the continuous cycle of female celebrities launching a skincare or makeup line, while for men, it’s often a liquor brand or a wellness product. The formula has been predictable for a while. While some of these ventures feel authentic and well-executed, others can come across as rushed attempts to cash in on a trend. Not every celeb-backed brand manages to stand out in an already oversaturated market.

Let’s break down some of the best and worst celebrity brand partnerships, analyzing what made the best ones successful and why the worst ones are considered, well, the worst.

The 3 Best Celebrity Brand Partnerships

1. Rihanna x Fenty Beauty

Image of Fenty Beauty's brand logo

When Rihanna launched Fenty Beauty in 2017, she didn’t just introduce another celebrity makeup line, she changed the beauty industry forever. Rihanna revolutionized cosmetic products with inclusivity at their core, launching Fenty Beauty with a groundbreaking 40-shade (now 50) foundation range. This became a new industry standard, proving that authenticity and innovation are key.

Fenty Beauty products with shade range image display

Authenticity & Inclusivity

Rihanna was deeply involved in the brand, from shade development to campaign messaging. She was both the face and the creative force behind it. Unlike many celebrity brands where the star is merely a spokesperson, Rihanna was deeply involved in every aspect of Fenty Beauty. She worked closely with developers to ensure that the products met her own high standards, from the formulas to the packaging.

Even in marketing, her voice was clear. Fenty’s campaigns didn’t always simply feature models of all skin tones, but Rihanna herself consistently demonstrated and used the products, making it evident that this wasn’t just a business move, but a passion project.

Shade range comparison between Fenty Beauty versus other competing brands that do not offer as wide of color ranges.

Before Fenty Beauty, many makeup brands were notoriously lacking in shade diversity. Deeper foundation shades were often treated as an afterthought, if they were available at all. When Fenty launched with so many foundation shades at the start, it forced the entire beauty industry to reassess its approach to inclusivity. Major brands such as Dior and Estée Lauder sprinted to expand their shade ranges in response, something now known as “The Fenty Effect.”

Fenty makeup product line images

Beyond foundation, Fenty Beauty continued prioritizing inclusivity in all its launches. Products like bronzers, powders, and lip shades were carefully designed to be flattering on all skin tones, ensuring no one was left out of the brand’s vision. This was a commitment to representation that resonated deeply with consumers, proving there was a massive demand for more representation in beauty.

Quality & Innovation

Many celebrity beauty brands rely on hype and packaging rather than high-performance formulas. Fenty Beauty, however, delivered both. The Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Foundation became a cult favorite for its long-lasting, lightweight, and oil-controlling formula. The Eaze Drop Blurring Skin Tint, which launched years later, quickly became a viral hit for its skin-like finish and ease of use. Even the Gloss Bomb lip gloss (and its three different formulas – Gloss Bomb, Gloss Bomb Cream, and Gloss Bomb Heat) was praised for its universally flattering shades and non-sticky texture.

Fenty skin tint and foundation product images
Fenty Lip Glosses advertisement: gloss bomb, gloss bomb cream, gloss bomb heat

Rihanna has expanded the Fenty empire into skincare, lingerie, and now haircare, proving that the brand is a complete lifestyle experience.

Fenty lines: Savage x Fenty, and Fenty Hair product imagery

Fenty Skin launched in 2020, and the brand debuted with essential skincare products with packaging that’s sleek, refillable, and gender-neutral, proving that Fenty understands modern consumers’ preferences.

Savage X Fenty, Rihanna’s lingerie line, completely disrupted the outdated standards of the lingerie industry. Unlike brands like Victoria’s Secret, Savage X Fenty embraced size inclusivity, diverse body types, and bold, unapologetic confidence.

Currently, Rihanna is taking on haircare with Fenty Hair. The brand promises repair-focused, science-backed hair products designed for all hair types.

Image of Fenty Beauty line on TikTok Shop

Fenty also stays ahead by embracing Gen Z shopping habits. The brand was an early adopter of adding its products to TikTok Shop, selling products directly to consumers where they’re already discovering trends – on social media platforms.

2. Zendaya x On

Zendaya and On fitness brand collaboration - image of Zendaya wearing On products

In 2024, Zendaya joined forces with On, the Swiss performance sportswear brand, in a multi-year partnership that’s set to redefine the way we think about movement and well-being. Zendaya is not just a celebrity ambassador, she’s an active collaborator, working closely with On to reimagine product collections and bring new energy to the brand.

Authenticity

Zendaya has long been an advocate for both mental and physical well-being, making her the perfect fit for On, a brand that values both performance and sustainability. Her personal style and active lifestyle were key elements that drew the brand to her.

Zendaya’s involvement in every step of the partnership, from product design to creative direction, ensures that the collaboration stays true to her values of promoting wellness and authenticity. It’s not just about creating a collection — it’s about creating a movement that resonates with her personal brand.

Zendaya and On brand collaboration image advertisements

Zendaya is deeply involved in shaping the narrative, ensuring that storytelling and well-being are at the forefront of the campaign. Her role goes beyond just being the face of the brand; she’s helping to push On’s message of balance between fashion, fitness, and lifestyle.

Cultural Impact & Innovation

This partnership also marks a new direction for On, as Zendaya’s influence is set to drive meaningful conversations around movement and mental wellness. With Zendaya’s massive cultural influence and dedicated following, On is tapping into a younger demographic, one that values sustainability and inclusivity. Together, they aim to reimagine how consumers interact with performance wear and how it can be seamlessly integrated into their everyday lives.

Zendaya and On collaboration imagery, people on track field with Zendaya in the middle facing the camera

Zendaya and On are also collaborating on select product collections, which will be infused with her creative input. This partnership signals a shift in the industry towards more holistic approaches to fitness and wellness, expanding the definition of movement to include both physical and mental health. Whether it’s running shoes or lifestyle apparel, On and Zendaya are setting a new standard for what it means to move forward, both in the gym and in life.

3. Olivia Rodrigo x Stanley Cup

Olivia Rodrigo holding a product from her line of Stanley Cups

In 2024, Olivia Rodrigo partnered with Stanley Cup, the brand behind the beloved insulated tumblers, in a collaboration that had fans buzzing. This partnership was a genius move made by Stanley, tapping into Olivia’s cultural prestige and the massive popularity of Stanley Cups with Gen Z and Millennial consumers.

Authenticity

Olivia Rodrigo’s personal brand is defined by her raw, emotional lyrics and unapologetic authenticity, so teaming up with Stanley made perfect sense. The design of the tumbler is so Olivia-coded, it’s instantly recognizable.

Purple, specifically a Deep Periwinkle shade, and “Gen Z purple,” a color synonymous with Olivia’s personal aesthetic, dominates the cup, along with her signature decorative stickers. Even without the logo, the design screams Olivia. It’s a limited edition accessory that speaks to her fan base, many of whom are young women looking for a product that aligns with their love for both Olivia’s music and her sense of self-expression.

Product imagery of Olivia Rodrigo's collaboration with Stanley Cup

The cup’s design speaks to the emotional connection her audience feels with her. It’s not just a product; it’s a part of her larger brand, making it a true representation of her influence.

Cultural Impact & Audience Fit

Stanley’s collaboration with Olivia is spot-on when it comes to targeting the right audience. Olivia’s fan base is a perfect fit for the Stanley brand, as her young female audience is highly engaged in trendy, functional, and aesthetically pleasing products. The collaboration is designed for both young adults who can afford to buy it themselves and younger fans whose parents will likely purchase it for them. With Stanley Cups being a hot commodity in the Gen Z space and Olivia being a youth culture icon, this partnership struck gold.

Olivia Rodrigo holding a Stanley Cup from her line while smiling at the camera

Remember when a ton of the Valentine’s Day Stanley Cups sold out in minutes at Target? The Olivia Rodrigo Stanley Cup has the same buzz, quickly becoming an Instagram-worthy accessory that Olivia’s fans couldn’t wait to get their hands on. Just like her music, the cup taps into an undeniable trend and emotional connection with her audience, making it one of the hottest collectibles in 2024.

The Worst Celebrity Brand Partnerships

1. Blake Lively x Blake Brown

Brand launch image for Blake Brown with Blake Lively looking into camera and hair line products in front of her

Blake Lively’s entry into the hair care industry with her brand Blake Brown, launched in partnership with Give Back Beauty, was widely anticipated. However, despite the excitement around her name, the line has struggled to make a lasting impact, and its rollout has been riddled with controversy. The line was marketed as a luxury hair care brand, and ultimately led to many raised eyebrows from consumers.

Authenticity and Sensitivity

Blake Lively’s brand has always been associated with effortless beauty, but many questioned the authenticity of her venture into hair care. While she is undeniably a beauty icon, her lack of formal training or expertise in the hair care industry led many to wonder if this was more of a celebrity cash grab than a genuine product line.

Three images: first is Blake Brown products, second is It Ends With Us movie poster, and third is Blake Lively holding products from her line

This skepticism was only amplified by the use of her film, “It Ends with Us” (a movie about domestic violence) as a promotional tool for Blake Brown. The movie’s themes of trauma and violence made it an incredibly insensitive choice to tie into a beauty campaign that was supposed to be about empowerment and wellness.

The disconnect between the film’s heavy subject matter and the lighthearted nature of a beauty brand launch left many consumers feeling uncomfortable and questioning the thoughtfulness of the campaign.

Messy Campaign Photos

One of the most glaring issues with the Blake Brown launch was the portrayal of Blake Lively herself in the campaign photos. The campaign images featured her hair looking unusually messy and disheveled. For a luxury hair care brand, showcasing a lack of polish in the campaign raised doubts about the formulas themselves, especially when high-end hair care is often expected to promote sleekness and shine.

Three images of Blake Lively with messy hair

Lacking in Product & Science

Another point of contention for Blake Brown is the line’s lack of conditioner. Hair care enthusiasts and influencers alike have noted that while the line offers some staple products, it doesn’t include a conditioner, which is something that is essential in any comprehensive hair care regimen.

Blake Lively's Blake Brown product line imagery

The absence of a conditioner seemed like a major oversight, especially when a brand is claiming to deliver high-performance products. Without this key component, it felt that the line was incomplete and did not meet consumer needs.

Blake Brown prioritizes the celebrity image and marketing aspects over the development of scientifically sound hair care formulas. The formulas haven’t been backed by the kind of rigorous science or research that is expected from top-tier hair care lines, and many consumers have criticized the brand for not delivering products that live up to the hype. For a product line launched by a high-profile celebrity like Lively, the lack of significant innovation or a strong formula left many feeling disappointed.

Untouched Shelves & Influencer Reactions

In stores like Target, where Blake Brown is widely available, the brand’s presence has been underwhelming. Despite the marketing push, Blake Brown’s products have been largely stagnant on shelves. The products are not standing out from other, more established brands.

Blake Lively doing demos of her haircare products on TikTok with customers

Adding to the confusion, TikTok influencers shared videos of Blake Lively herself styling their hair at one of the exclusive launch events, only for the styles to fall flat shortly after. Before styling, the influencers’ hair looked sleek, polished, and well-kept, but after Lively had finished styling, their hair looked messy and unkempt, similar to “bed head.” This only fueled the perception that Blake Brown wasn’t living up to the expectations set by its glamorous celebrity endorsement.

2. Kylie Jenner x Kylie Skin

Kylie Jenner brand launch image for Kylie Skin

Kylie Jenner’s beauty empire, Kylie Cosmetics, has been widely successful, launching her to billionaire status and earning her a dedicated fan base. However, her skincare line, Kylie Skin, has faced a series of criticisms that have led to a rough patch for the brand. While her cosmetics line thrives, Kylie Skin has struggled to maintain the same level of success and credibility in the skincare industry.

Kylie Skin scrub product image with Kylie Jenner and product being squeezed out

Many questioned whether her leap into skincare was more about her celebrity status than a genuine understanding of the needs of skincare consumers. This disconnect has led to backlash over product efficacy, sustainability issues, and a general sense that the brand’s offerings prioritize Kylie’s image over creating scientifically backed, effective skincare solutions.

Lack of Effectiveness and Controversial Products

Despite the star power of Kylie Jenner, Kylie Skin’s products have come under fire for lacking proven efficacy. The brand launched in 2019 with a product range that included face scrubs with walnut shells, which caused significant backlash due to concerns about how harsh they are for the skin.

Dermatologists weighed in, calling the product abrasive and potentially damaging to sensitive skin, which immediately raised red flags. While some products did well, others were criticized for being basic and overpriced, especially considering the lack of innovation in an already crowded skincare market.

Sustainability and Packaging Concerns

Kylie Skin’s packaging uses a lot of plastic, and some customers have questioned the environmental impact of the products. Kylie Jenner’s brand prides itself on luxury and high-end image, but the lack of sustainable practices, especially at a time when consumers are more eco-conscious than ever, left many feeling that the brand wasn’t keeping up with the needs of modern consumers.

Kylie Skin product line in packaging

Image Over Substance

The overall vibe of Kylie Skin has often been seen as more about Kylie Jenner’s image than about offering products that truly cater to the needs of the skincare community. With her focus on influencer marketing and social media, many felt that the emphasis was more on building a brand around Jenner’s name rather than delivering consistently high-quality skincare products.

3. Gwyneth Paltrow x Goop

Gwyneth Paltrow at her Goop line launch

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand, Goop, has gained immense attention over the years, but not always for the right reasons. While Goop has carved out a niche for itself in wellness, beauty, and luxury lifestyle, it has also been heavily criticized for its high price points and controversial product recommendations.

Overpriced and Out of Touch

Goop has long been associated with a high-end lifestyle, offering products ranging from $100 candles to $200 supplements, which many see as excessively expensive. The brand has frequently been criticized for showcasing these luxury items and making recommendations that seem out of touch with the reality of most people’s budgets.

Screenshot of Goop website's product page with prices

Consumers often find themselves questioning how many of Paltrow’s followers can actually afford the wellness products she endorses. Paltrow, however, has defended Goop’s pricing model, arguing that the items and recommendations are meant to be “aspirational” and that quality products in wellness and beauty simply can’t be made at a lower price point without compromising their integrity.

While Goop has positioned itself as a luxury wellness brand, the exclusivity of its offerings has led some to feel alienated. By focusing on high-end, niche products, Goop has become a symbol of wellness that’s more accessible to the rich and famous than to the average consumer. This elitist image has contributed to Goop’s reputation for being out of touch with the broader, everyday consumer, leading to widespread criticism of its tone-deaf approach to lifestyle marketing.

Questionable Health Products and Claims

In addition to the high prices, Goop has also faced scrutiny for promoting health products and wellness practices that some consider questionable. The brand has been criticized for selling items like jade eggs (meant to be inserted into the body) and other unconventional wellness gadgets that many doctors have advised against. 

These products have drawn legal action and led to questions about whether Goop is more focused on profit than the health and safety of its customers. Despite the backlash, Paltrow has stood by Goop’s ethos, claiming that the brand’s offerings are about empowering consumers to take control of their well-being.

Closing Thoughts

Celebrity brand partnerships continue to be a double-edged sword in marketing. While some collaborations have led to unprecedented success, others have faltered due to a lack of authenticity, poor product quality, or simply not resonating with their target audience.

As the market becomes increasingly saturated, celebrities looking to make their mark must focus on authenticity, innovation, and understanding their audience’s values to succeed. The best partnerships prove that when celebrities truly align with the products they promote and stay involved in every aspect of the brand’s development, the outcome can be both profitable and meaningful. On the contrary, those who attempt to capitalize on fame without putting in the effort to create something genuinely valuable may find themselves left behind in an oversaturated market.

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Why Motion Graphic Design is a Game Changer in Social Media Advertising https://nogood.io/2025/02/05/motion-graphic-design/ https://nogood.io/2025/02/05/motion-graphic-design/#respond Wed, 05 Feb 2025 15:34:18 +0000 https://nogood.io/?p=44685 Motion graphics are a powerful tool for capturing your audience's attention. Learn about different methods and strategies for putting it to use.

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With only seconds to make an impression, motion graphics have become a powerful tool for capturing attention and driving engagement. Here we’ll go through different strategies, methods, and even tools for how we’ve incorporated motion work into our creative advertising.

What is Motion Graphic Design in Performance Media?

Motion design involves animating graphics to convey a message and enhance visual appeal. Simply put, it changes imagery from static to motion. Whether you’re moving around typography or transforming shapes, motion design is widely being used to create dynamic ads that attract attention. In performance media, we can test different elements of motion design in different ads and use these creative learnings to produce better campaigns as a result. As technology evolves and motion design tools advance, capturing the audience becomes more competitive and all the more important.

Different Methods of Motion Graphic Design

The level of motion graphics needed all depends on the messaging and scope of the campaign. The length of the video, client needs, testing results, and designer’s bandwidth are all taken into consideration when deciding how to animate an ad.

What creative solutions can we use to effectively optimize the ads? Motion design is all about enhancing our work, so executions can range from simple typography treatments to advanced 3D integration.

1. Text Animations

While text animations can be simple, it’s a time-efficient way to make the messaging in your creative work stand out. Text animations are always versatile and can be applied anywhere to highlight key messages, taglines, call-to-actions, etc. Many times text animations can be part of the brand and motion style, which can be templatized and used for brand consistency and recognition.

2. Data Vis

Is the amount of text too overwhelming for audiences? Sometimes text can be replaced or paired with moving visuals to be more digestible to viewers. Adding more movement to these data visualizations can make the brand feel more credible. You can keep the motion simple or create longer format videos diving deeper into the data. Whether it’s simple statistics or complex charts, the goal is to guide viewers and make the content more engaging.

3. Motion Graphic Carousels

Sometime’s a brand’s story can’t all fit in a single static ad. Multiple slides allow for more interactive content as the audience swipes and completes the story. Encouraging users to swipe will increase time spent on the post. Carousels are great for showing step-by-step processes, multiple products, and so on. Although it may take more time to design and export motion for various slides, it gives you much more real estate for storytelling.

4. 2D Graphics

You can get creative with what elements you choose to animate and bring a flat image to life. Any object in an ad has the potential to elevate the whole creative. Animating your ad saves you space. Instead of cramming all the content into a still image, text/subjects can be transitioned in and out. Certain brands may already have specific logo, icon, or product animations, so be sure that the incorporated motion doesn’t impose on the brand but rather compliments or elevates it.

5. 3D Graphics

3D animation is a skill that can be more time consuming but also more rewarding since 3D elements can add so much depth and immersion in an ad, especially when showcasing products. It can be very beneficial to incorporate if you want your ad to stand out in a crowded social feed. 3D animation tends to be a bigger investment and is a method that may need to be outsourced if the skill isn’t available in-house. However, a high-quality ad equals a high-quality brand.

Performance Branding Strategies in Motion

What is performance branding? It’s a strategic approach that basically combines branding with marketing tactics. We want a strong brand that drives measurable outcomes, such as conversions, clicks, and engagement. A great way to elevate a brand is through motion design. Better design leads to better results.

1. Focus on Consistent Brand Elements

Use motion graphics to reinforce the brand’s identity by consistently incorporating the logo, color scheme, and typography into animations. This can build recognition and trust over time.

2. Make Data-Driven Design Choices

Use your creative learnings and insights to determine what types of motion graphics resonate most with your audience. This is where motion design can become intentional with visuals that align with audience preferences and behaviors. For our client Auros, a home renovation company, we found that visual proof, like before and after images, were the most engaging for our viewers so a before/after slider effect was a straightforward, creative way to incorporate motion into our ad.

Every audience interacts with content differently. Some may respond better to fast-paced animations, while others prefer smooth, minimal transitions. Gathering data from past results allows brands to move beyond trial and error. 

How should we look at the data? Look at what motion styles had the highest click-through rate. Which ads had the highest revenue? Different metrics might be more relevant for different brands.

3. Optimize for Conversion

Motion graphics and videos can give you more room to provide a call-to-action at the end of a video. Giving a clear CTA wraps up an ad nicely and completes your messaging. If videos have a longer story/message, adding an end card can make it clear to audiences what product/service is being promoted.

It’s always good to keep the CTA copy concise when trying to generate leads. Highlighting key benefits like “Sign up for free” or “Get Early Access” paired with smooth, subtle motion is a great way to go. For purchase conversions, you can make the end card come in with high-energy or faster pacing to create a sense of urgency.

For brand consistency, you can use the campaign’s voice/language in the CTA, as shown in these Oura ads. Different CTAs require different executions, so test out what fits best with your ad!

4. Tell a Story with a Purpose

Use motion graphics to craft a narrative that emotionally connects with your audience while promoting the brand or product. The audience will engage with your content longer with effective storytelling. This method can leave everlasting impressions rather than simpler ads that become forgetful. 

Viewers may forget a headline, but they won’t forget how a story made them feel—and that feeling gets tied to the brand. You can structure your story with a hook, introduce a problem/desire, and then end with a CTA and have it all flow together using motion design.

5. A/B Test

Experiment with different styles, animations, and messaging to identify which motion graphics deliver the best performance.

When designing motion graphics for our client Postable, we initially tested a dark/black background. However, we noticed that it did not perform well in engagement metrics. So we ran another variation but with a targeted change—the same ad but with a brighter background. The changed variation had better engagement, proving that the background color played a role in how the audience responded to the ad.

A common mistake in A/B testing is changing too many elements at once. Effective testing should isolate a single element at a time for more accurate insights. If multiple elements are changed at once it becomes difficult to pinpoint what caused the performance to shift.

Tools for Creating Motion Graphics

With a variety of tools available, creating motion graphics has become more accessible than ever. However, it’s important to note that the time and learning curve required to learn different programs can vary. 

It’s impossible to know everything, but learning some of the basics can still take you far when it comes to the possibilities of motion. There’s a tutorial out there for just about anything, so don’t be afraid to experiment! Mixed forms of media and skills are some of the best ways to create.

Here are two common tools we often use for motion designing:

  1. Adobe After Effects: One of the most widely used tools in the industry for creating motion graphics and animations. It has a large library of effects and other plugins, and it also seamlessly integrates with other Adobe tools. It’s an important program to learn if you want to get into motion design, especially if you’re part of a creative team.
  2. Blender: An open-source tool for creating 3D motion graphics. It’s highly versatile and allows you to model, animate, and render 3D objects. Best of all, it’s free! The creative possibilities are endless when you export your work from Blender and combine it with other forms of media.

The Need for Motion

For many brands, motion graphics are no longer just a creative addition; they’re a necessity. Companies are looking for ways to capture attention, simplify storytelling, and enhance engagement, and motion graphics can be a perfect solution to that when executed well. By staying on top of trends, leveraging the right tools, and integrating performance branding strategies, you can create impactful motion graphics that resonate with your audience and drive results.

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Ultimate Landing Page Guide: How to Build One + Examples https://nogood.io/2025/01/21/landing-page-guide/ https://nogood.io/2025/01/21/landing-page-guide/#respond Tue, 21 Jan 2025 14:20:28 +0000 https://nogood.io/?p=44295 A high-performing landing page isn’t just about looking good, it’s about converting visitors into leads. If your landing page doesn’t capture attention and drive action, you’re missing out on potential...

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A high-performing landing page isn’t just about looking good, it’s about converting visitors into leads. If your landing page doesn’t capture attention and drive action, you’re missing out on potential opportunities. In this article, we’ll cover the difference between a landing page, a sales page, a product page, and a website, how you can build a landing page that converts, and some examples of real-world landing pages.

What is the difference between a landing page, a sales page, a product page, and a website?

Graphic showing the difference between a landing page and a normal web page

For some people, the terms above – landing page, sales page, product page, and website – could cause confusion. They might sound similar, but each one serves a different purpose.

Understanding the Types of Pages: Landing, Sales, Product, and Website

Landing Page

A landing page is a stand-alone web page that’s designed for a specific purpose, like generating leads or downloading a resource such as a free ebook. Marketers mostly use it with paid ads. It usually can’t be reached by navigating through the website, since it’s a “stand-alone web page.”

Sales Page

A sales page, on the other hand, is a more focused and specialized type of landing page. Its main goal is to persuade visitors to make a purchase or an important transaction. Sales pages are carefully crafted to emphasize the value of a product or service, address potential concerns, and persuade the visitor to make a purchase decision.

Product Page

A product page is a web page dedicated to presenting a specific product. It will house detailed information about one product in particular and contain key elements such as the product title, high-quality images or videos, a comprehensive description, pricing details, a call-to-action button such as “Buy Now” or “Add to Cart,” customer reviews and ratings, technical specifications, and suggestions for related products. The main goal of a product page is to inform and convince potential customers and make it easier for them to make a purchase decision.

Website

This one we all know. A website often contains all of the above. It shows every aspect of your business, features all of your products, tells the story of your company in the “about us” section, explains your policies, etc..

If we’re talking about a website for an e-commerce business, for example, it would be like a store where potential customers can walk in and browse your products.

Landing, Sales, Product, Website Pages: Purpose and Design Differences

Objective

Landing Page: Driving traffic from paid ads and persuading the visitors to take one specific action, which we call a conversion. The conversion could be signing up for a webinar, downloading an ebook, or booking a demo, and it’s mostly used by B2B companies to generate leads for the sales team to contact later.

Sales Page: The main goal is to drive conversions, establish trust through reviews and trust badges, and answer questions and concerns of your potential customers. It’s mostly used to sell services.

Product Page: The main goal is to showcase a product – just one product. Show its features, images, videos, reviews, and different variations like colors and sizes, and it should have a call to action like “add to cart” or “buy now” or both.

Website: Encompasses everything from increasing awareness to driving conversions. It’s the online presence of a company. Without it, you can’t have product, sales, or landing pages.

It’s the place where people go when they need your service or product or to contact you.

Length

Landing Page: Usually short and to the point, as it’s designed to grab attention quickly and encourage immediate action.

Sales Page: This can be longer and provides a detailed exploration of the product or service to build trust and address potential objections.

Product Page: Depending on the product and how complicated it is, a product page for a $10k camera is expected to be longer than a product page for a $10 house plant.

As long as the page is informative and covers all the details of the product without wasting the page visitors’ time, length doesn’t matter.

Website: Doesn’t have a specific length as it’s not one element or one page. You should be focusing on navigation and speed when building your website since you need your visitors to be able to find what they want easily and get to it fast.

A hard-to-navigate website causes confusion, and a slow one causes frustration, and both result in the visitor leaving the website.

Content

Landing Page: Content is tailored to the specific campaign or goal, with a concise and compelling message. It includes elements such as a headline, brief copy, visuals, and a clear call-to-action (CTA).

Sales Page: The content here is similar to what your sales team says to convince potential customers. It should feature pricing, different packages if applicable, frequently asked questions, visuals of your product or service, features, benefits, value propositions, a contact us button in case they need more information that’s not on the page, and finally, a call to action.

Product Page: The content on the page is all about one product, showcasing its features, price, shipping cost, return, and refund policy, reviews from previous purchasers to increase trust, ratings if applicable, and visuals. It could also feature other relevant products to increase the order value.

Let’s say you’re selling a camera. The other relevant products could be memory cards, camera straps, etc.

Website: Provides diverse content that covers different aspects of the business, such as an information page, product or service pages, blog posts, and possibly visual content. The content is structured to provide a comprehensive overview of your business as a whole, not just your product or service.

Navigation

Landing Page: It’s best not to add a navigation bar on a landing page to keep visitors from leaving it, as that would defeat the main objective of a landing page.

That being said, you can test adding a navigation bar if the page is new, and use a tool like Microsoft Clarity to see what people click on, and that might identify missing information from the landing page.

If they click on “about us,” that means they want to know more about your company, not just your service, so you can add an about us section on the page.

If they click on “contact us,” consider adding a chat function to the page.

Sales Page: Fairly similar to the landing page, try to keep them on the page, but add a navigation bar to understand your visitors’ behavior.

Product Page: As a part of the website, it already has the website’s navigation bar at the top. It can also have links to other pages, like relevant products and your return and refund policy.

Website: Of course, a website must have a navigation bar at the top and the bottom. What’s more important is having a clear and simple navigation that doesn’t confuse your visitors.

It should be logically structured. If you sell clothes for men, women, and children, for example, you should start with the broadest category and narrow it down till you get to the product collection page, where you can feature several products of the same collection.

How much does it cost to build a landing page?

The cost of building a landing page can vary widely based on several factors, including the complexity of the design, the features required, the level of customization, and the expertise of the professionals involved. Here are some key factors that can influence the cost of building a landing page.

Design Complexity

A simple and clean design with basic elements may cost less than a visually complex design. The complexity of graphics, animations, and other visual elements can impact the overall cost.

Ensuring that your landing page is responsive and works well on various devices (desktops, tablets, and mobile phones) may involve additional design and development work, affecting the cost.

Functionality

The functionality you need on your landing page, such as contact forms, interactive elements, or e-commerce integration, can affect the cost. More advanced features may require additional development time and resources.

Customization

If you opt for a pre-designed template or a basic layout, the cost may be lower. However, if you require a fully customized design tailored to your brand and specific needs, the cost will likely be higher.

Content Creation

The creation of high-quality content, including copywriting, images, and multimedia elements, can contribute to the overall cost. But customized and compelling content can enhance the effectiveness of your landing page, so it can be worth the investment.

Professional Services

Hiring professionals, such as web designers, developers, or marketing experts, will contribute to the overall cost. The hourly rates or project-based fees of these professionals can vary based on their experience and expertise.

As a rough estimate, the cost of building a basic landing page can range from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. However, for more complex and customized landing pages with advanced features, the cost could be higher. It’s essential to define your specific requirements and budget constraints before seeking quotes from web development professionals or agencies. Additionally, keep in mind that ongoing costs may include hosting, maintenance, and potential updates.

The Best Tools For Building Landing Pages

There are various tools available to help you build effective and visually appealing landing pages, catering to different skill levels and requirements. Here are some popular tools that are widely used for building landing pages.

Unbounce

Screenshot of Unbounce

Unbounce is a popular landing page builder that offers a drag-and-drop interface, making it easy to create and customize landing pages. It also provides A/B testing functionality and integrates with various marketing tools.

Leadpages

Screenshot of Leadpages

Leadpages is known for its simplicity and user-friendly interface. It offers a range of templates and customization options. Leadpages also includes features such as A/B testing and integration with email marketing platforms.

Instapage

Screenshot of Instapage

Instapage is a powerful landing page builder with a focus on conversion optimization. It provides features like A/B testing, heatmaps, and collaboration tools. Instapage also offers integrations with popular marketing tools.

HubSpot Landing Page Builder

Screenshot of HubSpot

HubSpot provides a comprehensive marketing platform, and its landing page builder is part of the suite. It offers easy integration with other HubSpot tools, and you can use it to create responsive landing pages with no coding required.

WordPress with Elementor

Screenshot of WordPress with Elementor

If you prefer using WordPress, the Elementor plugin allows you to build landing pages using a drag-and-drop editor. It’s a versatile solution with many customization options.

Wix

Screenshot of Wix

Wix is a website builder that includes a feature for building landing pages. It offers a variety of templates and an intuitive drag-and-drop editor. Wix is suitable for users with varying levels of technical expertise.

ClickFunnels

Screenshot of ClickFunnels

ClickFunnels is designed for creating sales funnels, and it includes a landing page builder. It’s particularly useful for those looking to create entire sales funnels, including opt-in pages, sales pages, and thank-you pages.

Landingi

Screenshot of Landingi

Landingi is a dedicated landing page builder that offers a wide range of templates and customization options. It also includes features like A/B testing and analytics to optimize your landing pages.

Webflow

Screenshot of Webflow

Webflow is a more advanced web design tool that allows for highly customizable landing page creation. It’s suitable for users with some web design experience and offers powerful design capabilities.

GetResponse

Screenshot of GetResponse

GetResponse is primarily known as an email marketing platform, but it also includes a landing page builder. It’s a good option for those looking for an integrated solution for both email marketing and landing pages.

When choosing a landing page builder, consider factors such as ease of use, customization options, integration capabilities, pricing, and whether it aligns with your specific needs and goals. Additionally, many of these tools offer free trials or free versions, allowing you to explore and determine which one best suits your requirements before making a commitment.

The Best Landing Page Examples

1. ActiveCampaign

Screenshot of a landing page for ActiveCampaign

In this example, you can see that ActiveCampaign uses a strong value proposition in the header section that focuses on personalization.

If that’s what you care about as a potential customer, you would feel like you’re being addressed personally, which increases the chance of you starting their free trial.

The focus of the headline is on you, not the platform.

2. Winc

Screenshot of a landing page for Winc

This eCommerce landing page could not be clearer and more direct. The page shows different types of wine, and the CTA directs users to fill out a form that helps them choose their preferred wine.

What sets this landing page apart is the fun and casual tone it uses. Their friendly tone caters to their target audience.

3. Liv Watches

Screenshot of a landing page for Liv Watches

Showing your product from different angles, in several scenarios and settings, can make or break your landing page.

Most eCommerce landing pages just feature a carousel at the top of the page and fill the rest of the page with blocks of text.

Liv Watches, however, has a video overview of the watch, showing various features, close-up shots, and craftsmanship.

They also use scarcity as an incentive, “Limited edition to 500 pieces,” which gives you the feeling that you’ll be a part of a limited group if you own one.

4. Shopify

Screenshot of a landing page for Shopify

Aside from using the word “Sell” to make it clear that this tool is for e-commerce companies, Shopify explicitly calls out “1,000,000 businesses” to establish trust.

Notice how they’re only asking for an email address and nothing else? It’s tempting to ask every question that comes to mind when building a landing page and “pre-qualify” the lead before you contact them, but that could and will scare your potential customers away.

There will be enough time to get more information from your leads through your email marketing campaign or through signing up for a demo or a free trial. You don’t have to collect all you need at once through a long and intimidating form on the landing page. Sometimes less is more.

5. HubSpot

Screenshot of a landing page for HubSpot

Marketing to everyone is marketing to no one. You can’t have a generic landing page for every visitor and expect success.

HubSpot uses its landing page to segment its visitors and direct every segment into its own personalized demo.

6. Yelp

Screenshot of a landing page for Yelp

1 headline, 3 bullet points, a call to action, and that’s it. Yelp’s landing page is short, simple, and to the point. They tell you the cost (which is free), the benefits, and the call to action allows you to, immediately, list your business.

7. Salesforce

Screenshot of a landing page for Salesforce

Again, a no-nonsense page. The design is simple, yet the message and the value proposition are strong.

It’s all about the social proof to increase trust – over 150K customers are already using and trusting Salesforce.

They know that their target audience has one primary goal – business growth – which is mentioned at the top.

Finally, notice the use of numbers: +37% increase in sales, +45% increase in customer satisfaction, and +43% increase in marketing ROI.

This is what their customers want.

Final Thoughts

In summary, B2B landing pages should be built for a specific audience with a clear purpose in mind: driving conversions. Whether that’s content downloads, demo requests, or webinar sign-ups, you should be guiding your visitors to one, specific action. Use concise messaging, strong and clear value propositions, compelling visuals, and encouraging calls to action. There is no secret recipe for creating the best-ever landing page; you’ll have to find your own recipe by experimenting with different elements and A/B testing to see what resonates most with your audience.

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Your Guide to Meta Creative Best Practices https://nogood.io/2025/01/17/meta-creative-best-practices/ https://nogood.io/2025/01/17/meta-creative-best-practices/#respond Fri, 17 Jan 2025 14:41:44 +0000 https://nogood.io/?p=44256 Have you ever been scrolling on Instagram and come across an ad that just made you think, "What was this brand thinking?" Don’t be that brand. You can do better.

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Have you ever been scrolling on Instagram and come across an ad that just made you think oof, what was this brand thinking, this looks awful…? Don’t be that brand; you can do better.

Before getting into specific tips and best practices for Meta, let’s align on two basics:

Foundations of Building Your Meta Creative

Start with a Clear Goal

Every successful ad campaign begins with a clear and measurable objective. Suppose the purpose of your campaign is to collect leads, but you’ve set up the conversion objective as sales and are looking at a metric like revenue for success. Chances are you’re going to waste time and money. Selecting the right objective ensures that your campaign aligns with your business goals and leverages Meta’s algorithm correctly to better optimize for desired outcomes.

Tip: Pair your campaign goals with key performance indicators (KPIs) to track progress. For example, if your goal is lead generation, monitor cost per lead (CPL) and conversion rates.

Know Your Audience

Understanding your target audience is essential for creating impactful ads. In the past, this often meant using detailed audience targeting to reach customers who matched your demographic. Nowadays, audience targeting is less effective, placing much more emphasis on creatives to connect with the right people.

What tone resonates best with your audience — funny, informal, or serious? And what visuals catch their eye — modern and sleek or funky and colorful? Whatever your brand identity, ensure it aligns cohesively with your target demographic. Use these insights to craft ads that truly resonate with your potential customers.

Once you’ve established clear goals and have a deep understanding of your audience, it’s time to focus on the fun part of your campaign: the creatives.

5 Best Practices for Winning Creative on Meta

1. Eye-Catching Visuals

The battle for attention is fierce. Your ad creative must capture interest within the first three seconds. Here are the most important things to keep in mind:

  • Use High-Quality Visuals – Choose professional-quality visuals or design elements that capture your brand’s unique style.
  • Incorporate Movement – Videos and animations tend to perform well on Meta. Keep videos short and deliver the key message within the first few seconds.
  • Maintain Consistency – Ensure your ads match your overall brand aesthetic and messaging.
  • Test Formats: Try static images, carousels, and videos to see what performs best with your audience.
Gif showing the difference between a static add and one with motion

2. Don’t Overlook Your In-Graphic Copy

While visuals will catch a user’s attention, ad copy drives action. Focus on creating concise, compelling messages that resonate with your audience.

  • Hook with the First Line: Start with a question, bold statement, or benefit to grab attention.
  • Highlight Benefits: Focus on how your product or service solves problems or adds value.
  • Strong CTAs: Use action-oriented language like “Shop Now,” “Learn More,” or “Sign Up.”
  • Match Tone to Audience: Use language that reflects your brand voice and speaks directly to your target audience.
Graphic showing the difference between an ad with compelling copy and one without

3. Use the Correct Dimensions for All Placements

Meta lets you choose where your ads will appear, such as feeds, stories, and more. If you opt for multiple placements, ensure your creative fits the correct dimensions for each one. Nothing screams rookie more than an ad on Instagram stories that is awkwardly cropped because you didn’t upload a 9:16 version. Trust me, just do it, it’s worth the effort.

4. Test & Optimize Continuously

Optimization is key to improving campaign performance over time. A/B testing allows you to compare variations of your ads to determine what resonates most with your audience.

  • Test Creatives: Experiment with various images, videos, headlines, and CTAs. However, for the best results, test only one or two variables at a time. If you’re testing too many elements at once, how will you know which part of your creative made it successful? A big part of the game is learning to leverage the data you have—be strategic about it.
  • Iterate: Use insights from testing to refine your ads and maximize ROI.
Graphic showing how you can iterate on a successful creative concept

5. Stay Aligned Across Touch Points

Consistency is very important for building trust and reducing friction. Make sure your ads, organic social media presence, and website offer a cohesive experience for potential customers.

  • Match Ad and Landing Page: Align visuals and messaging to avoid confusion.
  • Consistent Branding: Use the same (or at least similar) color schemes, fonts, and tone across all platforms.
  • Seamless User Journey: Ensure users can easily navigate from ad to purchase (or lead, or whatever your goal is) without unnecessary steps.
Graphic showing cohesive design choices across ads, websites, and social media

Additional Nitty-Gritty Tips

1. Remove the Multi-Advertiser Option

What Meta says about it: “Your ads can appear alongside other ads in the same ad unit to help people discover products and services from businesses that are personalized to them. Your ad creative may be resized or cropped to fit the ad unit.”

The reality: Why would you want to pay for your ad to be smooshed against competitors? Stand out. Make the most of your ad spend.

2. Keep Your Headline Short and Concise

Use this space strategically to highlight a strong CTA or convey a key message. Want more subscribers? Try something like, ‘Join the largest network of XYZ today!’ Or drive purchases with, ‘Get 25% off your next order!'”

3. Advantage+ Enhancements

For a comprehensive list of do’s and don’ts, read the AI section of our blog on paid social predictions for 2025.

If you’re advertising for an e-commerce brand, take advantage of the available real estate and test catalog ads. In addition to your creative, this approach allows you to showcase various SKUs.

Tip: Organize your catalog by grouping product categories cohesively. For example, if you’re advertising a clothing brand, create separate sets for sweaters, pants, and dresses. Then, align these sets with the specific creative you plan to publish.

4. Make Sure Your URL Aligns with What You’re Advertising

Let’s face it, nothing is more frustrating than seeing an ad, thinking, “Wow, that looks cool,” only to click on it and end up on a page that’s completely unrelated to what caught your interest in the first place. Pay attention to this detail — it’s easy, and it makes all the difference!

5. URL Parameters

Ensure you’re tracking conversions beyond just the Meta platform. By adding a UTM to your creative, you can more accurately identify where conversions are coming from and properly attribute them to your various campaigns and creatives. I recommend using dynamic URL parameters that pull data from different sections, such as campaign name, ad set, and creative ID.

Now You’re Ready to Start Testing Your Ads on Meta

Creating effective Meta ads requires a balance of clear objectives, audience understanding, and compelling creatives. By focusing on quality visuals, concise copy, proper ad dimensions, and ongoing testing, you can optimize your campaigns for success. Don’t overlook the finer details, like ensuring your URLs align with your messaging and maintaining consistency across touch points. When done right, these best practices will help you make the most of your media budget and connect with your audience in an impactful way.

Learn how to take your Meta creative to the next level.

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Ultimate Guide to Creative Testing for Paid Social Campaigns https://nogood.io/2025/01/14/creative-testing/ https://nogood.io/2025/01/14/creative-testing/#respond Tue, 14 Jan 2025 13:21:58 +0000 https://nogood.io/?p=44218 What’s the number one most important lever we have to drive success on paid social campaigns? Based on the title of this blog you probably guessed it – creative. To...

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Graphic illustrating the impact creative can have on a paid social campaign

What’s the number one most important lever we have to drive success on paid social campaigns? Based on the title of this blog you probably guessed it – creative. To set yourself up for success, your brand needs to have a clear vision for the creative, a data-driven testing strategy, and an execution plan that’s scalable. Although creative has always been imperative for success, it’s increasingly important due to the evolution of social platform algorithms in recent years.

If you wanted to ensure you were targeting your desired users several years ago, the best strategy was to design hyper-specific audiences based on interests, behaviors, or past purchases. But in a post-iOS 14 world, platforms have responded by introducing and expanding campaign types enabled by increased automation; Advantage+ campaigns are now top performance drivers on Meta, and Pinterest recently released a similar product.

With these changes, advertisers have less visibility and control over user targeting. This phenomenon has created the common phrase, “creative is the new targeting.” At this point, the best way to reach a desired audience is to craft creative tailored to them instead of using particular targeting dimensions at the ad set level.

For now and the foreseeable future, we still have control over the creative we put into the market and how we create iterations based on performance. We recommend putting time and effort into crafting a strategy that is scalable on paid platforms and reaches your target users.

We’ve already mentioned the three things you really need for winning creative: a clear vision, data-driven testing, and a scalable execution plan. Let’s dive into the details for each of these key 3 aspects.

Graphic illustrating the three main pillars of creative testing

Clear Vision for Creative

You can have the most talented designers in the world, but if you’re unclear in the direction you give them, there’s no way you’ll be pleased with their output. It’s best to give your creative team specific guidelines so they know how much room they have to ‘play’ in.

Your team must know what you’ve done before, what worked, what didn’t, and how you want to evolve in this next phase. Using examples from other brands you admire and want to emulate is extremely helpful to bridge the gap between your descriptor words and the vision you want to achieve.

On top of the aesthetic vision, it’s important to align on the purpose of creative within your marketing strategy. Is it produced to look pretty, drive results, or both? If the answer is both, can you be more specific with ‘results?’ Do you want a certain CTR or CPA?

Drill down to what’s important to your particular business and how creative can help you achieve your overall goals. Once you feel solid in that, clearly communicate your needs to your team so they can pitch ideas that ladder up to your measurable goals.

Data-Driven Testing

Creative, by nature, tends to be subjective. You can put 10 people in a room, and they may all have different thoughts on what the ‘best’ creative is from a particular batch of assets. On the other hand, data is much more objective.

It’s normal and good for stakeholders to have hypotheses about what will resonate best with audiences and why, but at the end of the day, it’s crucial to rely on data to make decisions about what should stay live, what should be paused, and how we should iterate for future variations.

Tracking this performance in real-time with a creative matrix is a great way to make sure everyone on the team is aligned on what’s working and what isn’t.

Scalable Execution

Once you’ve established your vision for creative and committed to data-driven testing, you want to be able to execute your strategy at scale. As you test hypotheses methodically and with data to call your tests, prioritize speed over perfection.

The more tests you can run with actionable results, the more you’ll learn about your users. This is crucial to growing your business and meeting the overall goals you’ve set. It’s no secret that the special sauce to sustainable growth marketing is rapid experimentation.

Every time you launch creative, you should be iterating on something that’s performing well and introducing a net-new concept to market. It may feel safer to only churn out assets that resemble ads that have ‘worked,’ but if you rest on your laurels, you’ll never find the next great ad for your brand. If you balance safer bets with bigger ones, you’ll be able to scale your creative testing and unlock new learnings along the way.

Graphic illustrating how not to perform A/B testing

5 Most Common Mistakes to Avoid in Creative Testing

1. Strict A/B Testing

Several brands will only call tests after they’ve run extensive A/B testing. We value speed over perfection and believe once you’ve spent against test assets in their own environment (ad set or ad group), you should have sufficient learnings to understand if they’re resonating or not.

Most clients will look at conversions or revenue driven at efficiency metrics such as CPA, CAC, or ROAS to determine success. Rigid A/B testing will slow you down and hurt performance in the long run because it will take you longer to get actionable results.

2. Falling into the AI Optimization Trap

Many platforms, but especially Meta, have recently been pushing AI optimizations that alter your creatives. They do this with positive intentions by promising increased conversions if you check the boxes in the platform that will give them power to alter your creatives how they see fit.

This is a good idea in theory, but these optimizations often make your creative look sloppy, and it can create a poor experience for your users. We recommend keeping these turned off until Meta is able to significantly improve the product.

3. Not Creating Roadmaps

You should build out a roadmap of the tests you want to run for the next month and follow it diligently. If you can sign off on briefs from your team at the top of the month, and they have the time and freedom to execute against them in batches, they’ll be much more efficient.

This goes beyond giving approval on general creative themes/tests. If you can approve in-asset copy, products featured, and the test proposed, you’re setting your team up for more success. These roadmaps should be fluid to the point that if you have a million-dollar-idea that must be tested, it can be slotted in. But barring that incredible exception, align on briefs with your team and give them autonomy to execute.

4. Pausing Creatives Too Quickly

We’ve all been in a position when Total Biz isn’t doing well and we’re looking for places to cut spend. Inefficient creative testing for newly launched assets may be one of the first places you’d want to get back some easy efficiency gains.

We recommend keeping assets live for at least a week before pausing anything, although of course there may sometimes be exceptions. Give them a chance to succeed, and if they don’t, then feel free to pause them out.

5. Not Testing Enough

If your creative team has capacity, you should be testing new concepts and iterations of past performers every week. This is even more important ahead of tentpole periods to ensure you can make the most of high-converting times for the business such as BFCM for e-comm. You shouldn’t be afraid of trying something new – it just might work and unlock incremental conversions for the brand.

How Does This Come to Life?

Below is an example of what this might look like for a typical brand just starting out with creative testing.

This setup focuses on one audience, Prospecting, which consists of users who are not familiar with the brand. One campaign called “Top Performers” has all the assets that perform efficiently at scale; these are tried and true concepts. The majority of the budget goes to these assets because they’re so strong.

The second campaign is the creative testing campaign, which tests several concepts at a much lower budget. Top performers are copied and pasted or ‘graduated’ into the top performers ad set to compete against other tried and true concepts. As a general rule of thumb, 30% of spend should go to creative testing.

New concepts should be tested every week or every two weeks, and top performers should be variated on to generate even more revenue/leads/purchases for the business.

Table demonstrating an example of creative testing

Supercharge Your Strategy with Creative Testing

Now you’re prepared to build a creative strategy that is tailored to your business. First you’ll set a clear vision, then you’ll commit to data-driven testing, and finally you’ll build a scalable execution plan. One last word of advice – keep in mind that it’s not necessarily bad if creative ‘fails.’ Instead, this result gives you another learning that will help you optimize future variations to drive stronger results with your target audience.

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