Why curiosity beats clarity

Welcome back to this week's issue of Nice Ads. Today, we're going to be talking about:

• How important casting is.

• The power of simple B-roll.

• Static ads to target new demographics.

Let's get started, shall we?

The Foldie

👉 Watch in full here

This is an ad that we recently made for our client, and I think it turned out really great for a number of reasons.

The first one is the hook. You can't tell me that this wouldn't grab your attention.

The second is the creator choice. We pride ourselves at Fraggell for being very good at casting, and I think this video proves it. The creator is in the perfect demographic for the brand, but is also really natural on camera. And was able to capture exactly what we asked them to.

Often enough, UGC videos are let down by bad casting. It can make or break a video. The trick is to use actors instead of UGC creators or influencers. Actors are often more adept at delivering lines from a script to the camera, and as a result, many of them are now familiar with UGC and self-filming on their phones, making it a non-issue.

We ask all of our creators to deliver raw footage, which then allows us to take control in the editing stage. There's a lot of places where you can find great creators/ actors. You just need to do your due diligence and ensure the content they've made in the past matches what you want them to create now.

At the end of the day, it all depends on what scale you are on. Some brands lack in-house editors and creative strategists, so they seek creators who can handle the entire process for them. Others, however, are more similar to our approach and simply require the raw footage. You just need to pick what works for you.

If you want ad creative just like the one above, then you should apply to work with us here.

The “hidden tool” top brands are quietly using for UGC

I get asked all the time how we manage to keep up with fresh, authentic UGC ad creatives without burning out the team or the budget.

Truth is, there isn’t some crazy secret formula.

But there is one tool that’s slowly becoming our not-so-secret weapon: Youdji.

It’s where big brands (Lemlist, Submagic...) go when they need vetted UGC creators fast.

5,500+ top 1% creators across the US, UK, and EU.

No subscriptions. No wasted time. Just direct contact with people who can actually deliver.

It feels like a shortcut, but it’s really just the smarter way to do UGC.

Here’s 20% off your first order if you want to test it yourself: 'NICEADS20'.

Boots

👉 Watch in full here

I'm an absolute sucker for a simple ad creative that anyone can make right now, and this is a perfect example.

A sequence of B-roll with aesthetic lighting, a clean surface and text on screen. 10/10.

I speak to so many brand owners who have never even attempted to make an ad themselves. It absolutely baffles me when things like this are so easy to create.

And the best part is, ads like this have performed incredibly well. In fact, this is why we ask all of our UGC creators to film an excess of B-roll so that we can add it to an archive for use in ads like this further down the line.

Given the number of ads you need to run during Q4, it makes perfect sense for you to start creating more like this. You can probably churn out 10 in a day easily.

TLDR:

• Get out and film ads yourself.

• Great lighting can make anything look good.

Looking for more?

Here are 4 ways I can help you 👇

• Fraggell - Looking for ads that turn scrollers into customers? My performance ad creative agency has delivered high-convert ads to brands like ALOHA, Chomps, and Nailboo… It’s worth your time to apply today to see if you're a good fit.

• The Ad Creative Course - Want to learn how to make converting ad creative yourself? Join over 100 students who are already learning with the help of my course. Grab your place today.

• Sponsor Nice Ads - Reach over 10,000 marketing decision-makers and fill one of our few ad spots available. Join brands like Motion, Triple Whale, and Minisocial by expressing your interest here.

• CreativeOS - Create static ads in seconds with over 800 pre-tested templates for DTC brands. Become a member today and get 50% off your first month.

• Poppy AI is my new go-to for ad creative — saves me hours, sparks better ideas, and just gets how I work. If you make ads, you need to try it. Click here and get $25 off any plan.

• Foreplay - Improve your creative workflow. Save ads, build briefs, and more. Claim a free trial here.

Jolie

Finally, I wanted to showcase this stupidly simple, ugly static ad.

At first glance, you think there's no way that this could perform. But then in further investigation, I saw that this was running for over 200 days in the ad account. Although this isn't direct proof that this was a converting creative, it's a good indicator nonetheless.

And I think probably one of the reasons that it works so well is that it's targeting a different demographic to what they probably usually do. That being males purchasing the product for their partners. Because I think I speak for most males when I say how difficult it is sometimes to find a gift for your significant other. And the brand clearly knows this and created this ad to target that exact customer.

Additionally, because they haven't directly stated what the product is, it sparks massive curiosity and prompts the viewer to click to find out more.

It's all about the long game with static ads.

TLDR:

• Don't be afraid to target new demographics.

• You should be running gifting ads all year round.

That's all for this week's Nice Ads. I appreciate you taking the time to read this.

I recently hit 10,000 subscribers on YouTube, and to celebrate, I did a Q&A. I've just posted the video; you can watch it here to see the questions I was asked.

✌️