The Battle of the Brands: Who nailed ads better?

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What's up, Marketers! This is Aazar.

This newsletter is about leveling up your paid growth marketing skills by analyzing the best brands' paid strategy, tactics, positioning, and value props.

This newsletter is divided into:

• Sharing what I've learned

• Sometimes sharing some other performance marketers’ lessons with you

• And I analyze & compare the best ads on the internet (this issue)

And welcome to the 450+ new subscribers who joined us since last week’s issue. Do check out these three blogs to get value from this newsletter immediately:

• Mega Swipeifle I recently shared for 2024

• How to make skit ads

• How to make viral videos

Get the pro version of this newsletter to save hundreds of hours in running the wrong unproven ads, instead just steal my ads (backed by real data & insights).

Three brands and one thing in common:

Razor kits for women.

I’m launching my DTC product this week for women (about time?) So, I needed to understand how other brands are selling on Meta.

This week, I tried to understand Billie vs Flamingo vs Athena Club.

And so this is a Battle of the Brands (formerly Paid Social Performance Battle). Thank you, Jenn, for this rebrand name suggestion. Anyway, let’s see who wins – You’ll decide.

But one thing I can promise, you’ll win either way with 3 concrete ideas to try for your ad accounts. 

Note: You’ll see Atria’s links with the ads. Here’s why I switched to Atria from Foreplay and Magicbrief:

• Amazing search UI. It was hard to find ads in other tools.

• All-in-one creative strategist tool with script, concept, and brief ideas.

• AI review mining and voice-over that enables me to make more winning ads.

• Not 500K, but 5 million examples of ads. (And it’s not just other marketers who saved ads.)

You can give it a try here (affiliate link, with all honesty).

I wrote a full comparison of all these tools here.

Welcome to the Battle of the Brands:

The showdown is where your favorite brands compete to see who wins on paid social.

How it Works

1. I compare two (or three) paid social Facebook Ads library accounts and see who is killing it

2. You vote for your favorite for a chance to win a prize (worth €1K)

If you missed that newsletter, you can find it here. The last time we had loop as a winner & the poll winner was Franca, please reach out:

Brand # 1 - Athena Club 

Athena Club covers everything skincare but we’re focusing on their razor kits. 

Ad # 1 - Before & After (Analogy)

Ad insights:

• The dolphin skin analogy is so apt. What is dolphin skin? Originally coined by celebrity makeup artist Mary Phillips, dolphin skin is similar to Korean beauty trends (think glass skin) with its emphasis on a super hydrated complexion, but with the addition of highlighting makeup to create a sun-kissed, iridescent face.

• The dolphin sounds to make their point hit home.

• The ad is simple enough to understand to take action.

• In the end, they added “dermatologists approved” which makes the product believable. 

• "before" represents a non-smooth shaving outcome, and probably expresses the issue of "not shaving all the hair".

• Good scarcity with the option of trial for a fair price

I think there is nothing fancy about this ad except the analogy. If I were to take anything from this ad as a concrete idea for my next campaign, it would be the analogy with before and after. 

Ad tip: To find the analogy, use this for your product.

__________ is just like _______ but is different because it _________ for you.

Examples:

 Airbnb is like a hotel, but you’re staying in someone’s home instead.

Ad # 2 – UX familiarity gif

They’ve combined the UX familiarity bias principle with their ads, so, I’ll lump them into one:

Ad link # 1:

Ad link # 2:

Ad link # 3: 

Ad insights:

• Here’s why these ads are killing it:

  • Relatable scenario

  • Prominent product with high-quality imagery

  • Simplicity to take an action 

  • Simple direct CTA

• Retentive advertising instead of pushing: Such advertising is aimed at reminding a target market that a product is available as opposed to informing or persuading; typically associated with products in the mature stage of their life cycle.

• Sound familiarity: By using sound effects to create an immersive experience and make the audience feel like they are part of the commercial, advertisers can strengthen the emotional connection and make the message more memorable. 

Ad tip: Here are all the UX ads you can make:

• SMS 

• TikTok

• Reddit

• Twitter 

• YouTube 

• Spotify

• WhatsApp

• Tinder

• ChatGPT 

• LinkedIn 

• Email/Gmail

• Google Search 

• Slack messages

• Google docs/PowerPoint/Excel 

• Apple UX ads (other than notes ads)

• Instagram DMs, Instagram posts, reels

• Facebook groups, messenger, comments, and other kinds of UX

You’ll find some of those example swipe files here (this was also well received on Twitter & LinkedIn):

Ad # 3 - Ad that’s clear, not clever

Guest analysis: Ani Mishra (The Performers’ member & a great marketer to follow on LI)

Here's an I liked about this ad

1. Direct Benefit Visualization: The ad effectively showcases the key advantages of the product, making the benefits immediately apparent to potential customers. This clarity can help in quicker decision-making for consumers who are comparing options.

2. Emphasized Skin Health: By highlighting the dermatologist's approval, the ad appeals to consumers who are concerned about skin health, suggesting that the product is trustworthy and designed with skin sensitivity in mind.

3. Safety Assurance: The mention of skin guards communicates a commitment to user safety, suggesting that the product can help avoid common shaving issues like razor burn, which can be a significant selling point for many.

4. Skin Care Integration: Including ingredients like hyaluronic acid, shea butter, and avocado oil portrays the razor as not just a hair removal tool but also a skin care product, adding value to the purchase.

The learnings for your next ads

• Clarity is King: Distill product benefits into clear, concise messages.

• Address Pain Points: Directly speak to common consumer problems.

• Offer Solutions, Not Just Features: Position your product as a holistic solution.

• Show your product visually in the background (add overlays as benefits)

It is my desire to bring my readers the best information about Meta Advertising — at zero cost. In keeping with this theme, I’d thank our sponsors for today’s newsletter. By clicking on the link below, you’re supporting this newsletter.

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Brand # 2 - Billie

Ad # 1 - UGC Brolls without the fuss

Ad insights:

• The hanger is the hook. When you build the product with the hook in mind, it pays off.

• The text layover sells the idea of an organized shower. Not the product.

• Some elements of the video we can steal for ads:

  • My top razor pick. 

  • Couldn’t choose one.

  • And that she loves all of them.

• Again, a simple ad that shows the products and love for them. 

Ad tip: Create a product with a hook in mind. 

Ad # 2 - Facebook comment ad (golden nugget)

Ad insights:

For this one, I want to tell you other than the UX principle, the copy has done most of the heavy lifting. This ad has been running for 68 days. 

So, it’s not just the UX but it is actually the review that makes this ad work so well.

Ad tips: Find that one review and apply all UX familiarity ads to it. 

Brand # 3 - Flamingo

Ad # 1 - The AI Broll Product Showcase (Testimonial Mash-up)

This ad is 33 days old so it has passed the “proven” category:

Ad insights:

• Did you know the hook…This hook I shared a year ago that worked for AG1 and yet it still keeps performing. So, if you have not tried it, go for it.

• AI voice-over ads are the new trend. This makes a simple case for us to give it a try as well.

• The product is the selling point. I’ve seen such razors for men, not for women. Immediate hook.

• The script is using: FAB (Features, Advantages, Benefits). Now you can try this for your ads: 

  • Hook + Feature: Did you know that there's a new tool designed specifically for women's facial hair removal?

  • Advantage: The new Dermaplane from Flamingo swipes away peach fuzz while being gentle on the skin.

  • Benefits: and creates an even surface for makeup and skin care products, prepping your skin for your beauty routine. And dermaplaning will never cause hair to grow back thicker.

  • CTA: Click to learn more about the Flamingo Dermaplane.

  • Great pattern interrupts relevant hook visual for high thumb stop.

  • The ad also has ASMR side so multiple winning concepts are blended into 1 ad.

AI ads are the new trend, let’s hop on this trend. Read this thread to find out why:

Ad tips: Use AI voice-over for your ads that deeply resonate with your customers.

Now it’s time to decide, Who do you think nailed their ad better?

Respond to this email and cast your vote for a chance to win!

The prize (worth €1068):

Yearly subscription to Mastermind Paid Social/Paid Social Mastermind(299€), €300/hour for a free call with me, and a one-time entire marketing audit for your brand (469€).

Lastly, I’d like to thank Ani Mishra and Batu Ulker (members of The Performers community) for adding their insights to this newsletter,

That’s all from this week. 

Happy Growing with Paid Social,

Aazar Shad

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