7 Rules for High Converting Static Ads

Hey Reader,

Most marketers completely underestimate the power of static ads.

When executed properly, they can not only work, but go on to dominate ad accounts.

My team put out hundreds of statics every month across 25+ 8 and 9 figure DTC brands.

So today I'm sharing 7 rules we’ve developed internally to create static ads that perform.

Let’s get into it…

Rule 1 - Stop copying everyone else…

What most marketers' static ads have:

❌ Weak (or worse, clever) headline

❌ No USP callouts

❌ No psychological appeal

What static ads that actually perform have:

✅ Clear, bold headline

✅ Simple USP callouts

✅ Psychology-based design

Rule 2 - KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID

90% of our static ad winners are at least one of these 3 formats:

• Comparison ads (Us vs Them, Before vs After etc.)

• Static Testimonial (ugly/lifestyle image paired with a testimonial headline)

• Promo ads

Often they're a combination of these formats. Don't overcomplicate your static ads. Do the basics well and obsess over message testing.

Rule 3 - Statics have hooks too

People don't read static ads from top to bottom. They subconsciously scan them in a fraction of a second to look for key information before deciding if they actually want to consume the ad or keep scrolling.

Be intentional with what they see when they first scan your ad. A few ways you can do this are through:

• Placement and sizing of images

• Placement and sizing of headlines

• What you say in the headline

• Use of fonts and colors

• Text warps/distortions

• Text highlights

• Arrows

For example, look at this winning ad from Meno: "Faking it with my husband" stands out first because of size, then "since perimenopause" adds context, followed by the product and reviews. Every element is intentionally placed to guide the reader's journey.

If nothing stands out when they first scan, they'll keep scrolling. Use these things strategically to guide readers' eyes to where you want them to go - rather than just throwing some text and images on a Figma file.

Rule 4 - Assume no-one knows or cares about your brand

If you’re advertising barefoot shoes:

• "I feel human again"

• "Natural pain relief for neuropathy"

Which one will be immediately relevant to someone who doesn't know or care about your brand? Use this as the litmus test for top-of-funnel ads.

Warm audiences will convert from good ads made for cold audiences. But cold audiences won't convert from good ads made for warm audiences.

Rule 5 - Make people feel something

Don't just talk about how good your product is, talk about the emotional transformation your audience experiences with your product.

These aren't just headlines - they're emotional triggers that qualify the right audience and disqualify everyone else.

Rule 6 - Be clear and concise

Make your ads easy to consume. If there's a way to make the same point in fewer words, do it.

For example:

• "A men's polo that's made for all body types" → "Men's polos for all body types"

• "Scientifically engineered to fight scalp flakiness" → "My secret weapon against dandruff"

• "Experience the revolutionary comfort of our new design" → "Most comfortable jeans ever"

It may seem insignificant - but a clearer message sells better. I always feed my headlines into Claude and ask it to say the same thing in fewer words.

Remember: Fancy words don't sell. Clarity does.

Rule 7: Reverse engineer winning copy

One of my favorite ways to improve our static ads game is to study what's already working.

But most strategists tend to rely on unproven metrics like how long an ad from one of their competitors has been running for.

I've tested this extensively across our client accounts and there's basically ZERO correlation between how long an ad has been running with actual performance. In fact, some advertisers I know deliberately run $1/day ads just to throw people like you and I off.

So what does work? Looking at engagement metrics, particularly shares.

Here's my exact process:

1. Load up AdSpy

2. Filter by image/static ads

3. Sort by shares

4. Study the headlines, image composition, call-out placement and overall design hierarchy

After testing this process with several of our clients and shares have been surprisingly accurate at predicting top performers. When an ad ranks high for shares, it's usually crushing it in the account too.

To recap, here’s the TLDR:

1. Stop copying everyone else - focus on psychology over pretty design

2. Keep it simple stupid - stick to comparison, testimonial, or promo formats

3. Static ads have hooks too - design for instant scanning, not reading

4. Assume no-one knows or cares about your brand - make it relevant for cold traffic

5. Make people feel something - create emotional triggers that qualify your audience

6. Be clear and concise - fewer words, better results

7. Reverse engineer winning copy - don’t reinvent the wheel when it comes to your statics

And if you're looking for someone to help you make winning static ads, my team at Adcrate is accepting applications for 2025. We work with brands spending $100k+ monthly on paid social - if that's you, check out our case studies at adcrate.co.

That's it for this week. If you found it valuable, share it with a friend who wants to make better static ads.

See you next week,

Alex