While this is not a question with a short and simple answer, I like the ideas shared by Jenni Romaniuk in a recent podcast.
On the ‘Anstice Acast,’ Jenni Romaniuk from the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute shared what she sees as the three critical features of good ad creatives:
Grab Attention
Your ad should capture the audience’s attention. No attention, means no impact.
Brand Clarity
It’s crucial that your audience can identify the brand behind the message. “Otherwise it’s not an ad,” Jenni remarks.
Deliver Value
Ensure the ad is valuable or useful in a way to build memory structure, associating your brand positively.
She also shares a tip specifically for new brands, or brands that enter a new market: Signal your product category clearly. An ad can be attention-grabbing and branded perfectly, but if the audience is left guessing about what you’re actually selling, it might still miss the mark.
I thought this was a great podcast episode. I also want to buy her books (How Brands Grow part 2 and Better Brand Health), but I still havent finished Eat Your Greens, by Riemer Snijders and How Brands Grow, by Byron Sharp. So will have to read those first.
PS. The creatives above are from a campaign that ran a while ago in Sweden. I really loved this campaign and I think they are a great example of creatives that check all the boxes. By Åkestam Holst / NoA for Pressbyran, to promote their cinnamon buns during cinnamon bun day. (Yes, that is a day we have in Sweden.)