👋 Welcome back to Growthnotes!

Welcome to the DTC Report, where we analyze some of the best high-growth brands out there & tell you how they grew.

This week, we’re analyzing some top-performing conversion ads on TikTok.👇

💫 Mentions

• Is offline marketing becoming the new arbitrage opportunity? I bought a computer chair out of a catalog this week, which makes for a killer ROAS. 📫 The physical mailbox is where it’s at.

• Nike goes full Apple Store mode and plans to open standalone stores for their Jordan brand (Footlocker isn’t too happy, but hey, what can you do).

👀 This week you’ll find

• A breakdown of some top-performing TikTok ads

• How to scale your ads on TikTok, Snapchat, and YouTube shorts with vertical video content

🔍 Ad 1 - Why it’s great

✅ It starts with a comparison of True Classic T-Shirts VS the others, clearly displaying the differentiator: soft and slim fit t-shirts for men

Ad: “Girls have pushups tees, guys have these”

✅ STRONG visual strategies:
True Classic T-Shirts taps both into comparisons with other brands and «before and after» testimonials.

Nothing speaks better than visual examples, especially when you compare yourself with the rest of them. No wonder detergent and cleaning brands have been betting on this strategy for ages (looking at you Tide and Febreeze). 🍒 Cherry on top: pure UGC from people who look like satisfied customers.

🔍 Ad 2 - Why it’s great

✅ Catchy Caption that picks your audience’s curiosity, letting them know they might be missing something.

Ad: “I never leave the house without THESE”
User: “What is it? What is it?”

✅ The «You’re missing on something & urgency» feeling
As soon as the video starts we can feel that we’re missing something, which is supported by the content creator suggesting to act immediately. When used with parsimony, the feeling of urgency can be very powerful. Leaning on UGC also allows us to feel like this is authentic.

✅ Showcasing the product in the first seconds
No time is wasted here. A product demonstration is made in the first seconds, while the video creator (a happy user) explains why she loves it. We get to see the product in action, while hearing a testimonial. The «little miracle in a tube» certainly gives the perfect cat eyes! Make sure your content creators like the product; it will make for much better content.

💬 How to create TikTok ads that convert

Here are some tips from Benoit St-Laurent, VP of paid media over at inBeat Agency.

📱 It’s all about vertical videos

TikTok has made vertical videos the vanilla ice cream of the web: YouTube (Shorts), Instagram (Reels), and Snapchat (Snapchat). The opportunity? Repurpose your content on all these platforms and protect yourself against platform risk while uncovering new opportunities.

📈 It’s all about conversions (duh)

A lot of UGC isn’t any good in ads. In fact, a lot of creators don’t understand conversion principles. As a marketer, you need to do your research and identify ad concepts and USPs that will resonate with your audience. Our crew always brainstorms on a video call with creators to make sure that the content is aligned with basic conversion principles.

👉 Always leave some room for testing

You can always be surprised by unconventional approaches.

👁‍ Stop the scroll

Here is a quick tip: start your video with a self-identifying statement (If you’re a mother […], traveling hack #42 [...], etc.) The first part of your video should always capture the user’s attention.

📢 Double-down

4% of your ads will carry 76% of your results. Double-down on the creators behind these ads. Talk with them, provide them with design resources and have them create a bunch of other videos. If you’re an agency like inBeat Agency, create a network of top-notch creators that create high-converting content to scale all of your clients. This will quickly become a competitive advantage.

📝 When it comes to copywriting: Clear > Creative

We’ve seen this over and over. A client wants something creative and special. Truth is, being creative and witty doesn’t lower your CPA like being clear and to the point does.