Research + Messaging Beats Design

Start with words.

Pictures and graphics can be helpful but not if your message doesn't move. Dan Kennedy often spoke of the 3 Ms: Message, Media and Market. You've got to deliver the right message to your market through the right media.

Take a look at this very simple text add that ran on Meta (Facebook and Instagram). As plain as it is, it brought a 12% click through rate (CTR).

This ad resonated because we started by researching the target audience and studied key terms. There's probably a thousand different ways to communicate this message but research brought these particular words to the spotlight.

If you start with an a really beautiful ad, it's likely going to take more time and money to figure out why it did or did not work. It's your money, gamble it how you want.

I recommend you start by finding the messaging that moves your audience, then design and optimize from there.

-Mark

P.S. If you'd like help finding the messages your audience will act on, send an email to mark@markdavisco.com with the subject "messaging."