How To Bet On Performance Creative

Welcome back. In our first issue of Creative Compass, we introduced the Creative Strategy Business Model Canvas - a framework designed to give you the building blocks of creative strategy in paid social advertising. Today, we're taking a deeper dive into the first two crucial components of this canvas: Success Metrics and Budget Allocation.

These elements are the backbone of any successful creative strategy. They not only help us measure our progress but also ensure we're allocating our resources effectively. Let's break them down and see how they can supercharge your creative ops and set your org up for success.

Success Metrics: The North Star of Your Creative Strategy

As creative strategists, we can’t do our job effectively if we aren’t planning for the ideal outcome—revenue. Understanding both Conversion Metrics and Creative Metrics gives us a view into what makes creative effective.

Here's a quick overview:

1. Track Conversion Metrics:
   Start with the metrics that directly impact your bottom line. These typically include:

   1. Conversion Rate (CVR)

   2. Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)

   3. Cost Per Acquisition (CPA)

   4. Click to Purchase Rate

2. Track Creative Metrics:
   While conversions are king, engagement metrics provide valuable insights into audience reception:

   1. Hook Rate* (aka Thumbstop)

      1. (3 second Video Views) divided by (Impressions)

   2. Hold Rate* (aka Retention)

      1. (15 second Video Views) divided by (Impressions)

   3. Click-Through Rate (CTR)

   4. Average Watch Time* (not as important)

   5. Comments (not as important)

*These are video-only metrics.

📈 Setting Up Your Creative Insights Dashboard 📈

Personally, I like to have my ‘Growth’ dashboard act as my ‘Creative’ dashboard at the same time. Meaning, I add in my Creative Metrics to the same column layout as my Conversion Metrics. This helps me see both in tandem and quickly recognize patterns.

The above image is from the Meta Ads Dashboard, but you can apply this column layout to TikTok as well.

🧭 How to Analyze Success Metrics 🧭

I feel like everyone knows how to look at Conversion Metrics and see whether or not they’re successful, but what a lot of people don’t talk about is what to do when the data is confusing. Specifically, what do you do when conversion metrics are strong but creative metrics aren’t? Or more commonly, when creative metrics are strong, but conversion metrics are lagging.

This question comes with a lot of nuance, because everyone’s product and brand and ad manager history is different—your mileage may vary. In fact, it will vary.

But I’m going to give you my best insights and how to think about this very question in a strategic manner.

We need to ask ourselves two simple questions:

1. What story makes sense here? 

2. How do we move forward?

These questions will help you frame your analysis and guide your decision-making process.

🧠 Mental Models for Analysis 🧠

Let's break down the most common scenario and the questions you should ask yourself:

Scenario 1: Strong Creative Metrics, Low Conversion Metrics

If your creative metrics are performing above benchmarks, but conversion metrics are low, consider these questions:

1. Time and Statistical Significance

   1. How long have you been running the ad(s)?

   2. Is it enough time for statistical significance (relatively speaking)?

2. Funnel Analysis:

   1. What's the Click to Purchase Ratio?

   2. Is there a leak on the Landing Page?

3. Insights From The Creative

   1. Could the creative attract a non-buying audience?

   2. Are you mentioning the product enough in the ad?

   3. Does the ad make a promise the landing page doesn’t deliver?

   4. Is the landing page relevant to the ad? I.e. Ad to Page Relevancy

4. External Factors

   1. Is seasonality affecting sales?

   2. Is the Meta Bug happening to you right now?

That last question is a joke. Sort of. IYKYK

These are just a short-to-medium list of questions to run yourself through. After answering these questions, you should have a better sense of what direction to run in.

🤔 Making the Tough Calls 🤔

Sometimes, the right answer is to cut underperforming ads. Other times, you may want to let them run a bit longer. Here are some guidelines for making these decisions:

1. Set Clear Thresholds: Establish predetermined performance thresholds for both creative and conversion metrics. This helps remove emotion from the decision-making process.

2. Consider the Learning Phase: Remember that ads often need time to optimize. Don't pull the plug too quickly, especially if you're seeing promising early signals.

3. Test and Iterate: If an ad has strong creative metrics but weak conversions, consider testing variations of the landing page or offer before discarding the creative entirely.

4. Trust Your Instincts (Sometimes): While data should drive most decisions, there's still room for intuition in creative strategy. If you have a strong feeling about a particular creative, it might be worth giving it a bit more time or budget.

Remember, the goal is not just to react to metrics, but to understand the story behind them. By asking the right questions and applying these mental models, you'll be better equipped to make informed decisions about your creative strategy, even when the data seems contradictory.

In the ever-evolving landscape of digital advertising, your ability to interpret and act on complex metrics will set you apart as a creative strategist. Keep questioning, keep analyzing, and most importantly, keep learning from every creative you launch.

Budget Allocation: Fueling Your Creative Engine

Creative strategy isn’t just about the performance, it’s about what you’re able to do with the resources you have. You may have a tester budget, you may have a scale budget. Either way, I’m going to give you a framework you can use to budget out your creative ops.

Before we dive in, here’s a personal opinion—your creative budget should be around 10% of your overall ad spend. I find this to be a good benchmark for most brands at many sizes.

Now, let's break down how to allocate your creative budget based on different monthly ranges:

💲 $0 - $1,000 Budget 💲

Goal: Output 5-10 net new creatives per month, 3x with variants

• Invest in software, tools, and resources to learn ad creation:

  • Learn Figma, Illustrator, or Canva for static ads

  • Use AI tools like Foreplay and Creative OS to replicate static ads from brands you admire

• Focus on DIY content:

  • Create UGC content yourself

  • Learn to shoot high-quality video on your iPhone

• If budget allows:

  • Hire a video editor or upgrade to Capcut Pro for templates

💵 $1,000 - $2,000 Budget 💵

Goal: Output 10-30 net new creatives per month (including variants)

• Continue with strategies from the previous tier

• Explore hiring talent on a contractor (project or hourly) basis:

  • Creative Growth Strategist to manage the paid social and performance creative process

  • Graphic designer

  • Video editor to create variants from creator footage

  • All the above you can hire on a contractual basis from a platform like The Starters (affiliate code)

• 2-3 UGC Creators (3 ad variants each)

💸 $2,000 - $5,000 Budget 💸

Goal: Output 30-60 net new creatives per month, 3x with variants

• Implement all strategies from previous tiers

  • At this point, you may want some talent on retainer

• Invest in consistent content creation:

  • Retain a UGC creator for $1,200/month (4-5 videos)

  • Conduct a professional product photoshoot

• Scale up static ad creation using new photos

🤑 $5,000 - $10,000 Budget 🤑

Goal: Output 30-60 net new creatives per month, 3x with variants, with bigger strategic initiatives

• Implement all strategies from previous tiers

  • Might want some talent in-house at this point

• Ensure a steady flow of video content:

  • 2-3 UGC creators on retainer (with access to raw footage for your editor)

  • 1-2 stylized video shoots per month

• Begin testing influencer creatives:

  • Focus on micro-influencers

  • Utilize whitelisting and partnership ad access

💰 $10,000 - $50,000 Budget 💰

Goal: Output 80-200 net new creatives per month, 3x with variants

• Continue all previous strategies

• Expand influencer testing — bigger swings with bigger creators

  • Could bring on an influencer and/or affiliate manager on a contract-basis

• For a scrappy approach:

  • Build a team of 5-10 UGC creators

  • Aim for up to 40 new video concepts monthly

  • Create 120 A and B variants from these concepts

💳 $50,000+ Budget 💳

Goal: 200+ net new creatives per month, 3x with variants, plus major initiatives

• Implement all previous strategies

• Test bigger initiatives:

  • YouTube ads

  • CTV (Connected TV) ads

  • Other high-budget, high-impact ad formats

Remember, these are guidelines and should be adapted to your specific needs, industry, and target audience. As you scale your budget, focus on diversifying your creative assets and testing new formats to find what works best for your brand.

➡️ Pro Tip: Implement a flexible budget model. Start with a baseline allocation, but be prepared to shift funds based on performance data. If a particular creative or channel is outperforming others, be ready to double down on what's working.

Conclusion

By mastering these two components of the Creative Strategy Business Model Canvas, you'll be well on your way to creating a data-driven, high-performing creative strategy.

Remember, great creative strategy is a blend of art and science. Use these metrics and budgeting principles as a foundation, but don't let them constrain your creativity. Keep pushing boundaries, testing new ideas, and most importantly, build resonance with your audience.

Until next time.

What’s Upcoming:

Thanks for reading Creative Compass. In the next deep dive, we’ll cover Audience Segments and Creative Value Propositions. This is my favorite lesson, because I love to nerd out on customer research.

A Message From The Writer

Hey, I’m Leann. I’ve spent the last 5 years in the trenches of growth marketing and creative strategy.

I work with brands to craft campaigns that don’t just resonate—they convert.

I currently run TRIFECTA, a creative growth studio. We elevate consumer brands by combining the power of media, experiential marketing, and performance strategies. Our team is a collective of top-tier talent, from content creators and growth marketers to community builders, all working together to craft marketing that connects and converts.

I’m currently piloting a unique program where in just 3-6 months, I’ll embed directly into your marketing team and transform your performance creative department into a well-oiled machine. By the end of our time together, your team will be set up for long-term success, complete with a handpicked crew of creative talent—video editors, creators, and designers—plus an in-house creative strategist to keep everything running smoothly.

Ready to scale? Let’s make it happen.