DTC742: Five Important Ad Principles To Consider

Good morning,

Here’s what you’ll find in today’s DTC:

🚀 How to create a killer ad. We go over five ad principles you should know to cut through the noise.
🍖 Get those repeat orders! We analyze how the fastest-growing food brand in the U.S. retains customers and inspires brand loyalty.
📉 And…DeepSeek sends U.S. AI stocks tumbling again with the release of image generator Janus Pro.

You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Nobody’s Child, Bloomers Intimates, and Grabbit and Run. 👋

⏰ Timing Is Everything. This Tool Helps You Nail Those Key Marketing Moments

This is the year to stop letting sales opportunities slip away.

It’s time to perfect your campaigns, connect with your customers in their moment of need, and make every moment count. ⏳

And this is the tool you need to do just that.

👉 Klaviyo’s 2025 Marketing Campaign Calendar makes strategizing your year simple. Discover 150+ marketing moments, sales holidays, and key events that you can use to run timely promotions that build deeper customer relationships.

💥 Get ready to maximize your impact with seasonal promotions and awareness of those niche moments your competitors are bound to miss.

Packed with actionable tips, creative ideas, and detailed timelines, it’s more than just a calendar… It's your roadmap to success all year long. 🗺️

🚀 Five Principles For Ads That Demand Attention

A killer ad doesn’t just happen. It’s built on foundational strategies proven to cut through the noise.

Pilothouse shares five principles that can transform your ad creation process so you can craft ads that demand attention.

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1️⃣ The Hook is Everything 🎣

80% of your time should go into the hook.

Why?

Because the hook isn’t just an intro—it’s your audience’s invitation to pay attention.

Your hook is your first (and sometimes only) chance to grab attention.

A killer hook = higher watch times, more clicks, and bigger conversions.

The goal? A callout that feels personal enough to resonate deeply but broad enough to include your ideal audience.

Here’s how to think about it:

• Too specific: “New moms in Vancouver, struggling with colic? Here’s your solution.” (This leaves out too many potential customers.)
• Goldilocks hook: “New parents, here’s the secret to a good night’s sleep.” (Broadens appeal without diluting relevance.)

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2️⃣ Assume They Know Nothing 🤷‍♀️Let’s face it: your audience doesn’t know you, doesn’t know what you offer, and is probably scrolling while waiting for their latte. ☕That means:

• Clear > clever: “Save 50% today” wins over “Unlock irresistible savings.”
• Brevity > brilliance: Short, punchy, and straight to the point.

We love using tools like ChatGPT and Hemingway Editor to make sure our copy is crystal clear and accessible—because even the most sophisticated audiences appreciate simplicity.

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‍3️⃣ The Funnel Starts at the Front 🛠️At Pilothouse, we’ve seen firsthand how even a small improvement—like a 2% bump in Click-Through Rate (CTR)—can lead to massive downstream results.That’s why we always start by optimizing the parts of the funnel that matter most:

• 20 hooks to test: The more ideas you throw at the wall, the better your odds.
• 1-3 body variations: Core ad concepts that reinforce the hook and deliver your message.
• 1-2 CTAs: Keep it simple, clear, and actionable.

This structure ensures that you’re not just testing at random—you’re testing with purpose.By refining the front end of your funnel, you lay the groundwork for scalable results, making every click count.

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‍4️⃣ Study What’s Working 🔍The best ads leave clues.One of our go-to tactics is studying competitor ad libraries.We hunt for ads that have been running for weeks (or months) in Meta’s Ad Library—a sure sign they’re driving results.Here’s how we make it actionable:

1. Document every hook: From niche appeals to broad generalizations.
2. Analyze their messaging: What pain points are they solving?
3. Adapt their success: Reframe their ideas to suit your unique product or audience.

This isn’t copying—it’s learning from the competition and applying it strategically.

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‍5️⃣ Accessibility is King 👑Let’s clear something up: making your ads simple doesn’t mean dumbing them down. It’s about making your message clear enough for anyone to get it immediately.

• Smart people? They love simplicity—it saves them time.
• Struggling readers? They’re grateful for clarity.

Clarity doesn’t discriminate. It amplifies your reach and ensures your message lands with everyone.

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The takeaway?

Great ads don’t just happen—they’re engineered with precision.

From the hook that grabs attention to the CTA that drives action, every step of your ad should scream, “This is for you.”

By combining clear messaging, purposeful testing, and insights from what’s working across the industry, we deliver campaigns that don’t just perform—they exceed expectations.

Learn to master these principles, and people will start to stop scrolling, lean in, and act.

Once your ads are dialed in, the next step is knowing exactly when to deploy them. 👇

🔥 What If You Could Anticipate Every Key Marketing Opportunity Throughout the Year?

Get ahead of the game with Klaviyo’s 2025 Marketing Campaign Calendars—your go-to resource for crafting impactful campaigns all year long.

🗓️ Packed with 150+ marketing opportunities, from major holidays to trending moments, this calendar is the ideal tool to help you plan campaigns that resonate, engage, and drive revenue.

You’ll learn how campaigns and automations can complement each other and help you turn casual shoppers into loyal customers.

⌛ With detailed timelines and actionable tips, this guide simplifies campaign planning so you can focus on building strategies that connect with your audience and boost your bottom line.

🤖 AI App Spending Hits All-Time High

Consumer spending on generative AI apps hit nearly $1.1 billion in 2024, marking a 200% YoY increase.  

Why? Users are embracing tools like ChatGPT and Gemini and showing an increased reliance on AI solutions that offer efficiency and personalization.

🍖 How Chomps Encourages Repeat Orders

Chomps is the fastest-growing food brand right now in the U.S.

Last year, the meat stick brand’s gross revenue jumped 105% YoY and they sold over 525 million sticks.

The brand is now on its way to being a billion dollar protein snack brand.

How did they scale so quickly?

Let’s look at how the Chomps website connects with customers, encourages repeat orders, and fosters brand loyalty. 👇

Timely messaging: When visitors land on the Chomps homepage, they are greeted with messaging that fits in well with the goal-oriented mindset consumers have at the beginning of the year.

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The message: “Crush Your Goals & Your Cravings” is directed toward customers who are searching for products that can help them reach their fitness goals.

The main image reinforces this message. There’s a visual of people working out, and on the left is an assortment of Chomp's products in a gym bag, positioning it as the perfect protein snack for busy consumers.

Use a subscription model:

Subscription models work best for easily replenishable products, and Chomps promotes this option on the main nav with the wording ‘Subscribe & Save’, enticing cost-conscious customers to click through.

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The landing page does a great job of conveying the main benefits of subscribing:

• Sweet discount and free shipping.
• Clear messaging that subscriptions can be canceled anytime.
• Exclusive rewards like branded merch to further incentivize customers.

👉 Adding a few images of these rewards on the right-hand side could also help as well.Showcase community: Chomps doesn’t just display reviews—they leverage their ‘Chompians’ community, linking back to individual PDP pages to enhance user flow.The fewer clicks it takes, the more likely a visitor will convert.

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The takeaway?

Chomps does a good job of refreshing its website, so it fits in with the goal-oriented mindset most shoppers have in Q1.

By advertising cost savings for their subscription program and key benefits, it’s easier for them to get customers hooked on the product and grow their business.

They also do a great job of lifting up their community with their Chompian messaging, celebrating achievements from loyal customers.

Looking to boost conversions on your own site? Apply these principles today!

🌐 IN THE SOCIAL SPHERE

It looks like DeepSeek isn’t done disrupting the AI industry.

The startup released another open-source AI model this week: a multimodal image generator called Janus Pro-7B, which beats OpenAI’s DALL-E 3 across key benchmarks.

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⚡ QUICK HITS

📅 Are your 2025 marketing calendars still bare? Klaviyo’s 2025 Marketing Calendar has 150+ marketing moments that inspire revenue-driving campaigns for the year ahead. Get your copy here. *

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📰 NEWS

• Meta stock rises after reporting strong Q4 earnings, sales increasing 21% YoY.
• Instagram adds more view-related Reels metrics to the Insights tab.
• Sweetheart Candies launches a cheeky ‘Commitment Hearts’ campaign for Valentine’s Day.

📥 Got a B2B Biz?

Join dozens of B2B companies finding demand-gen success through our niche community of 150k brand leaders and founders this year. Talk to our team to learn more.‍

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Have you heard our latest podcasts?

• ❌ TWBERP 18: ZeroBounce’s Austin Helm on Email Spam Traps
• 🔧 Shopify Optimization Strategies Every DTC Founder Should Know
• 📈 AKNF 476: How to Leverage Google PMax for Demand Capture
• ⚡ TWBERP 17: Scaling DTC Brands with Social Commerce
• 🥤 The Anatomy of BRĒZ: the World’s Fastest Growing Bev Brand
• 🔧 AKNF 474: The Future of Shopify Optimization with Warp Drive

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Don’t forget to rate the DTC Podcast on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️)

‍DTC Newsletter is written by Rebecca Knight and Frances Du.

Edited by Eric Dyck.Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here.

‍Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored content.