I created this doc at a time when we were trying to essentially rebuild our creative process from scratch for paid social ads. One thing that I wanted to communicate to our creative team was this concept of modular scripting, which is essentially being able to reassemble and repurpose different content into different combinations of ads. That allows us to ideally work more effectively, produce more content, and be able to leverage our existing ad creatives as much as possible. 

This doc is for internal members of our team on the creative side. Our creative strategist who oversees the whole process would be the main person to digest this information, and then she’d pass it to any freelancer or partners involved in the process, like our script writers and video editors. This is a really good framework to use when you’re editing content and trying to get as much juice as possible from it.

With paid social, what we've found over the years is that it’s really critical to build creative that not only resonates with the audience and gets them to purchase, but it also is tied to whatever is top of mind for consumers at the time. What's trendy and how can we insert our product into that conversation? 

It's a mix of leaning into who we are as a brand and what we know is going to drive purchasing decisions, but also taking advantage of opportunities that we see within the zeitgeist of health and wellness. There’s a lot of testing and learning, but once we find something that really works, we double down on it as much as possible and try not to spread ourselves too thin.

I like to open the floor up to everyone involved in paid social to come up with different angles. This usually takes place in the form of a brainstorm session that we have on an ongoing basis as part of a weekly creative call. I think it’s important to get everyone’s perspective because you get a bunch of different ideas and ways to look at things. It doesn’t matter if you’re from the Data and Analytics side of the team, or if you're a media buyer, because we're all getting and digesting different inputs and information. I don’t want to disregard or have any of that fall through the cracks.

When thinking about modular creative that we can reuse, we also want to think about whether the angle is pervasive across a large number of people. For example, if there is an angle that’s specific but pretty rare, and we were comparing that to “someone that wants to lose weight”, we’d probably go with the weight loss one because that problem is way more common comparatively, so that increases the chances of being able to scale that type of creative.

When we come up with ideas and hooks for creative, there are definitely some that we feel really confident in, but at he end of the day, we leave it up to the data to tell us what a “scroll stopping visual” is. The data can be surprising at times— an angle or a hook that we thought was going to crush it didn't do so well. I think a key part of all of this is really being able to analyze performance of the different creatives and then come up with different insights or decisions based on how those creators performed.

So, for instance, let's say we had an ad that had a really strong hook rate, but we didn't hold that person's attention. We're hooking them into watching the ad, but maybe they're not sticking around to watch the ad. That would signal to us that maybe we need to rework some of the main portion of the creative and switch some of the scenes around.

As a result of this modularized approach, we’ve really increased our output. We’ve produced a lot more creatives, and we’re able to keep up with whatever the demand is within each channel and not have to always rely on producing brand new content. Being able to remix and recycle existing content has been a big win for us.

The modular framework really breaks down the components of what makes a great UGC ad. Being able to write scripts based on this framework has been really helpful. We used to do just general one page briefs where it was just talking points and a CTA, but we found that when working with UGC creators, the more guidance you can give them the better.

Jack Meredith

Modular scripting helps my team efficiently produce creative assets that we can remix and reuse across social ad campaigns.

 scripting is the process of assembling and reassembling pre-approved elements into different types of content for use across channels. Using a modular approach allows us to break down a creative brief systematically with 

 The angle is the main message of the ad. It’s the “big idea” that captures audience interest, influences their emotional response and inspires them to take action. Your angle should resonate with the centre of the centre of your target market.

A great angle should call out their #1 hair-on-fire problem and show how your product is the solution to that

. The problem needs to be so visceral to the person that they’ll take immediate action to solve it.

 A block is a distinct segment within the creative. These are the building blocks that make up the entire ad. Blocks are 

 they can be rearranged and restructured to make a virtually limitless number of assets.

 Frameworks are a specific combination of elements that can be recreated and applied to multiple concepts. Proven frameworks make scripting a much faster process.

 The shot type describes what needs to be in each video segment. They provide visual direction to what you want filmed from the creator.

From a structural standpoint, every ad should have a hook, body, and CTA. Think of these structural elements like a story arc - beginning, middle and end.

The hook is the first 1-3 seconds of the ad. The goal of the hook is to capture the viewer’s attention just long enough so that we can tell them our story. A well crafted hook consists of a 

 combined with equally effective and attention grabbing copy that intrigues the viewer so much that they cannot possibly stop watching.

The body contains multiple blocks and is the meat of the ad. While the hook grabs the viewer’s attention, the goal of the body is to persuade the viewer to buy the product.

Telling a relatable story filled with contextualized benefits.

Showing the undeniable proof (before & after).

Vocalize your market’s objections before them.

Regardless of how strong a video ad is, it needs to have a clear call-to-action that tells people what to do next

Modular Scripting Guide for Paid Social Assets at Kettle and Fire

Glossary

Anatomy of an Ad

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