I love writing ad copy. Summing up a brand in five words is far harder than doing so in 500 words – but the fiendishness of the challenge is what makes it fun.
I’ve written scroll-stopping ads for all kinds of brands, from A-list retailers to niche tech consultancies. My clients have included TalkTalk, M&S, Figma, GlobalLogic and DHL.
1. This is a flyer I wrote for Asian Fried Chicken.
Asian Fried Chicken is an off-shoot brand of nationwide street-food chain Tampopo. This ad copy was shaped by messaging and tone-of-voice guidelines I’d previously developed.
2. Here are three social ads I devised and scripted for Lesniak Swann.
They were part of its ‘Compromise Kills Impact’ campaign, highlighting the pitfalls of opting for a B2B agency that has sector expertise, but no creative spark – or vice versa.
3. This is an ad I wrote for DHL at the very start of the Covid pandemic.
The timely, straightforward tagline I created for this ad series (‘We can help. Let’s talk.’) proved highly impactful. It helped this campaign win Best B2B Campaign at both the MPA Awards and Prolific North Marketing Awards.
Sometimes, guilelessly simple is the way to go.
4. Here’s the interior of a direct mail I wrote for M&S Corporate Gifts.
This was part of an ABM campaign targeting HR managers at telecoms enterprises. The foldout DM contained a spot-glued ‘business card’, personalised with the recipient’s name.
5. Finally, some madcappery.
This deck contains my ad-making at its most untethered.
School of Thought is an annual, eight-week course for creatives looking to level-up their skills.
Each week, 12 of us visited a different Manchester-based agency, including TBWA\MCR, McCann and BBC Creative.
On Monday, that week’s agency would set a brief – ‘sell Krispy Kreme to teenagers’, for example. On Thursday – 72 hours later – we presented our responses. The deck below contains all eight of my ideas.
I’ll create arresting, effective ads for you, too. All you have to do is ask!
Joe Madden Copywriter 