This ad could put some out of business

When it comes to making paid ads (on any platform) that work, there are so many angles to try out.

So many ideas internet marketers have preached to us about.

And while they're all promising…

It's also important to keep in mind that if not attempted the right way, they could send you out of business real quick.

It's the same thing Pepsi tried to do with their Halloween ad in the image below, where their fanbase fully supported them:

And crazily, the ad resulted in 24,185 shares in a week on social media.

Plus, it reached over 65 million people (Kudos to Pepsi creative team!).

Now, what do you think Coca-Cola did?

Their marketing team followed up with a simple message:

“Everybody wants to be a hero.”

And with that comeback, almost immediately, Coca-Cola won the marketing battle.

The point?

It could be a “Clash of Titans” if you do it the wrong way.

Your target competitors could take it the wrong way and fire back in irredeemable ways (if your brand is not as strong as Pepsi to take the hit).

Worse, it could be a lawsuit.

So, it's only wise to learn about it before attempting it.

Make sense? Good.

This thread-with-caution ad angle is the “us Vs them” ad.

And just by reading this week's newsletter…

You'll be one step ahead of your competitors who might attempt to use it without the insights you'll gain here.

Without further ado, let's dive into it.

In today's breakdown, I'm going to be showing you two of the most popular “us Vs them” ads roaming the internet today that you must've come across.

1. The Ridgewallet ad

One thing to note with this ad is that it did a classic “us Vs them” angle.

In other words, it didn't mention the name of the competitor.

Instead, it consisted of the plain ol' wallet style that everybody has.

b. Address customer's problems.

Ridgewallet did a classic here where they simply drew a table of “objects and differences”.

Look closely at the exact words used, and you'll realize that the ad is a battle between pain points and benefits.

On one part, pain points and everyday complaints of customers, and benefits on the other.

c. Attack the features, not the brand.

Take Pepsi’s ad illustrated above.

When it comes to interaction with people, there are things a party would be comfortable talking about, and there are some they just won't be.

They'd rather take it to their grave.

That explains this point: attack the features of the competitor; the things that can be controlled… the things you do better than them, and not their attributes or brand messaging.

It'll keep you in a safe spot.

That's it for the Ridgeway.

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2. FP Footwear

This ad creative has been running for a long time now from Meta to Google ads, and has been causing a major controversy in the footwear industry.

Click here to watch the video…

And come back to join the party.

Done? Good.

This “us Vs them” ad angle used by FP Footwear is about demonstrating the use of both products…

AND highlighting the differences.

Notice: it's not only about highlighting the differences, just like the classic Ridgewallet ad did.

This works best because highlighting the differences can only go as far as getting consumers interested in knowing more about the products.

However, demonstration (through videos) makes consumers imagine themselves using the product.

(We covered how to craft a high converting video in the last newsletter piece. You can check it out.)

And if they finish the video that followed that pattern? They're sold.

Now, while there's so much interesting ideas to be discovered from breaking down these ad creatives together…

We'll stop here because of the context of this newsletter — the “us Vs them” ad angle.

And probably go deeper on them some other time, separately.

Stay tuned for the next piece

- Andy.

PS. Before you go, three questions quickly:

Did you take notes in today's breakdown?

What are you gonna try differently in your next “us Vs them” ad?

Did you notice any peculiarities with the ads?

Leave a reply to this email with your answers, and I'll be happy to read ALL.