Good ad copy does four things: it fits the platform’s character limits, leads with the hook, carries one idea and one call to action, and comes in variations you can test. The good news is that the rules are tight enough to be learnable.
Respect the limits, or the ad breaks
A Google headline over 30 characters or a description over 90 simply gets truncated or rejected. On Meta, the first line of the primary text is all most people see before “See more,” so the hook has to live there. Write to the limit from the start, do not write long and trim.
Lead with the hook, not the brand
Nobody is searching for your logo. Lead with the benefit, the problem, or a sharp promise, and let the brand come second. One clear idea per line; an ad that tries to say three things says none of them.
One idea, one call to action
End on a single, specific action: start free, book a call, shop the sale. Match it to the goal. And never manufacture urgency or invent an offer the product does not have; fake scarcity is the fastest way to look like a scam and waste the click.
Write variations and let the data pick
You are a poor judge of which line wins. Ad copy that converts is usually the third or fourth variation, not the first draft, so write several genuinely different headlines and bodies, run them, and let the click-through rate decide. The job is to give the test good options, not to guess the winner.
Common mistakes
- Ignoring the character limit, so the ad gets cut off mid-word.
- Burying the hook after the brand name and a warm-up.
- Fake urgency and invented discounts. They kill trust and clicks.