Story-Driven Ads

Ad creative that tells a story instead of screaming features.

Most ads get skipped because they open with a product screenshot and a value prop nobody asked for. We build ad creative with narrative hooks — the first 2 seconds pull people in, the next 28 make them want what you're selling. Social, YouTube, CTV — story-first performance creative.

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The Problem

Why most ad creative burns money

You're spending thousands on media buy, but the creative itself was an afterthought. A product screenshot, a headline, a CTA button — and you wonder why CPAs keep climbing. Here's what's actually broken:

Feature-first creative that gets skipped

You open with your product name and a feature list. The viewer scrolls past before they even know what problem you solve. Algorithms punish low engagement, so your CPMs go up and reach goes down. A death spiral.

Creative fatigue with no system to fight it

You make 3 ads, run them for a month, and performance craters. You need 20-50 variations per campaign to test hooks, angles, and formats — but your team or freelancer can barely produce 5.

UGC that looks like UGC

You hired creators to film talking-head testimonials. They look exactly like every other DTC ad in the feed. The "authentic" look has become its own cliche, and audiences tune it out just as fast as polished ads.

No narrative = no memory

People remember stories. They don't remember feature lists. Your ad runs a million times, but nobody can recall your brand the next day because the creative had no emotional hook, no tension, no resolution.

What You Get

What WithLore ad creative includes

Every ad starts with a story angle — not a product screenshot. We produce the hero creative, then spin it into dozens of variations so you can test at the volume your media buy demands.

Hook Development

We write 10-15 hook variations per concept, each designed to stop the scroll in under 2 seconds. Visual hooks, text hooks, audio hooks — tested across formats.

Story-First Creative

Every ad has a micro-narrative: setup, tension, payoff. Even a 15-second ad can tell a story if the structure is right. We build the emotional arc before touching production.

Multi-Platform Production

Native creative for Meta, TikTok, YouTube pre-roll, LinkedIn, and connected TV. Each platform gets its own format, pacing, and hook style — not a resize of the same file.

Variation Engine

From one hero concept, we produce 20-50+ variations — different hooks, CTAs, visual styles, lengths. Our AI pipeline makes this fast and affordable instead of a production nightmare.

Performance Feedback Loop

We study what's working in your ad account and produce new iterations based on real performance data. The creative gets better with every spend cycle, not worse.

Selected Ad Work

Built with lore

How We Compare

The honest comparison for ad creative

	Canva / Templates	UGC Creators	Performance Agency	WithLore
Creative Quality	Generic	Authentic but repetitive	Data-driven, bland	Story-driven, cinematic
Hook Strategy	None	Hit or miss	A/B tested	10-15 hooks per concept
Volume	Unlimited (low quality)	3-5 per creator	10-20 per month	50+ variations per campaign
Narrative	None	Scripted testimonials	Rare	Every ad has a story arc
Platform Optimization	Resize only	One format	Multi-platform	Native per platform
Iteration Speed	Fast	Weeks per batch	Weekly	New variations in hours

FAQ

Questions about story-driven ads

Narrative hooks increase watch time, which signals to algorithms that your ad is engaging. Higher engagement means lower CPMs, more reach, and ultimately lower CPA. But beyond the math — stories create desire. Feature lists create comparison shopping. When someone feels something watching your ad, they're more likely to click and convert than when they're evaluating a spec sheet.

For a healthy paid media program, you want 20-50 active variations at any time, refreshing weekly or bi-weekly. Creative fatigue is the #1 killer of ad performance, and the only defense is volume. On a WithLore retainer, you get ongoing production that keeps your creative library fresh. See our tiers for output details.

Meta (Facebook/Instagram), TikTok, YouTube (pre-roll and Shorts), LinkedIn, X, Snapchat, and connected TV (CTV/OTT). Each platform gets native creative — different aspect ratios, pacing, hook styles, and CTA approaches. We don't just resize one ad and call it "multi-platform."

Absolutely. We're the creative engine — your media buyer handles the spend. We'll coordinate on performance data, testing frameworks, and iteration cadence. If you don't have a media buyer, we can recommend partners or advise on strategy.

New concepts: 3-5 days from brief to delivery. New variations of existing concepts: same day or next day. Our AI-accelerated pipeline means we can react to performance data in real time and produce fresh creative before fatigue sets in.

Stop burning ad spend on creative nobody watches.

Book a call and we'll create a free ad concept with hook variations for your product — yours to keep regardless.

Get Your Free Concept

No pitch deck. No contracts. You keep the concept even if you don't work with us.