Ad graphics

Ad graphics have about one second

On a phone, people scroll fast. Ad graphics get roughly the time it takes a thumb to move past them to make someone pause. In that moment, nobody reads paragraphs or admires details. They notice one thing: a face, a result, a price, a bold contrast. So the main job of an ad image is not to be beautiful, but to make one clear point that the right person cares about.

That is also why I design ads for the phone first. A layout that looks balanced on a big monitor often turns into tiny, unreadable text on a screen in someone's hand.

Five rules I follow

1. One message per image. If there are three offers, there are three ads.
2. The product or result is the hero. The finished kitchen, the plate of food, the smile after treatment, the clean office.
3. Short headline, big type. Five or six words at most on the image itself.
4. Contrast with the feed. Colours and shapes that stand out from the usual grey and white of a timeline, while staying on brand.
5. A visible next step. "Book online", "Free quote", "Order for pickup", matching the button.

Angles beat layouts

The biggest difference between two ads is rarely the colour of the button. It is the reason to buy they put forward. For a cleaning company, one angle might be "more free evenings", another "fixed price, no surprises", a third "same cleaner every time". Each becomes its own small set of graphics. Testing angles teaches you what your customers care about. Testing tiny design details mostly teaches you about noise.

Sizes and placements

Most campaigns need at least three formats: square or 4:5 for feeds, 9:16 for Stories and Reels, and, for Google, a range of display sizes. Meta can crop one image automatically, but the result is often clumsy: a cut-off headline, a logo under the profile icon. I prepare each size properly and keep important elements inside the safe areas of each placement.

If motion would help, the same idea can become a short animation or video. See video ads and Reels and Shorts.

Ad graphics and the rules

Platforms review every ad. Graphics that imply personal attributes ("Struggling with debt?"), show exaggerated before-and-after results, or mimic system buttons can be rejected, and repeated rejections can put an account at risk. Canadian rules add their own points: prices shown must be the full price, and in Quebec, text on ads should be in French with any other language no more prominent. I design within these limits from the start; my graphics are in English, so French versions for Quebec come from your own team or translator.

When graphics are not the problem

Sometimes a business asks for new graphics when the real issue is elsewhere: tracking that does not count leads, a landing page that loads slowly, or an offer that is simply not competitive. If I see that, I will say so before you spend money on design. A Facebook ads audit or a look at the full ad creative picture may be the better first step. If the ads run on Google, Display campaigns have their own requirements I cover as well.

What to send me

The more real material I have, the better the ads. Useful things to send: photos of your products, jobs or team (phone photos are fine), your logo and any brand colours, the exact offer and price, the landing page link, and screenshots of ads that worked or flopped in the past. If you have reviews from customers, a short list of the phrases they use helps too, because customers' own words often make the strongest headlines.

Delivery

I design ad graphics myself. You get several versions per angle in every size, three rounds of revisions and the editable source files. Timing is agreed in writing before work starts.