Finding the hooks worth testing.

The Problem

Map Necklace had strong product-market fit but scaling was expensive. Running almost exclusively video, CPMs were high, limiting how far we could push the budget efficiently. We needed two things: a more cost-effective format, and a hook that actually connected emotionally with the buyer.

The Insight

While reviewing comments on our highest-engagement video ads, I noticed a woman had tagged her husband with a simple phrase: "The place where we first kissed." She wasn't answering a question. She wasn't writing a review. She was just sharing a feeling, spontaneously, publicly, in the comments of an ad. That was the hook we were looking for. Not a description of the product. The reason someone buys it.

The Execution

We replaced the original hook, "That Special Place on Her Neck," with the customer's own words: "The Place Where We First Kissed." Then we adapted it into static formats to expand placements and reduce CPM dependency on video inventory. Tested ~10 variations. The ones that didn't work tried to explain the product. The winners made you feel something immediately.

The Learning

The best hook was already written, by a customer, in the comments. The job was to find it. Once we had the right message, moving from video-only to multi-format didn't just lower CPMs, it proved that a strong creative idea should never live in one placement.

The Problem

Family Circle Name Necklace had potential but wasn't converting. The product existed, the audience was there, but sales were minimal. The issue wasn't the product, it was trust. A personalized family necklace is an emotional, considered purchase. People needed to believe in the brand before they'd commit.

The Approach

Rather than pushing harder on product-focused creatives, I built a set of videos testing different message angles: emotional, product-led, social proof. The goal was to find what actually moved the needle. The one that landed was the founder speaking directly to camera. No script feel, no hard sell, just genuine conviction.

Why It Worked

A founder on camera does something a polished ad can't: it puts a real person behind the brand. For a product people are buying as a meaningful gift, that authenticity was the missing piece. It answered the unspoken question every hesitant buyer has: "Can I trust these people?"

The Learning

Sometimes the product isn't the problem. When conversion is low on something with clear demand, the barrier is often trust, and the most direct way to build it is to put the right human voice in front of the right audience.

The Problem

Studio creative was convincing, but for an emotional, gift-driven jewelry buyer, nothing beats social proof: seeing other real customers wearing the product. We had no systematic way to generate it at scale, and sourcing authentic UGC one creator at a time didn't work.

The Program

Together with the customer support team, I built Talisa Collaborations: customers got free product in exchange for a photo and/or video. We recruited through support and a dedicated Facebook and email campaign, all centered on the #talisaconnect hashtag and tagging Talisa. It ran across multiple products, and turned happy customers into a steady stream of authentic content.

The Win

One creator the program surfaced was a real Talisa Stars Bracelet customer. Her content, no script and no staging, just her wearing the bracelet with her family's birthstones, gave us the creative direction we wouldn't have art-directed on our own. We rebuilt it as an elevated studio version: same intimate, authentic feel, but with better light, better photography, and a fuller four-birthstone family story. That version became the #1 asset in the Talisa Stars Bracelet campaigns.

The Learning

The best creative direction sometimes comes from outside the creative team. Put product in your customers' hands and they'll show you the angle.