Most local ads fail for a boring reason: they look like ads. Stock smiles, neon bursts, and “CALL NOW” stacked over a blurry van photo. The people who click are rarely the people you want on a $4,000 job.
Premium does not mean cinematic budgets
You do not need a Super Bowl spot. You need craft: a real offer, a real location, type that is large enough to read on a phone, and a single next step. Wieden+Kennedy built Nike on clarity and tension. The same idea applies to a roofing company, just at a different scale.
- Lead with the job, not the logo. Show the finished work in context.
- Write like a person. “We replace roofs before the next storm” beats “#1 trusted contractor.”
- One offer per ad. Split tests should change the hook, not the entire business.
What we look for in a first creative sprint
Three to five concepts, not thirty templates. A proof point (review, before/after, guarantee). And a destination that matches the promise. If the ad says “book this week,” the landing page should book this week, rather than ask someone to “learn more.”