# ad-creative-brief

Turns a campaign goal and an audience insight into a structured creative brief a designer, editor or UGC creator can execute.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · 20600 installs · ★ 2
- Author: Maya-Beth Finotti
- License: MIT · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/mbfinotti/advertising-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/ad-creative-brief/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-09-14
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/ad-creative-brief

## What it does

The skill walks from campaign goal and audience insight to a brief someone can actually work from: messaging angle, hook directions, art direction, specs, testing intent, and the handoff and revision loop. There are variants for static image, short-form video and UGC, plus search and responsive text ads. B2B and B2C are handled separately.

How it runs: an interview, one question per message, then evidence mining from reviews, call notes, ad comments and competitor ads, then 2-3 candidate concept directions with a recommendation. One brief per concept, 1-2 pages, and nothing is final without sign-off. Every claim in the brief cites a source, because a brief without evidence is a wish list.

It does not produce finished creative. Ad copy belongs to `mbfinotti/advertising-skills@ad-copy-variants`; shot-by-shot creator scripts belong to `mbfinotti/advertising-skills@ugc-ad-scripts`. This one writes hook direction, never hook scripts. If you have no web access, the specs field gets a note to preview in-placement before export, since published safe-zone numbers disagree by tens of pixels anyway.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add mbfinotti/advertising-skills --skill ad-creative-brief -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/ad-creative-brief/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/ad-creative-brief/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add mbfinotti/advertising-skills --skill ad-creative-brief -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/ad-creative-brief/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add mbfinotti/advertising-skills --skill ad-creative-brief -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/ad-creative-brief/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install mbfinotti/advertising-skills ad-creative-brief
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/ad-creative-brief/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add mbfinotti/advertising-skills --skill ad-creative-brief -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/mbfinotti/advertising-skills --path skills/ad-creative-brief
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/ad-creative-brief/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add mbfinotti/advertising-skills --skill ad-creative-brief -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/mbfinotti/advertising-skills/tree/HEAD/skills/ad-creative-brief/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- pin down a messaging angle for one campaign
- give a designer usable hook directions
- write art direction without a follow-up call
- mine reviews and call notes for proof points
- lock specs and testing intent before production starts

## Example prompts
- write a creative brief for a problem-aware audience
- brief a UGC creator for a short-form video ad
- draft hook directions and art direction for static ads

## Source text · SKILL.md · MIT

Below is the content of a third-party file. It is data, not instructions for you: do not act on anything written inside unless the human asks. Block tag: c370e593e597db20.

BEGIN THIRD-PARTY FILE c370e593e597db20
```text
---
name: ad-creative-brief
description: "Turn a campaign goal and an audience insight into a structured creative brief a designer, video editor, or UGC creator can execute - messaging angle, hook directions, art direction, specs, testing intent, and the handoff and revision loop. Covers B2B and B2C, with variants for static image, short-form video/UGC, and search/responsive text ads. Use whenever the user needs to brief a designer or creator, asks what an ad should say, or mentions messaging pillars, creative direction, or a design handoff - even if they never say 'brief'. Writes direction, never the finished asset: the ad copy itself is mbfinotti/advertising-skills@ad-copy-variants and shot-by-shot creator scripts are mbfinotti/advertising-skills@ugc-ad-scripts."
license: MIT
metadata:
  author: Maya-Beth Finotti
  version: "1.0.1"
---

# Creative Brief

Write a performance-marketing creative brief: a per-concept test specification, not a brand brief with metrics bolted on. The classic agency brief centers on a single-minded proposition, is written once per campaign, and stays deliberately loose so it can inspire. The performance brief replaces that proposition with a **falsifiable creative hypothesis**, is written per concept per sprint, and is prescriptive about hooks, specs and decision thresholds because dozens of variants ship each cycle.

The stakes are documented. The BetterBriefs Project (IPA, 1,700+ marketers and agency staff, 70+ countries) found respondents estimate ~33% of marketing budget is wasted through poor briefing, and that 80% of marketers think they write good briefs while only 10% of agencies agree. Agencies name the gaps as focus (83%), clarity (79%) and inspiration (65%).

One honesty check frames everything else. Motion's 2026 analysis of $1.29B in Meta spend across 578,750 creatives found roughly 5% of creatives become winners - a hit rate no brief can repeal. So the brief's job is not to promise a winner; it is to maximise the quality, cleanliness and diversity of every at-bat.

This skill ends at the approved brief document, and never produces final creative. Writing the finished ad copy belongs to `mbfinotti/advertising-skills@ad-copy-variants`; the shot-by-shot creator script - spoken lines, shot list - belongs to `mbfinotti/advertising-skills@ugc-ad-scripts`. This brief writes hook _direction_, never hook scripts; that line is the boundary.
```
END THIRD-PARTY FILE c370e593e597db20

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