→ Based on 30 real campaigns (and a few that completely flopped)

Let’s get honest: most ad creatives suck.

Not because marketers aren’t talented. But because too often, creative gets pushed to the bottom of the to-do list — after targeting, bidding, attribution, and reporting.

In 2025, that strategy is a budget-burner.

Creative is your media strategy. It's what decides whether your ad gets scrolled past, skipped… or clicked.

And we’re not talking about vague “make it pop” design tips. We’re talking about data-backed patterns from real-world campaigns run across CTV, display, in-app, and native.

This is what actually worked (and didn’t) across 30+ programmatic campaigns, analyzed in our latest report.

Let’s break down the most important lessons.

Why Creative Is Your Performance Engine in 2025

In a world where everyone’s bidding on the same audiences, creative is your only true edge.

Creative is responsible for 49% of campaign impact, according to Nielsen’s meta-analysis of over 500 ad campaigns.

And it makes sense. Gen Z doesn’t wait for your story to build. CTV viewers grab their phones during pre-rolls. In-app users are half-swiped away from a TikTok dopamine hit.

You have 1.7 seconds. That’s it.
Win attention, or lose the bid.

Top Creative Ad Practices That Actually Worked

We studied 30 campaigns across Blasto DSP — from SaaS to mobile games to CPG giants. These are the patterns that moved the needle:

1. Use Proven Creative Archetypes

The 6 best-performing formats we saw:

The Value Stack – Highlights multiple benefits in a single visual (Think: Apple’s “Privacy. That’s iPhone.”)
The Visual Trigger – A bold image or animation that stops the scroll
The Social Mirror – Reflects a belief or fear the viewer already has
The Mini-Demo – A gif-style preview of the product in action
The Swipe Series – Interactive or carousel-style ad with a narrative arc
The Transformation Hook – A bold “before vs. after” concept

2. Match Your Message to the Medium

Don't run the same creative on CTV and mobile display. That’s lazy and expensive.

CTV → Use cinematic pacing + narrative + branding
In-app → Bold visuals, short copy, instant hook
Display → Crisp layout, CTA-first, mobile-optimized
Native → Make it feel like content, not a banner

3. Open With a Scroll-Stopping Visual

Your brain decides if something is worth noticing before it reads a single word.

That’s why high-performing creatives almost always feature:

Faces (especially with emotional expressions)
Motion in the first 2 seconds (for video)
Contrast (dark/light, saturated/muted)

4. Stop Using Weak CTAs

“Learn more” isn’t a CTA. It’s a shrug.

Try these instead (tested, not just clever):

“See it in action”
“Compare your results”
“Unlock free trial access”
“Start optimizing now”

5. Always. Be. Testing.

We get it — A/B testing feels like extra work. But your instincts are not scalable. Let data do the talking.

Use multivariate testing for:

CTAs
Headlines
Background colors
Video lengths

The Mistakes That Kill Campaigns (And We’ve Seen Them All)

From our campaign autopsy files:

Too much text on screen (especially on mobile)
No CTA until the final 2 seconds of video
Irrelevant visuals (stock photos ≠ brand connection)
No emotional driver — just features, no feeling

💡 Want to see the actual flops? They're in the report.
We break down exactly what didn’t work — and why.

Download the Full Creative Intelligence Report

The Ultimate Guide to Winning Programmatic Ad Creatives in 2025 includes:

A breakdown of 30+ real campaigns
The 6 creative archetypes that actually worked
Mistakes to avoid (with real examples)
Psychological triggers, CTA tips, optimization workflows

What Makes a Winning Ad Creative in 2025

The Ultimate Guide to Winning Programmatic Ad Creatives in 2025

The Ultimate Guide  to Winning Programmatic Ad Creatives in 2025