🔍 How To Turn Negative Feedback Into A Positive ROAS

Hey hey…

Two announcements:

1. We’ve been working like animals on our new site, and we’re launching it on May 30th. Over the next few weeks, I’ll send y’all sneak peeks and some of you access before anyone else.

2. We’re launching DTC Examined, our newest newsletter focused on giving you tactical playbooks to grow your DTC brands. You can sign up by just tapping here.

Now, for a quick tip on finding the best ads out there. Go to the comment section of ads on Instagram/Twitter/Reddit; if you see any customers say that it’s a good ad or they are convinced because of the ad, that’s the ONE you need to study.

That’s what this case study is about…

I spend close to six figures on ads every month.

And here’s a quick tip I use to improve my ad’s click-through rate:

• Use image-based ads to test different value propositions, hooks, scripts, and positioning 
• Test different variables and see what resonates 
• Scale what works best into video ads

It’s much more budget-friendly, easier to test, and efficient for scaling when you are using this approach.

And so I subscribe to Superside, which offers creative as a service.

They’re faster than hiring a creative team. They cut the average asset cost by 50%. And they ship fast as hell.

You can sign-up for a demo here.

If you operate a brand, you might have tempted to hide the 1-star negative reviews on the site.

You shouldn’t do it for two other reasons.

1. Customers notice and post it online.
2. Negative reviews could be your prime asset in marketing.

Domino’s famous Pizza Turnaround ad leveraged the “appeal” of negative reviews. The campaign showed real customers negative comments about Domino's pizza from online reviews and surveys, while the company's executives acknowledged the criticism and promised to improve the product.

The ad campaign was a huge success - stock prices rose by over 350% in the years following the campaign.

Why did it work?

Instead of trying to bury or ignore negative feedback, Domino's placed it at the core of its marketing efforts and promised to deliver a better product aka pizza.

This transparency helps build initial trust, which is the bridge to customer loyalty.

Another way to take advantage of negative reviews is to show what you are by admitting what you are not.

Oats Overnight’s recent IG ad is a slide show of 1-star customer reviews from their site - scroll-stopping hooks.

But there’s more to this ad strategy.

Oats Overnight cleverly selected the reviews and used them to highlight its differentiation factor that helps them stand out in the market.

Not traditional hot oatmeal → Innovative cold oatmeal that feels refreshing & is easy to make

Cannot enjoy drinking my breakfast → On-the-go breakfast, you can drink

Too chocolatey → Great for chocolate lovers

Some 1-star reviews → 1,000,000 happy customers

By highlighting what they are not, Overnight Oats shows their target audience who they are and who they’re for.

In contrast, the messaging comes through louder and clearer. Thanks to negative reviews.

Here’s why Insense is my go-to UGC and influencer marketing platform:

1. There’s no manual outreach. Creators that match your requirements apply directly to your campaigns in minutes.
2. You can start collaborations immediately and get UGC within 10 days.
3. Their brief templates make communication smooth and seamless
4. With just one click, you can gain access to TikTok Spark Ads codes and Meta whitelisting connections for influencer ads.
5. You can build a reliable roster of your preferred creators and influencers for long-term collaborations and brand ambassadorships.

Book a free 1-2-1 strategy call today and get $200 for your first campaign by May 19.

• Dominos pizza turnaround ad
• How to visualize “made from plastic”
• Shark Beauty’s marketing strategy targeting moms
• Clever ad by Craft Sportswear — “Left foot. Right Foot.”
• Amazon AR shopping

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Can't wait for you to see what we're cooking up with the new site. 

Goal is for it to be your go-to resource for all thing marketing. If you want a sneak peek, then shoot me an email back saying "send it", and I'll send you a link.

- Alex & Chi