# Ad Creative Brief — Organize by Designe > **Who this brief is for:** the designer / AI / video editor producing ad creatives for Nichole's Meta campaigns. > **Why it exists:** the first round had Nichole's face *(which worked — keep doing that)* but everything around it was generic — yellow palette, coaching-deck copy ("Build a business that fits your life"), cliché taglines like "A Clutter-Free Life Awaits." None of it matched the strategic briefing. This document fixes the wrapper around the photo, not the photo itself. --- ## 1. Who Nichole actually is **Not negotiable. Get this wrong and nothing else matters.** - **Real name:** Nichole Gehman - **Real face:** Nichole appears in every ad. Period. *(Round 1 got this right — the photo composite / placement of her into branded scenes was correct. Keep that workflow.)* - **Real brand:** Organize by Designe™, Aurora, IL. Serving the western Chicago suburbs — Aurora, Naperville, Wheaton, Geneva, St. Charles, Batavia and the towns around them (DuPage / Kane / Will counties). - **Real co-author:** Kate Fish, LMFT, PMH-C (when the therapy/grief angle is the hook) **Why Nichole's face has to be in every ad:** the briefing said her audience responds with *"You've been in my house"* and *"This is me."* That trust is **identity-based.** Round 1's photo treatment understood this. The work going forward is to fix the *wrapper* around the photo — palette, copy, hooks — so the rest of the ad lives up to the face in it. --- ## 2. Brand visual identity — the non-negotiables | | Use | Don't use | |---|---|---| | **Primary color** | Sage `#7A9E8E` | Mustard yellow, kelly green, navy | | **Background** | Cream `#FAF6EE`, ivory `#FDFBF6` | Pure white, gray, black | | **Accent** | Soft gold `#C8A878` | Bright gold, neon, jewel tones | | **Text on light** | Charcoal `#2C302E` | Pure black, sage on cream (low contrast) | | **Display font** | Cormorant Garamond italic (300/400) | Generic serifs · Playfair · DM Serif | | **UI font** | Inter | Helvetica · Arial · Lato | | **Handwritten accent** | Caveat (sparingly · captions only) | Stock scripts | | **Photo style** | Natural light, soft warm tones, slight grain | High saturation, HDR, Pinterest-pure | | **Photo subjects** | Real homes, Nichole's hands, real clients (w/ permission) | Stock people, stock pantries, perfect Pinterest spaces | **One-sentence brand voice:** *Premium magazine editorial meets quiet therapy room.* Not Pinterest. Not HGTV. Not coaching. --- ## 3. The strategic foundation (from the audience analysis) Every ad has to answer ONE of these emotional triggers identified in the briefing. We're not selling organization. We're selling **transformation, permission, and identity.** | # | The lever | What it sounds like | |---|---|---| | 1 | **Identity-trigger clutter** | "How many black leggings does one woman need?" · "You don't need 47 water bottles." | | 2 | **Sentimental grief** | The mom's china. The dad's tools in the garage. The kids' first onesie. | | 3 | **Permission + paralysis** | "You don't know where to start." / "We do." | | 4 | **Brutal honesty + compassion** | "No Karen, you don't need 84 mystery cords. But I understand why you're scared to let them go." | | 5 | **Eco-conscious responsibility** | Where the 3,000 lbs we hauled out actually went. Best Buy. TerraCycle. Shelters. | | 6 | **Receipts / before-afters** | "76 Bags. One Engagement." (this was the only good one in round 1) | Every ad must hit **at least one** of these. If a creative doesn't pick a lever, it gets killed. --- ## 4. Six ad concepts — production-ready Each concept has: format, photo direction, headline, body copy, and CTA. These are written for Nichole's voice — first person, gentle, specific. --- ### Concept A — "How many black leggings…" *Lever: Identity-trigger clutter (#1)* **Format:** Single image, 1:1 + 9:16 **Photo direction:** Overhead shot of a real pile of black leggings on a cream linen surface. Soft natural light from a window. No people in shot. **Headline overlay (Cormorant italic, top of frame, cream text on soft sage band):** > *How many black leggings does one woman need?* **Primary text (body):** > I counted 23 in one client's drawer last week. She owns 4 pairs that fit. The other 19 are sizes she's "going to get back to." > > The leggings aren't the problem. They're the way we postpone meeting ourselves where we actually are. > > If you've been postponing — I help women in the western Chicago suburbs work through it gently. The Mid-Year Reset opens in 2 weeks. **CTA:** Learn More → Skool community **Why it works:** Identity defensiveness + humor + emotional truth in 3 sentences. Algorithm fuel because half the comments will be "MINE WAS 31" and the other half will be "this is too real." --- ### Concept B — "What 3,000 lbs of stuff actually looks like" *Lever: Eco-conscious responsibility (#5)* **Format:** Single image, 1:1 + 9:16 **Photo direction:** Real photo of Nichole standing next to a fully loaded SUV trunk — labeled donation boxes visible. Cream/sage filter. Slight grain. **Headline overlay:** > *We removed 3,000 lbs from homes this year. None of it went to landfill.* **Body:** > Best Buy took the electronics. TerraCycle took the toothbrushes. Six shelters got the coats. Twelve homes got their floors back. > > Most organizers tell you to "let it go." I tell you exactly where it went. > > I'm Nichole. I run Organize by Designe in the Fox Valley. The Mid-Year Reset opens soon. **CTA:** Learn More → Skool **Why it works:** Owns a positioning no other organizer claims. Reframes "throwing stuff away" as ethical. PR-worthy. --- ### Concept C — "The room you avoid" *Lever: Permission + paralysis (#3)* **Format:** Single image, 1:1 + 9:16 **Photo direction:** A closed door. Slightly underexposed. Light leaking from underneath. No text on photo. The headline is in the primary text only. **No headline overlay.** The closed door says it. **Primary text:** > The room you've been avoiding isn't telling you you're lazy. > > It's telling you the conversation inside it isn't ready yet. > > The Mid-Year Reset is a six-month partnership for women in the Fox Valley whose homes have stopped feeling like rest. Ten spots. Application-based. I read every one. **CTA:** Learn More → Skool **Why it works:** Visual restraint. The closed door is more emotionally precise than any caption. Speaks directly to the paralysis trigger. --- ### Concept D — "No Karen…" (the brutal honesty + compassion blend) *Lever: Brutal honesty + compassion (#4)* **Format:** Reel (15–30 sec) — Nichole on camera, casual. **Visual direction:** Nichole sitting at her kitchen table, soft natural light. Iphone-shot, mildly unedited. Cardigan. Mug. **Script (Nichole reads to camera, looking down then up at the line breaks):** > "No, Karen. You do not need 84 mystery cords." > > *(pause, looks up, slight smile)* > > "But I understand why you're scared to let them go." > > "They feel like proof. That you took care of things. That you have what you need. That you're prepared." > > "Letting them go isn't a failure of preparation. It's a small act of trust in your future self." > > "I help women through this gently. Ten homes this year. Link in bio." **Caption:** > The cords. The cords are not the problem. — The Mid-Year Reset opens soon. Free Inner Circle community in bio. **Why it works:** Hits the exact "call-out + compassion" formula the briefing flagged as her sweet spot. Direct, funny, emotionally validating. Perfect for Reels reach. --- ### Concept E — "76 Bags. One Engagement." (refined from round 1) *Lever: Receipts / before-afters (#6)* **Format:** Single image, 1:1 + 9:16. The only one from round 1 worth keeping. Refine it. **Photo direction:** A real photo from a real client (with permission) — donation bags lined up in a hallway. Numbered. Nichole barely visible at the edge of frame, kneeling. **Headline overlay:** > *76 bags. One engagement ring (found).* **Body:** > We worked through her parents' home for ten weeks after her dad passed. The ring was in a sock, in a basket, in a drawer that hadn't been opened in eight years. > > Sentimental clutter isn't laziness. It's love that hasn't found a new shape yet. > > I help families work through it. The Mid-Year Reset is open for applications soon. **CTA:** Learn More → Skool **Why it works:** Already proven to be the strongest in round 1. The grief/love angle from briefing #2. Specific numbers. Real receipt. --- ### Concept F — "Where do I even start?" *Lever: Permission + paralysis (#3) + soft conversion* **Format:** Static carousel (3 slides) or Reel (20 sec) **Slide / scene 1:** Just text on sage background — *"Where do I even start?"* (italic Cormorant) **Slide / scene 2:** Same background — *"That's not a question we can answer in a caption."* **Slide / scene 3:** Photo of Nichole looking warmly at camera — > *"It's the first thing we figure out together. I'm Nichole. The Mid-Year Reset opens soon. Free community in bio if you want a gentle place to begin."* **Caption:** > "I don't know where to start" is the most common DM I get. It is also the most honest thing anyone has ever said to me about their home. — Link in bio for the Inner Circle. **Why it works:** Mirrors back the most-common DM (briefing said comments = market research). Whoever sees this thinks *"that's literally me."* --- ## 5. Copy guidelines — Nichole's voice **ALWAYS:** - First person ("I," "me," not "we") - Specific (numbers, names, real moments) - Lowercase headlines where possible (less ad-y) - Em dashes for breath — like this — instead of commas where pacing matters - One emotional line, one practical line - End with a real, low-pressure CTA **NEVER:** - "Transform your space!" (cliché) - "Build a business that fits your life" (wrong brand entirely) - "A clutter-free life awaits" (zero specificity) - "Don't miss out" (urgency-bait) - "DM me to get started" (lazy) - All caps headlines - Emoji walls 🌟✨💛✨🌟 (one or two max, sparingly) **Voice test:** Read it aloud. If it doesn't sound like Nichole talking to a friend over coffee, rewrite it. --- ## 6. What to ship for the launch Six final creatives, each in two aspect ratios (1:1 + 9:16) = **12 deliverables.** | Phase | Concept | Use during | |---|---|---| | Brand awareness | C (closed door) + B (3,000 lbs) | Week 2 priming | | Identity-trigger | A (leggings) + D (Karen reel) | Week 2–3 | | Application drive | F (where do I start) + E (76 bags) | Week 3 open cart | | Re-open | D (Karen reel) re-run | Week 4 | **Plus the 14 daily countdown ads** (already designed in `02-ads.md`) — those stay sage-on-sage, Roman numerals, one short phrase per day. --- ## 7. The shoot — what we need from Nichole Block 90 minutes. iPhone + tripod is enough. Soft natural light, late morning. **Get these shots:** 1. **At-kitchen-table portrait** (for Concept D Reel) 2. **Hands sorting in a real client's drawer/closet** — close-up, no faces (Concepts A, E) 3. **Standing next to her loaded SUV trunk with donation boxes** (Concept B) 4. **Warm direct-to-camera close-up** (Concept F final slide) 5. **B-roll: hands, labels, bins, the sun coming through a window** (for all future Reels) **Outfit:** Soft cream cardigan or sage button-down. No graphic tees. No branded polo. The brand is in the room, not on her chest. **No makeup-artist polish.** A little under-eye, a little lip, that's it. The audience is reading her face for *"this woman actually does the work."* Over-polished = fake. --- ## 8. The one-line creative test Before any ad goes live, answer this: > **If I covered Nichole's face and removed her logo, would the copy + colors still tell me this was Organize by Designe?** The point: her face is great (round 1 nailed that). The wrapper around the face — the palette, the headline, the body copy — has to do the rest of the work. If the copy could be slapped onto any lifestyle coach or HGTV organizer with a yellow palette, it fails. If it sounds like Nichole, in sage, talking about grief or 76 donation bags or 47 water bottles — it passes.