ad-copy — independently scanned and version-tracked by SaferSkills.
SaferSkills independently audited ad-copy (Agent Skill) and scored it 96/100 (green). The audit ran 55 deterministic rules across Security, Supply Chain, Maintenance, Transparency, and Community; it found 0 high-severity and 1 lower-severity findings. The full rule-by-rule trace and per-finding evidence are below. Free, methodology-open.
Findings & checks · 1 flagged
A bulleted imperative like {match} tells the agent to never reveal, disclose, or mention something to the user. Used adversarially it can instruct the agent to hide its tool calls or lie about what it did — stripping the transparency a user relies on to trust the agent.
Every scanned point with the score it earned and what moved between them.
First recorded scan — no prior version to compare against.
The primary manifest — the file an agent reads to learn what this artifact does.
Created by Rob Palmer — direct-response copywriter ($523M+ tracked). Source & updates: https://github.com/robpalmer99/claude-code-copywriting-skills Free under CC-BY-4.0. Attribution requested when redistributed.
This skill writes high-converting ad copy for Meta platforms (Facebook + Instagram) — primary text, headlines, descriptions, and UGC/video ad scripts. It draws on proven direct response frameworks from Schwartz, Halbert, Makepeace, Georgi, Sultanic, and others.
The ad's ONLY job is to get the click. Not close the sale. Not educate fully. Get the click.
Before writing a single word, determine these four things. Ask the user if unclear.
| Position | What They Know | Ad Approach |
|---|---|---|
| Cold traffic | Nothing about you | Lead with problem/curiosity, longer education |
| Warm/engaged | Seen you before | More direct, mechanism-focused |
| Retargeting | Visited your page | Objection-handling, social proof, urgency |
Eugene Schwartz's 5 Levels of Awareness determine everything — your headline, your copy length, your angle, and where the ad sends people:
| Level | Lead With | Ad Length | Send To |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unaware | Identity/emotion, not the problem | Long, educational | Advertorial |
| Problem-Aware | Name the pain vividly, tease mechanism | Medium-long | VSL or advertorial |
| Solution-Aware | Differentiate your mechanism | Medium | VSL or long PDP |
| Product-Aware | Overcome objections, add proof | Short-medium | PDP |
| Most-Aware | Lead with the deal | Short | Checkout or offer page |
The less aware they are, the longer your copy needs to be.
This is the most important strategic decision for any Meta ad:
Sell the Click — Short caption, curiosity-driven image/video, minimal info revealed. The ad's job is ONLY to generate the click. The advertorial or VSL does the selling. Best for: unaware/problem-aware audiences, products that need explanation, high-ticket offers.
Sell the Solution — Longer video with education, visual demos, proof. The ad itself does much of the selling. The landing page just needs to close. Best for: solution-aware+ audiences, simple products, visual products, lower price points.
Critical rule: If you show the product in the ad, the viewer becomes product-aware. Never send a product-aware viewer to a blind VSL — send them to a PDP or offer page instead.
Real-world example: Many 8-figure brands run BOTH strategies simultaneously. Static ads with product images sell the solution and send to PDPs. Curiosity video ads sell the click and send to advertorials or VSLs. Different awareness levels, different funnels, same brand.
Read references/meta-ad-specs.md for full specs. Key numbers:
Primary Text (above the creative) — The main sell. First 125 characters are your headline equivalent.
Structure for "See more" expansion:
[Hook — first 125 chars. Must create an open loop or pattern interrupt]
← "See more" break
[Expand: agitate the problem, tease the mechanism, drop proof]
[CTA: tell them what to do next]The "See more" click is a micro-conversion. Make expanding irresistible.
Headline (below the creative) — Benefit-driven, specific. NOT a label — a second hook.
Weak: "Learn More" | "Check This Out" | "Click Here" Strong: "The 7-Second Morning Fix" | "Why Diets Fail After 40" | "23 Lbs in 8 Weeks"
Description (below the headline) — Secondary benefit or risk reversal. Often hidden on mobile, so don't put critical info here. Use for friction reduction: "Free shipping" | "No credit card needed" | "2-minute read"
Use this fill-in-the-blank formula (from Alen Sultanic) to structure any ad:
WHY (The Problem) — Open with curiosity or a contrarian hook. State the problem. Agitate.
"Why do _____ matter more than _____ after ___?" "[Deep identifier — something that resonates with their identity]" "Experts are calling it the '_____'. But it's not a _____ at all..." "It hits from all sides: _____ stress. _____ stress. _____ stress. It's NOT aging, it's not normal and it's not permanent."
WHAT (The Mechanism) — Pivot to the mechanism. Tease the solution without revealing it.
"Fortunately, there is another way. One that focuses on _____ rather than _____." "Using this approach, [proof: thousands of people / specific number] are [specific result]."
HOW (The Product/CTA) — Reveal just enough to make the click inevitable.
"Click below to discover how [mechanism] works for [their specific situation]."
The hook is the single biggest lever in ad performance. Test more hooks than anything else.
| Type | Example | When to Use |
|---|---|---|
| Curiosity | "There's a reason your doctor won't tell you about this..." | Cold traffic, unaware |
| Contrarian | "Everything you've been told about _____ is wrong." | Problem-aware, skeptical |
| Social proof | "Over 47,000 women have tried this 30-second trick..." | Solution-aware+ |
| Story | "Last March I was 40lbs overweight and my doctor said..." | Cold, emotional markets |
| Demographic callout | "Attention men over 50 who..." | Cold, specific targeting |
| Result | "I lost 23 lbs in 8 weeks without giving up pizza." | Warm/retargeting |
| Pattern interrupt | "Stop scrolling. This actually matters." | Cold, saturated markets |
| Fascinating fact | "Your liver processes 500+ chemicals before breakfast." | Unaware, education-first |
Open Loops — Create an information gap that can only be closed by clicking. Tease without resolving.
"I tested 47 headlines. One pattern beat everything else by 3x." (Which pattern?) "The formula has three parts. The first is obvious. The third is counterintuitive. But the second? That's where the magic happens." (What's the second?)
Tangible Curiosity — Make curiosity concrete and specific, not vague.
Weak: "Discover the secret to weight loss" Strong: "Discover the 7-second morning trick that targets the fat cells your body forgot about"
Bucket Brigades — Transition phrases that maintain momentum and pull forward:
Use 2-3 per ad. Every paragraph ending with a bridge gets tiresome.
These techniques make any ad more compelling:
Tell them what it's NOT:
"It's not a diet... not a supplement... not exercise... not willpower..." "It's not what your doctor told you. It's not what the internet says."
Tell them where it's NOT:
"You can't find it in any store, any pharmacy, any website..." "It's not available in any health food store — and for good reason."
Drop specific hints:
"It's 150 million years old" "It's smaller than a nickel" "Harvard announced it only last week" "It grows only above 12,000 feet in the Andes"
Authority anchors:
"Experts call it..." "A study from [institution] proved..." "Researchers found..." "Over 100 medical reports now show..." "3 out of 4 scientists now say..."
The mechanism is what makes your solution different from everything else they've tried. The strongest mechanisms are:
Every claim needs support. In short-form ads, proof must be compressed:
When selling the solution through education, use this structure to help the prospect understand the problem — so they assume you have the solution:
The prospect thinks: "They clearly understand the problem. They must have the solution." Then your CTA becomes: "Here's what to do about it."
For every feature, ask "so what?" until you hit something emotional or financial:
Feature: Fast database "So what?" → Queries load in milliseconds "So what?" → Users don't bounce, revenue doesn't leak "So what?" → You stop waking up stressed about churn
The bottom of the chain is where the ad copy lives. Not "saves 4 hours" but "close your laptop at 5pm instead of 9pm."
Three levels deep. Then write from there.
The goal: look and sound like a real person filmed this on their phone. NOT a scripted ad.
Structure:
[HOOK — 0-3s] Pattern interrupt, curiosity question, or bold claim
[VISUAL: talking to camera, casual setting]
[PROBLEM — 3-10s] Name the pain specifically, make them nod
[VISUAL: frustrated expression, relatable scenario]
[MECHANISM — 10-25s] Tease the discovery/solution, explain just enough
[VISUAL: showing product casually, or demonstrating]
[RESULT — 25-40s] Specific transformation, before/after
[VISUAL: showing results, genuine excitement]
[CTA — 40-60s] Natural close, not salesy
[VISUAL: direct to camera, genuine recommendation]Voice rules:
[VISUAL DIRECTION] notes for what should be on screenIn-feed VSLs designed for cold traffic. They never stop hooking.
Structure:
[RAPID-FIRE HOOKS — 0-30s]
3-5 different hooks back-to-back, each one an open loop
Different speakers/angles, fast cuts
DO NOT close any loops yet
[EDUCATIONAL/MECHANISM — 30s-3min]
Teaching section: explain WHY the problem exists
Use the teaching pattern above
Tease the mechanism throughout — constant "but here's the thing..."
Pattern interrupts every 30-45 seconds
[PROOF MONTAGE — 3min-5min]
Testimonial clips with specific results
Before/after visuals
Authority mentions (studies, experts, publications)
[CTA — final 30-60s]
Simple, direct, low-friction
"Click the link below" or "Tap learn more"Critical rules:
Personal narrative arc. Most effective for emotional markets.
Structure:
[HOOK — 0-5s] Start in the middle of the struggle
"Six months ago, I couldn't even look at myself in the mirror."
[STRUGGLE — 5-20s] Failed attempts, relatable frustration
"I tried everything — diets, trainers, supplements. Nothing worked."
[DISCOVERY — 20-40s] The turning point, how they found the solution
"Then my sister sent me this weird article about..."
[TRANSFORMATION — 40-60s] Specific results with numbers and timelines
"In 8 weeks, I dropped 23 lbs. My husband noticed in the first 2 weeks."
[CTA — 60-90s] Natural recommendation, not a pitch
"I just wanted to share what actually worked for me. Link's below."Since many Meta ads send traffic to advertorials, understand the four advertorial types your ad might connect to:
Match your ad to the advertorial: If the advertorial is story-based, your ad hook should tease the story. If it's a listicle, your ad can tease the #1 finding. The ad and advertorial should feel like one continuous experience.
Every ad request should produce 3-5 variations for testing. Label each with its angle:
## Variation 1: Curiosity Hook
[Primary Text]
[Headline]
[Description]
## Variation 2: Contrarian Hook
[Primary Text]
[Headline]
[Description]
## Variation 3: Social Proof Hook
...When an ad gets shared organically, your reach multiplies for free. Six principles drive sharing:
From Clayton Makepeace: feel your way through ad copy, don't think your way through it. Every sales message is a chain, link by link, to the click. The chain breaks when: the tingle drops (reader gets bored), something feels unbelievable, or clarity is lost.
Read your ad aloud. When the tingle dips at any passage, that's where you rewrite.
Amazing, Astonishing, Breakthrough, Discover, Easy, Effortless, First Time Ever, Free, Guaranteed, How To, Hurry, Immediate, Instant, Introducing, Last Chance, Limited, Miracle, New, Now, Proven, Quick, Revolutionary, Secret, Shocking, Simple, Special, Surprising, Truth, Unique, Win, YOU
AI tells: delve, dive into, comprehensive, robust, cutting-edge, utilize, leverage, crucial, vital, essential, unlock, unleash, supercharge, game-changer, revolutionary (when used generically), landscape, navigate, streamline
Ad cliches: "click the link in my bio," "you won't believe," "game-changer," "take your X to the next level," "in today's fast-paced world," "are you ready to"
Wimpy hedging (Makepeace): can, could, should, might, may, ought to — tell them what it WILL do
Structural tells: Every sentence the same length. Every bullet starting the same way. Perfect grammar that sounds written, not spoken. Overly organized with too many headings.
Before delivering a UGC script, ask: would a real person actually say this out loud, on camera, to their phone? If it sounds like a copywriter wrote it, rewrite it. UGC scripts should feel slightly imperfect — that's what makes them believable.
Aim for Flesch-Kincaid Grade 6 or lower. Short sentences. Simple words. If a 12-year-old wouldn't understand it, simplify.
Before delivering ad copy, verify:
If any answer is no, rewrite that part.
These foundational principles inform all good ad copy:
Eugene Schwartz — Match your headline and approach to the reader's awareness level. The less aware they are, the more indirect and longer your copy must be. At higher awareness, lead with the deal.
Claude Hopkins — Advertising is salesmanship in print. The only purpose is to make sales. Reason-why copy: don't just claim, explain WHY. Specificity creates believability. Test everything.
David Ogilvy — 5x as many people read the headline as read the body copy. Write the way you talk. Tell the truth, but make the truth fascinating. Give facts — readers remember facts, not adjectives.
Gary Halbert — Find a starving crowd first — the offer matters more than the copy. Write to one person. Tell stories, not pitches. Read your copy aloud.
John Caples — One headline can outpull another by 19.5x. Same product, same offer, different headline. Self-interest beats cleverness. Specifics beat generalities.
Joseph Sugarman — Every element has one job: get them to read the next element (the slippery slide). Seeds of curiosity: end paragraphs with hooks that pull forward. Honesty, Proof, Specificity, Familiarity, and Story are the biggest psychological triggers.
Robert Collier — Enter the conversation already taking place in the customer's mind. Six essentials: grab attention, describe, argue why they should buy, persuade NOW, risk-free offer, clear CTA.
Clayton Makepeace — The Tingle Factor: feel your way through copy. If the tingle drops, rewrite. Ban wimpy hedging words. Use the 75 Power Words. Address prospects directly with "YOU." Prove every point.
The greats all agree: know your audience before writing a word. Lead with their self-interest. Be specific, never vague. Tell stories. The headline does most of the work. Write like you talk. Honesty and proof beat hype.
~30 seconds. Free. No account. Every finding cites a rule and a line of evidence.