Skip to content
Academy
Marketing Academy · Field Work●Copywriting
All projects·From: Ad Copy (Search, Social, Display)
MiniBuild the Asset· 25 minutes

The Variant Sprint: Draft Channel-Specific Ad Copy for One Offer

Wise (formerly TransferWise)

Objective: Write 3 channel-specific ad copy drafts (search, social, display) for the same Wise product launch, applying the lesson's channel-mindset rules and CTA-first drafting order.

You're a growth marketing contractor for Wise, launching a new multi-currency account feature aimed at freelancers who invoice international clients.

Draft one search ad, one social ad, and one display headline for the same offer. Write the CTA first for each, then work backwards through the body copy and headline, and write each one from scratch instead of reusing lines across channels.

Before you start

What you'll need

Free path (everything below is enough to finish)

Google Docs
FreeDraft and organize the three channel-specific copy variants

Free, easy to structure into labeled sections per channel

The process

2 steps

Step 01 of 02

Step 2: Write to the Mindset

Search users typed a specific query and are in buying or research mode; social users were scrolling and your ad arrived uninvited. Search copy should mirror the query and lead with a differentiator; social copy should lead with the audience's problem or outcome, not the product category.

The offer is: 'Multi-currency account for freelancers, no monthly fee, real exchange rate.' What search headline mirrors a likely query, what goes in H2 as the differentiator, and what social hook leads with the outcome instead of the feature list?

Google Docs— Draft in a shared doc with three labeled sections: Search, Social, Display.

Procedure

  1. Write a likely search query a freelancer would type (e.g. 'multi currency account for freelancers') and turn it into H1
  2. Pick the single strongest differentiator (no monthly fee, or real exchange rate) for H2, not both
  3. Write H3 as either a CTA or the brand name, per the lesson's rule
  4. For the social version, write the first line as the freelancer's problem or outcome, not a feature list of the account
Sample output
SEARCH
H1: Multi-Currency Account for Freelancers
H2: No Monthly Fee, Real Exchange Rate
H3: Open a Wise Account
Desc: Invoice clients abroad and get paid in their currency. No monthly fee, no markup on the mid-market rate.

SOCIAL
Hook: "Tired of losing 3-5% to bad exchange rates on every client payment?"

Healthy

The search H1 mirrors an actual query, H2 carries one differentiator, and the social hook names the freelancer's specific financial pain before mentioning the product.

Unhealthy

H1 is a brand slogan with no query relevance, H2 crams in two differentiators, and the social hook opens with 'Wise offers multi-currency accounts...' (a feature list).

What this means

Search copy earns clicks by matching intent already in the searcher's head; social copy earns attention by naming a pain the scroller didn't expect to see addressed.

So what do I do about it?

SymptomActionEffort
Search H1 reads like a slogan instead of a query matchRewrite H1 using the exact phrasing a freelancer would type into Google5 min
YouYou can do this yourself, no engineering access required.

Step 02 of 02

Common Mistakes

Most copywriters write the CTA last, as an afterthought. The lesson's fix is to write the CTA first, then build every word before it to make that CTA feel like the obvious next step. Display copy gets one benefit and an active opening verb.

For the same Wise offer, what CTA should anchor the social ad, and what single-benefit, active-verb display headline would you write backwards from it?

Google Docs— Continue in the same shared doc, Display section.

Procedure

  1. Write the CTA for the social ad first (e.g. 'Open a Free Account'), before finalizing the hook above it
  2. Confirm the hook line leads naturally into that CTA, revise the hook if it doesn't
  3. Write the display headline starting with an active verb and exactly one benefit
  4. Check the display headline makes sense with zero supporting description text, per the lesson's rule
Sample output
SOCIAL CTA: "Open a Free Account"

DISPLAY
Headline: "Cut Your Transfer Fees"

Healthy

The CTA was chosen before the surrounding copy was finalized, and the display headline stands alone with one clear benefit and an active verb.

Unhealthy

The CTA is a generic 'Learn More' bolted on after the copy was already written, and the display headline lists multiple benefits or opens with a noun instead of a verb.

What this means

Writing the CTA first forces every other line to justify its place; writing it last produces a CTA that doesn't match what came before it.

So what do I do about it?

SymptomActionEffort
The CTA feels disconnected from the hook above itRewrite the CTA first, then adjust the hook to lead into it5 min
YouYou can do this yourself, no engineering access required.

Final deliverable

Three channel-specific ad copy drafts (a search RSA with 3 headlines and a description, a social hook plus CTA, and a display headline) for the same Wise offer, each written CTA-first.

See a reference example
Sample output
Grab ride-hailing launch, channel drafts (excerpt)

SEARCH
H1: Book a Ride in Minutes
H2: Rides From ₹49, No Surge
H3: Download the App

SOCIAL
Hook: "Still waiting 15 minutes for a cab that never shows?"
CTA: "Book Your First Ride"

DISPLAY
Headline: "Skip the Wait"

Success criteria

You're done when you can:

  • Search, social, and display copy are each written from scratch, not adapted from one another
  • The social CTA was drafted before the hook was finalized, and the hook leads naturally into it
  • The display headline carries exactly one benefit and opens with an active verb
  • The search H1 plausibly mirrors a real query a freelancer would type