The essentials
- The principle: you sign off compliance with the brief, the brand and the law, and the presence of variants to test; you do not sign off “what you like”. The audience decides through the data.
- Twelve points: message, audience, promise, proof, call to action, visual, mobile legibility, formats, brand consistency, legal compliance, landing page, variants.
- What to demand: 3 to 5 variants per campaign (hook, visual, angle), not a single “perfect” creative.
- Turnaround: 48 hours to sign off, a single round of grouped corrections.
A provider delivers visuals and copy for a Meta, LinkedIn or TikTok campaign; the owner or the marketing manager has to sign off within a few days, often without any creative background. The trap is judging on taste (“I don’t like the blue”) or accepting everything. This twelve-point grid lets you sign off what falls under your responsibility and leave the data to decide the rest. The campaign framework is set out in the SMA brief.
What you sign off, what you do not
- You sign off: compliance with the brief (audience, objective, offer), consistency with the brand (voice, guidelines), the accuracy of the information (prices, terms, figures), legal compliance, the presence of variants and the landing page.
- You do not sign off: which hook will work best, which colour attracts, which visual converts. Nobody knows before the test; that is why several variants are needed.
The twelve-point grid
| # | Point | Question to ask | Reject if |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Message | In one sentence, what does this ad say? Does it match the objective in the brief? | Impossible to summarise, or message different from the objective |
| 2 | Audience | Does the person targeted recognise themselves (situation, vocabulary, visual)? | Visual or tone off target |
| 3 | Promise | Is the benefit clear, concrete, credible? | Vague promise (“quality”, “expertise”) or one you cannot keep |
| 4 | Proof | Does a figure, a testimonial, a guarantee or a past project support the promise? | No proof |
| 5 | A call to action | Is it clear what to do next and what happens after the click? | Missing or inconsistent with the page |
| 6 | Visual | Is it understandable in one second without the copy? Does it show the product, the result or a real person? | Generic stock image, decorative visual with no connection |
| 7 | Mobile legibility | Text on the image legible on a 6-inch screen, safe zones respected (Stories, Reels)? | Text cut off or illegible |
| 8 | Formats | All the versions delivered (1:1, 4:5, 9:16, video with and without sound, subtitles)? | A single format |
| 9 | Brand consistency | Logo, colours, typography, tone in line with the guidelines? | Unjustified departure |
| 10 | Legal compliance | Mandatory notices (prices including tax, terms, “offer subject to conditions”), image and music rights, platform rules, regulated sector (health, finance, alcohol, property)? | Any missing notice or right not cleared |
| 11 | Landing page | Does the page keep the promise, with the same message and the same visual, and does it load fast? | Generic home page, inconsistency |
| 12 | Variants | 3 to 5 variants with a clear difference (hook, visual, angle) for the test? | A single creative, or cosmetic variants |
Points 1 to 5 concern substance and are checked by reading the creative out loud. Points 6 to 9 are checked on a phone, not on a computer screen. Point 10 engages your responsibility, not the provider’s. Creative practices by network are covered in the visual creation tools and ad formats by platform.
Demand variants rather than a perfect creative
Ad platforms automatically test several creatives and serve the ones that perform. A Meta campaign with a single creative runs out of steam in two to three weeks; with five variants, it lasts longer and reveals what works. Ask for at least: two different hooks (benefit versus problem), two different visuals (product versus person, photo versus video), one alternative angle (figures versus testimonial). Variants that only change a colour test nothing. Results are read through cost per result and click-through rate after 7 to 14 days; see the SMA KPIs.
Organising the sign-off
- A single approver (two at most), named in the contract; sign-off by a committee of five produces bland creative.
- A fixed turnaround: 48 working hours after receipt.
- A single round of corrections, grouped in writing, separating rejections (non-compliant) from suggestions (to be tested as a variant rather than imposed).
- Sign-off on a phone, in the platform preview supplied by the provider.
- A record: the approved creatives, the date and the version, for legal responsibility and later analysis.
After the campaign goes live
Sign-off does not stop at launch. At 7 days, the provider must present the winning and losing variants with the figures; the losers are stopped, the winners inspire the next wave. Your personal preferences are often contradicted by the data: that is normal, and it is the reason for variants. The signs of a badly managed campaign, creative included, are listed in the signs of a badly managed SMA campaign.
How GreenRed helps
Rather than juggling several tools, GreenRed's social media tracking brings these metrics together in a single dashboard, compares them over time and tells you which actions come first. You can try it free, with no card, from the Pricing.
Frequently asked questions
How many creatives should you ask for in a campaign?
Three to five variants per ad set, with clear differences in hook, visual or angle, and every format version (square, portrait, vertical, subtitled video). A single creative runs out of steam in two to three weeks and teaches you nothing.
Who is responsible for the legal notices in an ad?
The advertiser, in other words you, even if the provider produced the creative. Prices including tax, offer terms, sector notices (health, finance, property, alcohol), image and music rights: check them at every sign-off and keep the approved versions.
Should creative be signed off on a computer or on a phone?
On a phone, in the platform preview: more than 90% of impressions on Meta and TikTok are mobile. Copy that is legible on a computer screen can be illegible or cut off on mobile, especially in Stories and Reels where safe zones apply.
What if I do not like the creative but the provider defends it?
Check the twelve points: if it complies with the brief, the brand and the law, ask for it to be tested as a variant against the one you prefer. The data at 7 or 14 days decides. Reject only creatives that are non-compliant, not those that do not match your taste.