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Creative

What type of images and creative works best in financial advice ads?

Last reviewed 22 April 2026 · Reviewed by Jake McQuillan

Quick answer

What type of images and creative works best in financial advice ads?

Real people in their 50s to 70s, aspirational-but-realistic UK settings (home, garden, local high street), and hand-held / authentic shots beat stock photography by 40 to 70%. Text-heavy infographics underperform almost always.

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What works

  • Real photos of real clients (where allowed) or a consistent paid model.
  • Natural UK settings (coastal, suburban, home interior).
  • Faces over objects — humans out-convert buildings or coins.
  • Hand-held mobile-style video clips.
  • Specific moments (signing papers, handshake, garden meeting).

What does not work

  • Stock photography of "couple with laptop".
  • American-style images (identifiable US features).
  • Cluttered text-on-image infographics (mobile-unfriendly).
  • AI-generated people with uncanny features.

Video specifics

  • Hook in first 2 seconds.
  • Captions always (85% of Meta viewers watch muted).
  • 15 to 30 seconds for prospecting, 45 to 90 seconds for retargeting.
  • Vertical (9:16) for Stories/Reels, square (1:1) for feed.

Creative rotation

Refresh 20 to 40% of creative monthly to prevent fatigue.

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JM
Reviewed by
Jake McQuillan
Founder at Platinum Prospects
Last reviewed 22 April 2026

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