How To Make High-Performing UGC Ads (That Don’t Get You Sued)

Welcome back to Funnel Vision, the weekly newsletter that puts performance creative & growth marketing in focus. Brought to you by the crew at Ready Set.

On this day in 1984, Apple unveiled the Macintosh personal computer with the famous Super Bowl ad directed by Ridley Scott. 41 years later it’s still considered an advertising masterwork.

In this issue:

• Making UGC ads that are creative, compelling, and compliant
• The news you need to know social sphere
• Actionable lessons from the ad of the week

Reading time: 6 minutes

How To Make High-Performing UGC Ads (That Don’t Get You Sued)

If you’ve ever wondered, “Should I really run this ad?”?join the line.

Staying compliant with a plethora of advertising rules is something every performance marketer struggles with. It can feel like sprinting through a minefield, blindfolded—especially in red tape-heavy industries like healthcare, finance, and legal.

As a result, most brands favor playing it safe over big creative swings.

But there’s risk in that approach, too—the risk of stale, forgettable campaigns and stagnant growth.?

But what if you could have your cake and eat it too? We say you can.

This is a guide to creating engaging, entertaining, and, most importantly, high-performing UGC ads that won’t land you in legal hot water.

?? Important: We are not lawyers and this is not legal advice.?

The rules of the road

Imagine cruising down Advertiser’s Highway 101. Brands are the cars speeding along to their destinations.

• National government agencies, like the FTC, are highway patrol—issuing tickets for major violations.
• Independent bodies like the National Advertising Division (NAD) are the community traffic board—stepping in to review complaints and settle disputes.
• Ad platforms, like Meta, are the roads and tolls—often with their own set of rules.

While there are many nuanced regulations for how brands advertise, there’s one overarching guiding principle:

“Claims in advertisements must be truthful, cannot be deceptive or unfair, and must be evidence-based.” That’s from the FTC, but it’s representative of the general sentiment worldwide.

If you make a claim in your ad, you need to back it up. There are several infamous examples of big brands getting fined to the tune of millions of dollars for failing to do so.

(The FTC actually has a neat blog sharing lessons for advertisers from cases, categorized by industry.)

Lastly, if brands get busted for ad violations, everyone involved in producing the ad is accountable—brands, agencies, creators, influencers.

This isn’t to scare you

You know we’d never! It’s to inform you. Now, with the rules of the road established, let’s explore how you can get in the fast lane with your creative.?

Why UGC matters

User-generated content (UGC) brings several key advantages to a performance marketing strategy.

1. UGC is authentic and engaging. It builds trust among consumers who are increasingly demanding real and authentic content.

1. First-person testimonials based on real experiences are framed as personal narratives rather than blanket claims, and less likely to be interpreted as factual claims needing proof.

1. UGC is often cost-effective and can be scaled quickly. It leverages real customers’ enthusiasm instead of relying on high-budget productions to create compelling content.

5 tips for making UGC ads that crush (& keeps you out of the hot seat)

Humble brag incoming: This is our bread and butter at Ready Set—we know a thing or two about making ads that a) perform and b) don’t trip any red flags.

These are our best tips from our top creative strategists for doing just that.

1. Substantiate every claim

If you say it, back it up.

MillerCoors, the beverage company that produces Coors Light, learned this the hard way. When they released an ad claiming Coors Light was “the world’s most refreshing can”, chief rival Anheuser-Busch said, prove it.

The case made it all the way through the NAD to the FTC (less than 3% of cases did at the time). MillerCoors claimed puffery—a claim not intended to be taken literally—but ultimately pulled the slogan.

The lesson? Avoid making unprovable or unsubstantiated claims like “the best,” “the fastest,” or “the cheapest” unless you have evidence to back up that you are indeed the best, fastest, or cheapest.

2. Use real experiences

Using a real customer’s testimonial as the basis for an ad offers an interesting workaround. Testimonials are first-person experiences. They are opinions, not claims that need to be backed up.

It’s important to note that testimonials must reflect the honest option of actual customers—and yes, endorsers must have actually used the product or service.

Also, expert endorsements (for instance a mechanic reviewing a brand of motor oil) are treated differently than consumer endorsements. They carry more weight because consumers often perceive experts as credible and unbiased.?

If you can’t get the actual customer, consider using an actor reading what the customer said. To do this right, you’ll need to…

3. Nail your disclosures

Disclosures and disclaimers must be

• Clear and conspicuous, and
• Consistent with the ad format and medium

Remember those radio ads when someone would zoom through the disclosures so fast you could barely understand a word? Yeah, you can’t do that anymore.

This ad from skincare brand NURX is a good example of clear and conspicuous disclosures:

Ads must also depict experiences representative of what consumers will generally achieve, and disclose when the results featured are atypical.

?? Important: You can’t disclaim away compliance.

4. Work smarter with legal teams

While lawyers and compliance teams may seem like antagonists to your creative brilliance, they’re really just trying to protect the company from legal harm.?

Treating them as partners, rather than nemeses, saves everyone a huge headache. Here’s how:

• Involve compliance from the start – Don’t leave it to the day you deliver a concept to loop in legal. Tap them early to understand the red flags so there are no last-minute surprises.

• Set realistic timelines – Factor in the additional time required for legal review. Accept that claims may need vetting, so account for it in your initial scope.

• Create clear briefs – The brief is your single source of truth. Record approved claims, required disclaimers, and updated language here, as well as examples of do’s and don’ts.

• Check-in regularly – Use recurring touch points to touch base with relevant stakeholders; brainstorm ideas, clarify guidelines, and address red flags before concepts go into production.

These steps may seem tedious, but they’re far less tedious than needing to reshoot a concept after it gets rejected.

5. Document compliance efforts

Maintain a clear, documented process for managing compliance. That includes vetting influencers and creators, substantiating claims, managing disclosures, etc.

You likely won’t need this document often. But if you do—i.e. When the NAD or FTC comes knocking—it’s invaluable as it shows you were trying to comply in good faith.

Chose the right partners

Compliance is a team sport.

When an ad runs afoul of advertising rules, everyone responsible for creating and distributing that ad is accountable.

That’s why it’s so important to work with the right partners. Especially if you operate within an industry with more red tape than others. Seek out partners with robust processes for ensuring your performance creative plays by the rules.

That’s what we do at Ready Set

Our speciality is producing high-performing creative concepts for brands with compliance complexity. Wanna chat about how we can do it for you, too?

Chat with a strategist →

CLICKABLE LINKS ???

???? The Prime Minister of Spain wants to “make social media great again” by ending user anonymity, making algorithms more transparent, and forcing platforms to take a nap after lunch.

?? Substack launched a $20M creator accelerator fund—reportedly to entice adrift TikTokers should the app go dark for good—over to their newsletter platform.

?? The NFL has thrown a flag on Bluesky, banning its teams from using the social media platform.

AD OF THE WEEK ?

Let’s break down this top-performing concept from Hers to extract actionable insights you can use to power your creative.

Brand: Hers Length: 22 seconds Platform: TikTok, Meta Thumbstop: 31%

WHY IT WORKS ??

?? It leverages the viral “if you asked me on a deeper level” trend to tell an emotional story in a succinct way. In just 22 seconds, this ad showcased that treating hair loss isn’t just about getting thicker, fuller hair—it’s about getting your confidence back.

?? The ad was launched at the peak of the trend. This highlights the importance of swift, decisive action to capitalize on trends that align with your brand and audience.

?? There are two factors driving this ad: the copy and the actor. The actor has featured in many top-performing ads for this client, largely because she possesses the characteristic the audience aspires to—thick, beautiful hair. The copy is emotionally-charged and vulnerable, using the trend as a storytelling vehicle.

That’s it, that’s all

Thanks for reading! Seeya next week ??

Dan Moran, Content Marketing Manager, Ready Set

Psst... wanna earn $1k?

Know someone looking for efficiency, flexibility, and scale with performance creative and media buying? Refer brands in your network and earn $1,000.

Check out the Ready Set referral program here.