PAID MEDIA + CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE / ASHLEY KAYS / OCTOBER 13, 2026

From buyer intent
to the next customer.

A campaign becomes easier to understand—and easier to improve—when the audience, the promise, the ad and the next step all belong to the same story.

My campaign work connects research and creative execution. That means getting specific about the person making a decision, the problem they need to solve and what the business needs them to do next. Only then do I decide what the search ad, social creative or landing page should say.

Start with the decision, not the format.

A parent comparing coding classes is making a different decision from a founder exploring an AI partner or a home cook choosing a stainless pan. A demographic profile gives useful context. Buyer intent tells me what the message needs to accomplish now.

For CodeTeachers, the story moves from playing games to creating something a child can feel proud of. For Flatiron School, it moves from considering a career change to understanding a concrete learning path. The creative should make those next steps feel clear and credible.

Give every part of the campaign a job.

Search ads answer an existing question. Social creative introduces a relevant possibility or names a familiar problem. The landing page carries the promise forward, answers the important objections and makes the next action obvious.

In the collection, Allbirds introduces an everyday walking moment, Made In connects a weeknight meal to the pan behind it, and Nested Bean focuses on the Premier Unweighted Bodysuit in everyday family life. The product and the emotional story support the same decision.

Make the benefit concrete.

“Make the next step easier” can sound attractive while leaving a buyer wondering what they will receive. A clearer Agency message starts with the problem: website visits and leads are coming in, but too few become sales. It then names the work: review the customer journey, make one agreed improvement and establish a measurement plan.

The point is to make the offer understandable at a glance. What is happening? Who is this for? What changes? What should I do next?

Write search assets around intent.

I group keywords by offer and decision stage, separate brand from nonbrand demand, and write responsive search assets that can stand on their own. Each RSA in the collection includes 15 headlines and four descriptions, with the character limits checked.

Negative keywords are part of that thinking. A blanket exclusion can remove a useful customer along with unwanted traffic. “Free” matters to Waymaker’s free Builder DNA assessment. An Agency campaign selling a paid diagnostic may need a different treatment for free-tool searches. Scope and query context come first.

Tell the truth about the numbers.

A media plan needs visible assumptions. Budget, cost per click, conversion rate and order value connect the spend to a possible business outcome. The campaign pages include adjustable 30-day scenarios so the relationships are easy to inspect.

Campaign forecasts and recorded business results serve different purposes. For lead generation, a form submission is a step toward revenue; it is not revenue itself. For commerce, returns, margin and new-versus-existing customers change how useful a reported ROAS actually is.

Test the part that changes the decision.

I start with a specific hypothesis: a clearer offer, a more relevant hook, a stronger answer to an objection, or a simpler landing-page action. Keep the comparison focused, check tracking, allow for the buying cycle and judge the outcome that matters to the business.

A high click-through rate cannot compensate for low-quality leads or a broken checkout. The opportunity may be in the ad, the destination, the follow-up or the offer. Looking at the full journey helps identify which one deserves the next change.

Explore the work.

The collection includes Flatiron School, CodeTeachers, Waymaker, Waymaker Agency, Allbirds, Nested Bean and Made In. Each campaign brings together audience strategy, buyer intent, keyword and negative planning, RSA text, image creative and a measurement approach.

Have the traffic, but need a clearer path to customers?

I work across paid media, creative strategy and customer experience. Let’s look at the decision your audience is trying to make and the next improvement your business needs.