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Getting started

Creating ads

Create and edit image ads, social videos, and TV spots. Learn which campaign ads are included and when published creation prices apply.

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Ad Library and campaign ads

In campaign setup you see a small preview set first (a few images and a short video for your primary buyer profile), give feedback if you want, and continue without waiting for everything to finish. Launch starts on image ads; the rest of the set, including TV spots, builds in the background. If your account reviews new ads first, you approve them before they run; otherwise they go live automatically. A finished TV spot does not mean it is serving on streaming TV; delivery still follows your budget and inventory rules. You can also choose Create everything now to generate the full set up front for a quoted price. Extra generation in the business Ad Library (variations, new batches) is metered from your wallet. Chat edits are included, including image and video changes.

Upload your ads

To use finished creatives you already have, open the campaign Ads step. You can choose Upload your ads instead of the preview pack. Drop in video (up to 250MB) or image files; we check each one against the formats each channel needs. Matches serve as you uploaded them. Missing formats can be filled from your upload (quoted before anything is charged). Filling starts generation; those ads are not finished on the click, and launch waits until picture and video formats are ready. Google Search ads are headlines and descriptions drafted on this step; they are not picture ads and do not fill mobile, TV, or follow. Uploads that already fit are free to attach. After launch, Freeze creatives keeps Autopilot from creating or replacing ads while budget and buyer profile (persona) targeting still run. You can unfreeze anytime if performance softens.

Viewer check

After an ad renders, Adwave runs a Viewer check: it reviews the creative as that buyer profile, using their Mindset (how they think and what they care about). You see a simple score and a first-person reaction on the ad; open the check for a score breakdown and suggested fixes when something needs a tweak. When an ad falls short, the platform can clean it up automatically subject to fair-use limits (you'll see "Applying suggested fixes…" while that runs). Quality checks can also escalate leftovers as Review this ad.

On the ad preview, use Fix all issues to apply every remaining quality finding and Viewer suggestion in place (no editor hop). Use Fix this for one Viewer suggestion, or Edit with AI for a freeform change. Chat edits, including image and video changes, are included.

Image ads

Static ads are generated from your business profile and each buyer profile, then quality-checked automatically before they reach your gallery. Adwave creates the aspect ratios each platform needs, such as square and portrait for Meta feeds and reels and landscape for display. Mobile, TV, and follow placements use assets prepared for each format.

Video ads

Two video formats are generated per buyer profile:

  • TV spot: a broadcast-ready H.264 commercial that runs on streaming TV inventory.
  • Vertical short-form: a 9:16 social video built for feeds and reels.

Directing the creative

Every generation run can be steered, or left on autopilot. The "Generate ads" dialog takes:

  • Creative brief: free-text instructions for the ad writer and art director ("Emphasize same-day service. Playful tone. Real people, not stock-photo vibes."). The brief applies to every ad in the run.
  • Story structure, visual style, and angle: pin any of these and every ad in the run uses it. Left on Auto, each run deliberately spreads across different structures, styles, and angles and learns from delivery which ones work for each buyer profile, favoring winners in later runs.

On any ad, generate variations creates related ads that change one thing (a new visual style, a new angle, or a new hook). Use these to test a change to an ad that is already working. Each ad also shows why it looks the way it does: the structure, style, and angle it was built from, plus the Viewer check when one exists.

The chat editor

Every creative has a chat editor. Tell it what to change in plain language. Before launch, the creative updates directly. On a live campaign, unlock Autopilot, give a reason, and a refresh creates a new serving version (the previous one stays under Previously served with the media that ran):

  • "Make the headline about free shipping."
  • "Use a photo with people in it."
  • "Try a more premium, minimal style."

Media history on an ad keeps earlier images and videos so you can restore one for free (no creation charge). Restoring on a live campaign creates a new serving version. Serving history (version numbers on Previously served) is separate from that media timeline. Edits regenerate the affected variants; Autopilot also creates challengers when ads fatigue and pauses underperformers. Choosing Don't serve records a reason and stops live campaigns from serving that ad (allowing it again does not auto-resume). Old ads are never deleted after they have served.

Starter credit and pricing

For businesses, campaign ads are included with the campaign: the preview and the post-launch set do not charge your wallet. Chat edits, including image and video changes, and landing pages are included. New paid generation batches use the published creation prices. If you choose Create everything now, or generate extras in the Ad Library, units are priced up front: image ads $0.38, social video $6, TV spots $6 for 15 seconds or $12 for 30 seconds, paid from your wallet. Direct business signups start with $60 of starter credit in the wallet for media and extra ads. Agency workspaces skip that credit and pay published unit prices for generations, including the first sample. In the app, review the quote before starting a paid batch. Failed paid renders refund their units automatically. API and MCP campaign generation follows the deferred billing process in the API reference.

Catalog Video

For product catalogs, Catalog Video generates per-SKU videos from one approved look (separate from buyer profile Launch packs). It is metered with its own unit prices and fair-use caps.

Fair-use limits

Per-organization daily caps apply in every billing mode:

  • 20 generation runs per day.
  • 100 chat messages per day across assistants and editors.
  • 2000 Catalog Video units per day (with Catalog Video).

Caps reset daily.

Next

Continue to launching a campaign, or create product videos with Catalog Video.