3 Creative Testing Best Practices for 2025

As digital advertising moves more and more toward algo-based bidding and targeting, creative testing remains one of the most effective ways to improve campaign performance. 

With rising competition and shifting platform algorithms, continuous creative experimentation is a smart play for brands to more effectively engage their audiences, test different messages to find what works with their ICP, and maximize conversions.

In 2025, creative testing will be even more data-driven, focusing on structured iteration and performance insights. This post will walk you through JDM’s best practices for creative testing, from setting up a structured framework to optimizing winning creatives.

Creative Testing Process

A well-defined testing strategy helps marketers make data-backed decisions about their ad creatives. The process begins with concept testing, where multiple variations are tested to determine the most effective creative.

1. Testing Multiple Variations for Each Concept

When you’re testing new creative concepts (which, by the way, is a must – don’t just stick to little iterations that won’t shed insights on different messaging angles), we recommend you test at least two variations per concept. This allows you to identify which version performs best while ensuring statistical significance in results.

Some effective variation ideas to test:

• Icons & Graphics vs. People – Determine whether audience engagement increases with human-focused imagery or iconography.
• Light vs. Dark Backgrounds – Assess which color scheme improves visibility and performance.
• Sound vs No Sound - Understand if incorporating sound or voice over leads to more engagement or if the visuals and text is enough to capture attention.
• Text/CTA Variations – Experiment with different call-to-action (CTA) messaging to see what drives higher conversions.

Additionally, all new ads should be tested against the same top-performing ad copy to keep proven messaging as part of the rotation and isolate creative performance variables.

2. Iteration Methods

Once a winning creative emerges, iteration is key to continuous optimization. There are two effective ways to iterate on winning ads:

Method 1: Isolate and Test Top-Performing Elements

• Identify the strongest aspects of the winning ad and test them separately (e.g., try different background colors while keeping the layout the same or test different text call out variations with the same visuals).

Method 2: Combine Top-Performing Features

• Identify elements that have performed well across multiple creatives and combine them into a single ad (e.g., taking the best-performing hook, color scheme, visuals, and CTA from separate tests).
  
  

3. Funnel Considerations for Creative Testing

Not all funnel stages require the same level of creative testing. Tailoring your testing approach based on the funnel stage can improve efficiency and impact.

Top-of-Funnel (TOF) – Broad awareness campaigns require fewer tests. Long-form creatives (text-heavy ads, story-telling carousels, extended video formats) can be more effective at this stage as audiences need more context.

Middle-of-Funnel (MOF) & Bottom-of-Funnel (BOF) – More frequent testing is needed as these stages focus on conversions. Creative should be more direct, more concise, and optimized for quick decision-making.

A strong creative testing strategy in 2025 will rely on structured experimentation, data-driven iteration, and audience-specific adjustments. By testing variations, iterating on performance insights, and aligning creatives with the funnel stage, brands can create high-impact ad campaigns that drive meaningful engagement and conversions.

Ready to refine your creative strategy? Start testing today and unlock what resonates most with your audience!