How to write ads that travel

The easiest ads to localise were written with other markets in mind. You don't need to plan every version, just avoid the things that don't travel.

Do

• Put the hook in the first line of speech, not only in on-screen text.
• State one clear number: a price, a saving or a time.
• Keep sentences short. They survive translation and fit on screen as captions.
• Leave a beat of silence at the end of lines. Some languages need more time.

Avoid

• Puns and wordplay that only work in one language.
• References to local holidays, sports or TV unless the ad is only for that market.
• Burned-in text you can't replace. Keep a clean version of the edit.

Write the original this way and the localised versions will need fewer changes, keep more of the hook, and come back faster.