# Launch Campaign > Scaffold a paid acquisition campaign for a Fern landing page under `campaigns//`. Use whenever the user says "create a campaign for X", "launch a campaign on /lp/X", "spin up paid ads for X", or "/launch-campaign". Mirrors the leave-stainless / agent-ready / fern-vs-speakeasy structure with brief, LinkedIn + Google copy, creative briefs in the Hiroshi Yoshida house style, results scaffolding, and a prefix entry in `campaigns/README.md`. Stops short of committing. - Skill: `fern-api/launch-campaign` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add fern-api/launch-campaign` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/fern-api/launch-campaign/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Marketing & Growth - Author: fern-api (https://skillmd.com/u/fern-api) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/fern-api/launch-campaign --- # Launch a Fern paid acquisition campaign You are scaffolding a new campaign folder under `campaigns//` that drives traffic to a single landing page. Output: a complete `campaigns//` tree (brief + copy + creative briefs + results scaffolding) plus a prefix entry in `campaigns/README.md`. Reference shape: `campaigns/leave-stainless/` and `campaigns/agent-ready/`. ## Step 0 — Establish the spine If the user hasn't already given you all of this, ask in ONE short message: 1. **Slug** — kebab-case folder name (e.g. `agent-ready`, `leave-stainless`). This is also the `utm_campaign` value. 2. **LP path** — usually `/lp/`. Confirm the page exists at `src/app/lp//page.tsx`. 3. **One-line wedge** — the angle that distinguishes this campaign from the others (e.g. "offense on the invisible-audience problem", "defense against a competitor wind-down", "side-by-side evaluation"). 4. **Anything stable about audience or proof points** they want locked in (named customers, specific quotes, a stat). That's it. Don't pepper them. Derive everything else from the LP page and the AGENTS.md writing style. ## Step 1 — Read the source of truth Before writing any campaign file, read in parallel: - `src/app/lp//page.tsx` — for the actual headline, named features, anchors (every `id=` in the JSX), and CTA destinations. The campaign copy must echo the LP's language, not invent new claims. - `AGENTS.md` — the "Writing style" section. Every line of ad copy obeys it. - `campaigns/README.md` — for the canonical variant-ID scheme and the list of registered prefixes (so the new prefix doesn't collide). - `campaigns/leave-stainless/` and `campaigns/agent-ready/` — structural reference for the new files. Match section ordering and header style exactly so the campaigns stay diff-comparable. - Any blog post the LP cross-links to (e.g. `content/blog/agent-score.mdx`) — for verbatim customer quotes, named stats, and proof points. ## Step 2 — Pick the prefix Uppercase initials of the slug, with a trailing dash. `leave-stainless` → `LS-`. `agent-ready` → `AR-`. `fern-vs-speakeasy` → `FVS-`. If the natural prefix collides with one already registered in `campaigns/README.md`, pick the next-shortest distinguishing letters and confirm with the user. ## Step 3 — Build the tree Create exactly this structure (use the `_template/` directory as the placeholder shape, but fill every field from the LP and the user's wedge — do not copy and paste placeholders forward): ``` campaigns// ├── brief.md ├── copy/ │ ├── linkedin.md │ └── google.md ├── creative/ │ ├── README.md │ ├── -LI-SI-01.md # Lead hook │ ├── -LI-SI-02.md # Tool / product hook │ ├── -LI-SI-03.md # Social-proof / testimonial hook │ ├── -LI-SI-04.md # Data / stat hook │ ├── -LI-CONV-01.md # Conversation ad banner │ ├── -GD-LS-01.md # Google Display landscape │ ├── -GD-SQ-01.md # Google Display square │ └── exports/.gitkeep └── results/ ├── README.md ├── performance.csv # Header row only └── learnings.md ``` Four LinkedIn single-image variants is the proven shape. Don't ship fewer (the campaign needs hook diversity for two-week iterations) and don't ship more (more variants split spend before you have signal). ## Step 4 — Brief (`brief.md`) Sections in order, matching `campaigns/leave-stainless/brief.md`: 1. **Landing page** — URL, full UTM scheme, and a list of every anchor on the LP worth deep-linking (one per `id=` from the JSX). 2. **Audience** — primary, secondary, tertiary. Then LinkedIn targeting (job titles, company filters, group signals, account audiences) and Google targeting (branded terms, category terms, adjacent intent, negative keywords). All keywords lowercase. 3. **Goals** — primary KPI (almost always booked demos via BookDemoForm), secondary KPIs, budget TBD, window TBD. 4. **Value props (priority order)** — 3 to 5, drawn from the LP and the user's wedge. 5. **Proof points to lean on** — customers, stats, quotes, certifications. Pull verbatim from the LP and the cross-linked blog post. 6. **Anti-patterns to avoid** — at minimum: em-dashes anywhere; "AI-powered" without naming the feature; "10x faster" without a source; future hedging; disparaging competitors by name. Add campaign-specific anti-patterns when relevant. ## Step 5 — LinkedIn copy (`copy/linkedin.md`) Four single-image hooks, two text ads, one conversation ad. Limits at the top of the file (Single Image intro ≤600 max but aim ≤200; headline ≤200 but aim ≤70; description ≤100; text-ad headline ≤25; text-ad description ≤75; conversation ad opening ≤400). For every variant include intro, headline, description, full destination URL with UTMs, and a markdown link to the paired creative brief. The four single-image hooks should each play a different beat: - **SI-01 — Lead hook** — the campaign's strongest one-sentence wedge. Urgency or framing. - **SI-02 — Tool / product hook** — the feature or tool that makes the campaign land. Pair with the deepest LP anchor. - **SI-03 — Social-proof hook** — a verbatim customer quote with monochrome customer logo. No background imagery; solid brand-green field. - **SI-04 — Data hook** — one big statistic, one secondary line, one CTA. The number does the work. Print character counts inline (e.g. `Intro (181 chars):`) so they're easy to QA. Verify each one before committing. ## Step 6 — Google copy (`copy/google.md`) Two RSA ad groups (a general one and one keyword-tilted to the strongest deep-link), 15 headlines (≤30) and 4 descriptions (≤90) per RSA, sitelinks, callout extensions (≤25 each), structured snippets, and Google Display short headlines / long headline / descriptions. Format as tables with character counts so the QA pass is fast. ## Step 7 — Creative briefs (`creative/-*.md`) Each brief is three sections, matching `campaigns/leave-stainless/creative/`: 1. **Spec** — platform, slot, dimensions, file path, paired copy variant link, paired UTM. 2. **Technical asset outline** — either a Mermaid diagram or a line-diagram showing the actual layout (boxes for headline, logo strip, CTA chip, customer-logo row). Concrete enough that a designer can rebuild without ambiguity. Then a bullet list calling out colors, type sizes, separators. 3. **Background imagery — Midjourney** — one prompt in the house Hiroshi Yoshida template. Pick a scene that maps to the variant's emotional read. Close the brief with a one-line "Emotional read:" callout. The house Midjourney template: ``` [scene description in Hiroshi Yoshida landscape style], atmospheric [weather], long-exposure smoothing motion, muted earthy colors, tactile analog grain --v 7.0 --p xbmuohp --raw --exp 100 --ar {ratio} ``` Brand asset rules locked across all briefs: - Fern wordmark at `/public/fern-wordmark.svg`, leaf mark at `/public/fern-leaf.svg`. - Customer logos at `/public/customers//-monochrome.svg` against imagery or colored fields. - Brand green `#008700` (light) / `#9CDD8D` (dark). - Wordmark top-left at 64px equivalent on a 1200-wide canvas, 5% margin. - Headline ~56pt on a 1200-wide canvas. - For score readouts or product mocks, render as clean type, not a screenshot of the live product. The live UI changes; the ad shouldn't. Aspect ratios by slot are documented in the campaign's `creative/README.md`. Copy that table verbatim from `campaigns/leave-stainless/creative/README.md`. ## Step 8 — Results (`results/`) Three files: - `README.md` — explain how to log, list data sources (LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Google Ads, GA4), document the CSV schema, and describe the two-week review cadence (sort by cost-per-booking, sort by CTR, update learnings). - `performance.csv` — header row only: `date,platform,campaign,variant_id,impressions,clicks,ctr,spend,landing_page_views,demo_bookings,cost_per_booking,notes`. Add a campaign-specific secondary conversion column (e.g. `agent_score_runs`) if the LP has one. - `learnings.md` — empty "Working" and "Cutting" sections, then a "Test next" list of pre-launch hypotheses worth queuing (audience split, CTA copy split, destination test, background-imagery test, etc.). ## Step 9 — Register the prefix Append two lines to `campaigns/README.md`: 1. A row in the "Campaign | Prefix | Example" table. 2. A bullet under "Active campaigns" describing the LP and the angle. ## Step 10 — Verify Before reporting done, run these checks in parallel: - `find campaigns/ -type f | sort` — matches the file tree above exactly. - `grep -r "utm_content=-" campaigns/` — every variant ID is unique and registered. - `grep -rE "(^|[^-])—([^-]|$)" campaigns//copy` — confirms no em-dashes in the ad copy. (Em-dashes in section headers like `### -LI-SI-01 — Headline` are the project convention and OK; em-dashes inside intro / headline / description fields are not.) - `grep -rE "AI-powered|is designed to" campaigns/` — no future hedging or unnamed AI features in the copy. (Anti-pattern lines in `brief.md` are expected.) - Eyeball every LinkedIn intro ≤600 chars, headline ≤200, description ≤100, text-ad headline ≤25, text-ad description ≤75, conversation opener ≤400. - Eyeball every Google RSA headline ≤30, description ≤90. - The variant-ID table in `campaigns/README.md` includes the new prefix row. ## Step 11 — Stop Do not commit. Do not push. Do not open a PR. Show the user the file list and ask whether to commit. They will iterate on copy before launch and prefer to bundle that with the first commit. ## Anti-patterns when running this skill - Don't invent customer quotes. Pull them verbatim from blog posts, case studies, or the LP. If a campaign needs a quote and none exists in the repo, surface that gap to the user instead of fabricating one. - Don't invent stats. If the LP says "73% of top API docs sites ship without an `llms.txt`", that's the only stat you have. Don't extrapolate. - Don't restructure the existing campaign layout to "improve" it. Other campaigns depend on the shape being diff-comparable. - Don't ship a campaign with fewer than four LinkedIn single-image hooks. The two-week iteration loop needs hook diversity. - Don't deep-link to an anchor that doesn't exist on the LP. Grep the page for `id=` before linking.