#42: How to Create Facebook Ads That Beat the Competition Without a Big Budget

The StoryBrand Podcast

StoryBrand.com

Marketing, Story, Bmsu, Businessmadesimple, Brand, Business, Bms, Storybrand, Entrepreneurship, 474622, Storytelling

4.8 • 2K Ratings

🗓️ 20 October 2025

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Businesses are burning cash on Facebook ads that just don’t work, and it’s not because of the algorithm. The real problem? Most companies are leading with clever headlines and flashy visuals instead of clear, curiosity-driven messaging. When your potential customer sees your ad, they’re not thinking about your brand, they’re thinking about their own survival. If your ad doesn’t speak to that in the first two seconds, you’ve already lost them. With ad costs going up and results going down, the stakes have never been higher. So what do you actually say in your ads to make people stop scrolling, click, and buy?

In this episode, hosts Donald Miller and Kyle Reed sit down with Mehrab Reza, Facebook ads expert and longtime StoryBrand agency partner. You’ll learn the real reason most Facebook ads flop and the 3-part framework that scrappy brands are using to beat out massive companies with million-dollar budgets. Mehrab shares how to build “survival soundbites” that grab attention, use AI to scale creative output fast, and avoid the biggest trap in attribution tracking. Whether your ad budget is $1K or $1M, tune in to learn how to get better results with fewer resources.

Download Mehrab's AI Prompts PDF HERE or hire his company, Adlantica, to run your ads HERE. You can also follow them on LinkedIn HERE.

Click HERE to attend the upcoming StoryBrand Your Business LIVE event!

Click HERE to find a StoryBrand certified marketing coach to help you grow your business!

Unlock the power of a framework that works—the StoryBrand Framework at StoryBrand.ai. It's like having the world’s best copywriter create high-converting marketing whenever you need it. Start your free 7-day trial at StoryBrand.ai.

Learn how to make your marketing and messaging work using a proven framework in the updated book, Building a StoryBrand 2.0. Order it now on Amazon or wherever you buy books!

Transcript

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0:00.0	Today in marketing, everything and nothing is changing. The everything part is your AI, your tools, your attribution, your placements, your campaign types.
0:09.3	But the part that's more important, the part that's not changing, is understanding who your customers are so that you can speak an emotional message that triggers a reaction inside of them.
0:19.8	That is the part that's never changing.
0:21.9	When you have a better understanding of getting close to your customers and staying close to your
0:26.2	customers, your results are better.
0:30.1	Hey, it's podcast producer Bobby Richards, and I've got a quick question for you. When it comes
0:34.2	to your marketing, is it actually cutting through all the noise or is it just adding to it?
0:38.9	I ask this because if it's not clearly telling your customers how you can solve their problem, they will not buy from you.
0:45.3	But don't worry because this is exactly why we created Story Brand Your Business.
0:49.9	It's a brand new hands-on live marketing workshop taught by Donald Miller himself happening
0:54.8	January 28th and 29th here in Nashville, Tennessee.
0:58.5	At the event, Don will personally teach you the proven story brand framework that's helped
1:03.0	thousands of businesses clarify their message.
1:05.3	Plus, his brand new messaging campaign framework that's designed to help you compete in
1:10.1	today's AI-driven market.
1:11.7	And you won't just learn the frameworks. You'll learn how to implement them into your business
1:15.9	right away. You'll craft a controlling idea that drives every piece of your marketing,
1:20.3	create survival soundbites your customers actually remember, and build a complete messaging
1:25.2	campaign that works. And throughout it all, you won't be doing it alone.
1:29.4	You'll be part of a small group of business owners just like you
1:32.1	and receive live coaching from StoryBrand Certified guides
1:35.3	who are in the room with you.
	...

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