Ad swipe file · 12 libraries

A swipe file of 100,000+ real ads

A swipe file is a collection of ads that worked, kept so you can study them before you make your own. The Sprites ads library is one that keeps growing: real ads from 11 platforms, each with its copy and format, most with how long it ran.

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  • MP Services LLC, Dumpster Service adMP Services LLC, Dumpster ServiceQuestionRan 730 days
  • Tax Service Masters adTax Service MastersSocial proofRan 725 days
  • Titan Bags adTitan BagsSocial proofRan 722 days
  • Red Rock Chiropractic Center adRed Rock Chiropractic CenterPain pointRan 721 days
  • GENT Cuts and Grooming adGENT Cuts and GroomingQuestionRan 710 days

What is a swipe file?

A swipe file in marketing is a saved collection of ads, headlines, emails and landing pages that you go back to for ideas before you write. You swipe the thinking, not the work.

The name comes from copywriting. Ad writers kept folders of other people's ads that pulled, and "swiped" from them when a brief landed: the hook, the offer, the order of the argument. Never the words.

Swipe file meaning, in one line: a library of what already works, sorted so you can find it when you need it.

A blank page is the slowest way to start an ad. A swipe file turns it into a choice between twenty openings that already ran.

What goes in an ad swipe file

  • The hook

    The first line or the first second. It decides whether anything after it gets seen, so file ads by how they open.

  • The offer

    Free trial, discount, demo, guide. The same creative with a different offer is a different ad.

  • The format

    Video, static, carousel, and the shape it ran at. What worked as a 9:16 video rarely survives as a square.

  • How long it ran

    The one public signal that an ad worked. Advertisers do not pay for losers for six months.

  • Where it sent people

    The landing page is half the ad. Keep the two together.

Ad swipe file examples

Real ads, one per brand, longest-running first. The library behind them holds 112,000+.

All ad examples

Every creative, with its copy, format and run length

Swipe file examples, by hook

The opening line is what you swipe most. Here is how real ads open, filed by hook type, each with how long it ran.

Every hook type

Offer

  • With free shipping and satisfaction guaranteed, Equithrive is a win/win for you, and your horses.Equithrive · 2353d
  • Come in today and get 5% off..limited time only!Branded Customs · 2353d
  • Restaurant Equipment Commercial Refrigeration brand new at discount prices.North American Restaurant Equipment & Refrigeration 401-639-3271 · 1904d

Question

  • Does it seem like everyone around is better prepared for their financial future than you are?Jodee Harris First Commonwealth Advisors · 2971d
  • Can't take your dog on vacation with you?Wolf Lodge Dog Boarding · 2874d
  • Did you know that your dryer vent should be cleaned once a year?Mr. Appliance of Olympia · 2628d

Pain point

  • Heritage Woods of South Elgin provides a wonderful residential alternative to a nursing home or struggling alone at home.Heritage Woods of South Elgin · 2296d
  • Truffles Vein Specialists provides comprehensive vein treatment for varicose veins, leg pain, leg swelling, restless leg syndrome and oth...Truffles Vein Specialists · 2145d
  • �You are looking for a carport rv coverS, garage or a commercial building we can help you j-Mississippi Metal Carports no more than two w...J-Mississippi Metal Carports · 1823d

Social proof

  • Ichiro employees welcome new and old customers to visit our storeIchiro Hibachi Express & Ice Cream Rolls · 2826d
  • Install US Breaking News app trusted by millions to stay informed of latest breaking news!Break · 2570d
  • D’Angelo’s has provided the Rochester area with award-winning plumbing, heating, cooling and kitchen/bathroom remodeling services for 50+...D'Angelo's Plumbing & Heating · 2459d

Number

  • A Top 500 Franchise; Phenix Salon Suites is changing the Salon Industry.Phenix Salon Suites · 3199d
  • Family-owned independent auto body repair facility with over 35 years of experience.Dale-Way Auto Body Center · 3065d
  • � Driving School - � Driving Lessons - � 5 Hour Class - � Defensive Driving - � Road Test Appointments - � Road Test Car ServiceNew York Auto School White Plains · 2789d

How to build a swipe file

Collect from the ads libraries, keep only what ran, file by hook, write one line on why, and open it before every brief.

  1. 1

    Collect from the ads libraries, not your feed

    Your feed shows you what targets you. The libraries show what a brand runs to everyone. Start with the Meta ads library, then the LinkedIn and TikTok ones.

  2. 2

    Keep only what ran

    Run length is the filter. An ad still live after 90 days is paying for itself; one that ran a week is a test. Sort by it before you save anything.

  3. 3

    File by hook, not by brand

    You will search the file by problem ("I need an opener for a price objection"), so sort it that way. The ad hooks page shows the types most ads use.

  4. 4

    Write one line on why it works

    A saved ad without a note is a screenshot. One sentence - "leads with the price, then the proof" - is what you reuse.

  5. 5

    Open it before every brief

    Pull five ads that solved the same problem, take the structure from the best one, and write your own words into it.

A swipe file in ChatGPT and Claude

A swipe file in ChatGPT or Claude is the ads you paste in, plus an ask that takes the structure and leaves the words. Neither model has this library.

Paste

  • The hook
  • The offer
  • The format
  • How long it ran

Ask

What is the hook, the offer, and the proof? Then write three concepts for my product, in my words.

Paste the hook, the offer, the format and how long the ad ran. Then ask for the pattern, and for three concepts for your own product, in your words. That is the whole use of a swipe file inside a chat.

The ask that fails is "write an ad like this." ChatGPT and Claude hand the original copy back with the names swapped. Say what to keep, the order of the argument, and what to replace: every word, the product, and any claim.

Save and Clone do that inside Sprites: Save opens the ad on the question of why it works, and Clone rewrites the structure for your brand. A Claude marketing skill saves the standard so the next brief starts from it. Ads that run inside ChatGPT are a different set, in the ChatGPT ads library.

Landing page swipe file

A landing page swipe file keeps the page each ad sends traffic to, next to the ad. The match between the two is usually what the advertiser tested hardest.

Open any ad in the library and the viewer shows where it sends traffic. Keep the headline of the page with the hook of the ad: when they repeat each other, the ad converts on the promise it made.

Your swipe file, inside Sprites

The ads library is the swipe file; Sprites is what turns a saved ad into your next one.

How ad generation works

  • Save

    Every ad in the library has a Save button. It opens the ad in Sprites with the first question already asked: why does this work.

  • Clone

    Clone keeps the structure and the hook, rewrites the ad for your brand and drafts the creative. Your swipe file, turned into your next ad.

  • Copy link

    Each ad has its own link. Paste it into a brief or a doc and it opens on that ad. To use the ad in ChatGPT or Claude, paste the copy, not just the link.

Swipe files by platform

Each platform's ads library, the place to start a swipe file for that channel.

Sizes and safe zones

By creative type

By industry

Swipe files: questions

What is a swipe file?

In marketing, a collection of ads, headlines, emails and landing pages that worked, saved so you can study it before you write your own.

What does swipe file mean?

It comes from copywriting slang: to "swipe" is to borrow. A swipe file is where you keep the ideas worth borrowing, the structure and the angle, never the exact words.

Is using a swipe file stealing?

No, if you take the idea and not the execution. Copying an ad word for word is plagiarism; noticing it opens on a price objection and writing your own opener on yours is the job.

What should go in an ad swipe file?

Ads that ran a long time, filed by hook and format, each with its landing page and one line on why it works.

Where do I find ads for a swipe file?

In the public ads libraries. The Sprites ads library collects 100,000+ of them from Meta, Google, LinkedIn, TikTok, Reddit, Pinterest, Snapchat and more, with copy and run length.

What is a landing page swipe file?

A swipe file of the pages ads send traffic to. Keep each one next to its ad: the promise in the ad and the headline on the page should match.

Can I use a swipe file with ChatGPT?

Yes, if you paste the ads in. ChatGPT does not have this library. Ask for the hook, the offer and the proof, then for new concepts in your words. Asking it to write one like the original returns the original.

Can I use a swipe file with Claude?

Yes, the same way as ChatGPT: paste the ads and ask for the pattern, not a copy. A Claude marketing skill saves that ask so the next brief starts from it.

Turn the swipe file into your next ad

Save an ad and Sprites tells you why it works. Clone it and Sprites rewrites it for your brand and drafts the creative.

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