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I Analyzed 15,000 Ads from top 11 Education Brands (These Are the Ad Strategies That Work for Education Brands)

15000+ Ads of companies valued more than $31Bn

Author

Aazar Shad
May 22, 2025

We studied paid ads from 11 top education companies, analyzed 15,000+ creatives, and broke down everything—

Below is a breakdown of the top education brands, the patterns we noticed, and what you can steal for your ads.

Key takeaways at at the end.

Brand #1: MasterClass

MasterClass sells aspiration in the most polished way possible. Their creatives are sleek, cinematic, and feature the best of the best in the subjects.

They don’t sell education. They sell identity, skill mastery, and exclusivity.

  • Creatives: 4,778 (43% video, 57% image)

  • Style: Polished. No UGC. No AI.

  • Hooks: Expertise-first, celebrity-led insights, transformation through elite training

  • Emotions: Admiration, Inspiration, Curiosity

  • Strategy: Evergreen campaigns, tight brand control, consistent rotation

  • Pages: Annual access bundle LPs + core course pages

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Celebrity trust = built-in authority

  • Clean brand recall from polished visuals

  • Repetition of core messaging across many verticals

One ad that stood out:

Check my detailed analysis on MasterClass

Brand #2: Mindvalley

Some of the Mindvalley ads are like webinars. Some are 40+ minutes long. They're speaker-led, founder-led, and community-powered.

They sell transformation more than features: "Your best life starts here."

  • Creatives: 2,472 (63% video, 36% image)

  • Style: Long-form, influencer-led, polished production

  • Hooks: Life transformation, spiritual + productivity merge

  • Emotions: Hope, Determination, Confidence

  • Strategy: Heavy on webinar-style, long-form VSLs

  • Pages: Program-specific pages + summit event LPs

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Founder-led content builds trust

  • Community-focused storytelling

  • Expert credibility in every ad

One ad that stood out:

Brand #3: Outschool

Outschool speaks directly to parents.

Their creatives feel real. Some are UGC, others feel like amateur product demos—and that’s why they work. They’re not polished. They’re believable.

  • Creatives: 1,366 (80% image, 20% video)

  • Style: Mixed. UGC + native-feel + some polished

  • Hooks: "Affordable online learning for kids", scroll-stopping visuals

  • Emotions: Joy, Relief, Curiosity

  • Strategy: Persona-led messaging with fun/quirky visuals

  • Pages: Subject/category pages

What They’re Doing Well:

  • UGC-style builds trust fast

  • Leans into real parent/student use cases

One ad that stood out:

Brand #4: Synthesis

Synthesis shows outcomes. Their ads show how the product changes a student.

Most of their ads are native, lo-fi, or testimonial-style. Some of them feel unpolished (but in a good way).

  • Creatives: 1,051 (65% video, 32% image)

  • Style: UGC + testimonial + raw demos

  • Hooks: Problem-first: outdated schooling vs new models

  • Emotions: Curiosity, Confidence, Relief

  • Strategy: Show, don’t tell. Outcome-driven messaging

  • Pages: Program LPs

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Scroll-stopping, lo-fi creatives

  • Highlights the contrast between old/new systems

One ad that stood out:

Brand #5: Duolingo

Duolingo's ads feel like their app: fun, animated, and exciting.

The brand uses it in-app experience to lead the visuals.

  • Creatives: 680 (78% video, 22% image)

  • Style: Animation-heavy. App screenshots. App walkthroughs. Few UGC.

  • Hooks: "See how Duolingo works"; strong demo-led story

  • Emotions: Playfulness, Joy, Satisfaction

  • Strategy: Product-led. Demo-focused.

  • Pages: App store links

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Strong brand identity (the owl and the other characters)

  • Great product demonstration in ads

Where They Can Improve:

  • Community stories are missing. They’ve a huge community they can use.

One ad that stood out:

Brand #6: Coursera

Coursera’s ads are clean, simple, and academic.

They rely on graphic design and headlines, not deep emotions. Few UGCs. Minimal characters.

  • Creatives: 1,043 (25% video, 75% image)

  • Style: Branded graphic ads, no b-roll, no characters

  • Hooks: Credentialing, cost-saving, career advancement

  • Emotions: Trust, Security, Efficiency

  • Strategy: Program-driven, little scroll disruption

  • Pages: Course-specific and topic cluster LPs

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Professional tone that aligns with brand

  • Clear CTA around certification and ROI

Where They Can Improve:

  • They can add deep emotions

  • No personality or storytelling

  • Not enough scroll-stopping ads

Brand #7: Masterschool

MasterSchool feels like a smart mix of credibility and scroll-stopper.

They show instructors, founders, and career outcomes—but some ads are lo-fi enough to blend into native feeds.

  • Creatives: 416 (59% image, 39% video)

  • Style: Credibility-forward, some UGC, some ugly

  • Hooks: Instructor-led, “get hired”, remote career angles

  • Emotions: Confidence, Security, Inspiration

  • Strategy: Tests formats often, some UGC/podcast formats

  • Pages: Data and dev career LPs

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Good experimentation mix

  • Real teachers = real trust

One ad that stood out:

Brand #8: Babbel

Babbel goes wide. They target all awareness levels. And they do it with meme trends, humor, and solid before/after and comparison structures.

  • Creatives: 1,283 (56% image, 43% video)

  • Style: Trend-based, comparison-heavy, meme-forward

  • Hooks: “Before Babbel vs after”, “Most downloaded app”

  • Emotions: Humor, Joy, Confidence

  • Strategy: Awareness stage targeting + trend hijacking

  • Pages: Trial offers, subscription promos

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Covers all buyer stages

  • Trend adaptation + visual humor

One ad that stood out:

Brand #9: BoldVoice

BoldVoice shows how their product works, with interactive videos that also show demos.

Some ads feel like podcast clips, and they have good ad scripts. But they’re not testing hard enough.

  • Creatives: 507 (79% video, 21% image)

  • Style: Scripted product explanation, podcast-like VO

  • Hooks: Accent clarity, professional growth

  • Emotions: Confidence, Aspiration

  • Strategy: Calm, explanation-based storytelling

  • Pages: App store LPs

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Clear product use case

  • Demonstrates results directly

One ad that stood out:

Brand #10: Skillsta App

Skillsta ads are bold, authentic, and creative.

They lean into ugly ads, b-roll, and real-looking scroll-stoppers that feel genuine.

  • Creatives: 767 (50% image, 50% video)

  • Style: B-roll, UGC, raw demos

  • Hooks: Career growth, celebrity drops, transformation

  • Emotions: Excitement, Curiosity, Confidence

  • Strategy: Scroll-stopper heavy, low-fi edits

  • Pages: Bundle LPs + course pages

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Ugly ads that stop the scroll

  • Clear pain points in visual form

One ad that stood out:

Brand #11: Augment.org

Augment takes a serious tone. Their ads feature experts, often in explainer style.

They’re clean and polished, but they may be too clean for scroll feeds.

  • Creatives: 55 (76% video, 24% image)

  • Style: Polished, direct-to-camera expert VO

  • Hooks: “Here’s why you need an MBA alternative”

  • Emotions: Authority, Clarity, Confidence

  • Strategy: Podcast-style cuts, clear messaging

  • Pages: MBA landing pages, seasonal promos

What They’re Doing Well:

  • Strong expert-led positioning

  • Very clear offer structure

One ad that stood out:

Key Takeaways From Studying 11 Education Brands (and 15,000+ Ads) 

  • Showing how the product works. People like seeing how the app or course actually works.

  • Ads and landing pages must match. A clear connection between the two improves conversions. Most importantly, matching the emotions.

  • Emotion beats logic. Confidence, curiosity, and joy made ads more clickable. Education is all about achieving an outcome. Make sure those outcomes are connected to those emotions.

  • Clear promises get more clicks. Say exactly what the user will get.

  • Low-fi ads still win. Ads that don’t look like ads grab attention.

  • Testing more creatives = faster learning. More variation helps brands find winners quicker. This means adding diverse range of creatives, not just one.

  • Testimonials are underused. Real student stories build real trust. THIS was surprising. You can clearly stand out if you use students stories.

  • Brand personality matters. Humor, memes, and playfulness make people remember you.

  • UGC isn’t for everyone, but native-feel helps. Even polished brands can blend in with behind-the-scenes content.

  • Most brands ignore the top-of-funnel. They focus too much on selling and not enough on awareness of the problem or outcome.

New ad formats these brands are rarely using:

  • Podcast-style clips

  • Skits and storytelling

  • One-shot raw videos

  • Street-style interviews

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