LinkedIn ABM ad design

Take a finished ABM strategy (from a strategy-planning session or an equivalent uploaded strategy) and turn it into everything needed to launch: an outline, ad briefs, rendered image-ad mockups, and optionally a database to manage it all.

The strategy decides what to run. This skill decides exactly what each ad says and looks like. Do not re-litigate the strategy: take its campaigns, ad sets, formats, budgets, audiences and value props as given.

This skill doesn't need live LinkedIn Ads data - it builds from the strategy you already have. It works best alongside the ZenABM connector (app.zenabm.com) if you want to ground the ads in real ZenABM data (e.g. real engaged accounts to name), but it is fully usable without it.

Step 0 - Locate the strategy

Work through these in order:

1. Conversation context. If an ABM strategy (from a strategy-planning skill, an ABM strategy deck, or equivalent) exists earlier in this conversation, use it.
2. Ask for it. If not, ask the user to either upload their strategy document or produce a strategy first. The companion strategy-planning skill is part of the full plugin at github.com/ZENABM/linkedin-abm-skills.

Do not invent a strategy from scratch. Without one, this skill has nothing to execute.

Step 1 - ABM Campaign Outline (deliver this FIRST, as an artifact)

Distill the strategy into a concise, actionable outline and hand it to the user before anything else - it needs only the strategy, not the interview, and it lets them correct the map before you build the territory. The outline is also the index to every deliverable: each ad gets its own brief file (Step 3) and, for image ads, its own mockup files (Step 4), and the outline links to each one directly. Produce three sibling files at the root of the output folder and present them immediately:

• 00-ABM-Campaign-Outline.md - the plain-markdown source
• 00-ABM-Campaign-Outline.html - a styled, self-contained artifact: brand-neutral clean layout, a "Download PDF" button (window.print()), the per-campaign Assets tables, AND every ad's brief inlined as an anchored section (<section id="ad-NN">) with each image ad's PNG embedded inline (base64). The Assets links are internal anchors (href="#ad-NN"), never relative file paths - so every link works in the browser, in a preview panel, AND in the exported PDF. (Relative links to sibling files only resolve in the unzipped folder and never in a preview or PDF - don't rely on them for the clickable index.) If a live-artifact tool is available, publish the same HTML there too.
• 00-ABM-Campaign-Outline.pdf (optional, if PDF tooling is available) - render the self-contained HTML with any HTML-to-PDF tool that preserves internal anchor links (e.g. WeasyPrint or headless Chromium), so the anchors become clickable jump-to-section links in the PDF. Verify the PDF contains working internal links for each #ad-NN.

File-path convention (fixed). Give each ABM campaign a kebab-case folder slug and number the ads within it (01, 02, ...) in outline order. Per-ad files still live on disk so the user can edit them:

• Brief (one per ad, every format): ./[abm-campaign-slug]/briefs/[NN]-[format]-[ad-slug].md (+ .docx if document-export tooling is available). [format] is lowercase: image, tla, text, video, document, carousel.
• Mockup (image ads only): ./[abm-campaign-slug]/mockups/[NN]-[ad-slug].html and ./[abm-campaign-slug]/mockups/[NN]-[ad-slug].png - same [NN] and [ad-slug] as the ad's brief.

Anchor IDs match the file numbers: the inline section for NN-format-slug uses id="ad-NN", so the Assets link #ad-NN and the on-disk file [NN]-[format]-[slug].md always line up. The self-contained outline is finalized once the briefs/mockups exist (its inline sections embed them); if you deliver a preliminary map first, say the brief sections are filled in the following steps.

Use exactly this hierarchy (an ABM Campaign is the highest-order unit targeting a distinct audience). Each ABM campaign ends with an Assets table that links to every file produced for it:

# ABM Campaign Outline

## ABM Campaign 1 - [Title] - [Persona]

### LinkedIn Campaign 1

#### Ad set 1 - [FORMAT] - [daily budget]
- Ad 1 - [FORMAT] - [what it's about]
- Ad 2 - [FORMAT] - [what it's about]

#### Ad set 2 - [FORMAT] - [daily budget]
- Ad 1 - ...

#### Assets for ABM Campaign 1
| # | Ad | Format | Brief | Creative |
|---|----|--------|-------|----------|
| 1 | [ad name] | Image | brief | [PNG](./campaign-1-slug/mockups/01-[slug].png) · [HTML](./campaign-1-slug/mockups/01-[slug].html) |
| 2 | [ad name] | TLA | brief | post copy is in the brief |
| 3 | [ad name] | Text | brief | copy is in the brief |

## ABM Campaign 2 - [Title] - [Persona]
...

Every row's Brief link is an internal anchor (#ad-NN) that jumps to that ad's inlined brief section; the Creative cell links (also by anchor) to the same section, where each image ad's PNG is embedded inline. So the whole table is clickable in the browser, the preview panel, and the PDF - not just the unzipped folder. This table is the "very clear, concise list of assets per ABM campaign with working links" - it must be present for every ABM campaign.

Derive daily budgets from the strategy's monthly allocations (monthly ÷ 30, rounded sensibly). One line per ad - format plus a 5-15 word "what about". Keep the whole outline scannable in under a minute; it's the map, the briefs are the territory.

Only include the ad formats the strategy actually calls for. If the strategy has no video ads, there are no video briefs. Never pad the plan with extra formats to be thorough.

Step 2 - Interview the user

Before writing briefs or mockups, gather what the strategy can't tell you. Batch questions, don't drip them.

A. Design system (for image-ad mockups):

• Primary / accent / dark-background colors (hex), text-on-dark, muted text
• Font (and heading/body weights)
• Logo (SVG code pasted, a file in the images folder, or "company name in font X")
• Tone (e.g. "direct, numbers over adjectives, short punchy lines")
• If they have an existing brand config, accept it verbatim.

B. Images folder. Based on the ads you plan, recommend the specific images each mockup needs (product screenshots, founder/poster headshots, customer logos, report covers, G2 badges). Ask the user to put them all in one local folder and share/connect it. Every brief must list which image files it needs by name, and mockups must use these real files - not placeholders - wherever the user has provided them.

C. TLA inputs (only if the strategy includes Thought Leader Ads):

• Who posts each TLA - name and position in the company. Ask explicitly; a TLA without a real author is dead on arrival.
• For each TLA use case: numbers, personal experience, and learnings the author can genuinely share (real metrics, a mistake they made, a client story, before/after figures). Specificity is what makes TLAs perform - never fabricate these.
• If the author can't provide real inputs (or you're demoing the campaign): don't block. Write a full, on-pattern "Example TLA based on this brief" following the TLA writing reference's rules, but leave every specific number/story as a clearly marked [bracketed placeholder], add a short banner ("EXAMPLE - illustrative; replace [brackets] with the author's real figures before launch"), and note it reads on the shorter engagement-variant length. Never present invented figures as real under a person's name.
• The demo / trial / landing URL the CTA should point to.

D. Personalization macros. Confirm whether they want personalized intro-text variants (%FIRSTNAME%, %COMPANYNAME%, %INDUSTRY%, %JOBTITLE%).

Step 3 - Write the ad briefs (ONE FILE PER AD)

Give every ad its own brief file - regardless of format - saved under its ABM campaign's briefs/ folder using the fixed path convention from Step 1: ./[abm-campaign-slug]/briefs/[NN]-[format]-[ad-slug].md. Do not compile everything into one combined document; separate files are easier to find, share and link, and they make each of the outline's Assets links resolve to a specific ad. If document-export tooling is available, also export each brief as a sibling .docx ([NN]-[format]-[ad-slug].docx) and link that from the outline.

Each brief file:

• Starts with a clear H1 title = the ad name (e.g. # ABM Campaign 1 · Ad set 1 · Ad 1 (Image) - [slug]), so the file makes sense opened on its own.
• Then the standard header block, followed by the body from the matching template in the Brief templates reference (image, video, document, carousel, text). For TLAs, follow the TLA writing reference instead - it has its own structure, rules and benchmark-backed patterns.
• Must match the exact filename the outline's Assets table links to (same [NN], [format], [ad-slug]). If you rename or renumber an ad, update the outline row too - briefs and outline links never drift apart.

Non-negotiables for all copy:

• Apply the Anti-slop reference to every word. Write clean from the start; don't draft slop and fix it later.
• Use the ad set's target persona from the strategy - the reader is a specific person, not "decision makers".
• Reuse the strategy's value props and messages as the starting point for each ad's angle.
• Each brief states which image files it needs (exact filenames from the user's folder, or a clearly-marked request for a file that doesn't exist yet) AND where each one sits in the design ("headshot in a circular avatar bottom-left", "screenshot filling the bottom half"). The mockup must match this exactly - see Step 4.
• Respect format limits (text ads: 25-char headline / 75-char description; video intro text: 600 chars; headline: 200 chars).

Step 4 - Image-ad mockups (HTML + PNG)

For every image ad, build an on-brand mockup following the Ad design patterns reference:

• One self-contained HTML file per ad: square 1:1, 540px, inline styles only, brand colors/font from the interview, rich style (gradient background, one glass element, subtle shapes, shadows).
• Pick the design pattern that fits the ad's job (stat, contrarian, product screenshot, before/after, testimonial...) - the reference lists 23 patterns with when-to-use guidance.
• Brief ↔ mockup image correspondence is a hard rule. The mockup uses exactly the image files its brief lists, in the placement the design brief describes - nothing extra, nothing swapped. If the brief says "riege.jpg in a circular avatar next to the quote", that is what the HTML contains. Update the brief if the design changes; never let them drift apart.
• Photo placement rules (photos fail most mockups): pre-crop each photo to the container's exact aspect ratio with Python/PIL before embedding (crop toward faces/subject, never let a head be clipped); in HTML use a fixed-size container with object-fit: cover; prefer contained slots (avatar circle, right column, framed card) over full-bleed backgrounds; if a photo needs an overlay to keep text readable, cap it at ~55% opacity and re-check the subject is still clearly visible in the PNG.
• Reference the user's images with relative paths (./images/...) and copy the images next to the HTML so both browser preview and PNG render work.
• If a headless browser or screenshot tool is available, render each HTML to a 1080x1080 PNG and ship both the .html (editable) and .png (uploadable) per ad; otherwise deliver the self-contained HTML mockups and tell the user any browser screenshot at 1080x1080 produces the uploadable PNG. (The full plugin at github.com/ZENABM/linkedin-abm-skills bundles a ready-made render script.)
• After rendering, view each PNG and fix visual problems (overflow, contrast, broken images) before delivering. An unreviewed mockup is a draft, not a deliverable.

Step 5 - Output folder

Deliver everything in one folder:

[Client]-ABM-Campaign/
├── 00-ABM-Campaign-Outline.md / .html / .pdf     (delivered first; links to every asset below)
├── [abm-campaign-1-slug]/
│   ├── briefs/           (one brief file per ad, any format: NN-format-slug.md [+ .docx])
│   └── mockups/          (image ads only: NN-slug.html + NN-slug.png per ad)
│       └── images/       (copies of the user images used)
└── [abm-campaign-2-slug]/
    ├── briefs/
    └── mockups/
        └── images/

Present the folder's key files to the user when done (the outline artifact + a couple of sample brief files + a sample mockup), and confirm the outline's Assets links open the right files.

Step 6 - Campaign-management database (ALWAYS OFFER THIS)

After the briefs and mockups are delivered, always ask whether they'd like a campaign-management database - don't skip this step. Explain the payoff in a line: a database makes every future campaign far easier to manage - one row (or page) per ad, filterable by campaign, persona, format, stage and status, with links to every brief and graphic in one place.

Then ask which they'd prefer:

• Notion - if the user's Notion is connected, build a database with one page per ad carrying the full brief and properties for campaign, ad set, format, persona, stage and status. Ask before writing anything to their Notion workspace.
• Spreadsheet - build a campaign-database spreadsheet and fill it with the ads you just built - one row per ad, with the auto-generated Campaign / Ad set / Ad names and links to each brief file and mockup. Deliver it as a file they can open or upload to Google Sheets; if their Google Drive is connected, also offer to create it directly in their Drive as a live Sheet (ask first - that writes to their account).

Pick one, build it, and hand it over. If they genuinely don't want a database, skip it - but make the offer.

What good looks like

Before delivering, check: every ad in the outline has its own brief file at the exact path the Assets table links to, and every one of those links resolves (no dead links, no 01-Ad-Briefs-style combined doc); every image ad has an HTML + PNG pair you have actually looked at, linked from its Assets row; no brief references an image that isn't either in the folder or explicitly requested; TLA copy passes the checklist in the TLA writing reference; nothing in any brief exists for a format the strategy didn't ask for.