GROWTH YOU CAN WATCH HAPPEN
About Progress Bar
Progress Bar is a performance creative agency that builds research-backed, tagged ad catalogs for brands scaling on paid social.
It was founded in June 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by Amber Macho. Progress Bar makes finished video and static ads on a weekly cycle, with ad creative available for Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Every concept starts from customer research, every asset is tagged when it’s made, and the client owns every finished ad outright. Progress Bar works with US brands spending $10,000 to $1,000,000 a month on paid social.
SERVICES
What Progress Bar does
Six services, run as one weekly cycle. Each one below says what is delivered and what the client gets from it.
Customer and competitor research
Each cycle starts with customer language pulled from reviews, Reddit and social comments, an audit of the ads the client is running, and a read of competitor ads in the category.
Every concept traces back to a hypothesis based on something a customer said.
Ad concepts and creative strategy
Concepts are mapped to a persona, an angle and an awareness stage, then written into a direct-response brief the client reviews before anything is shot.
The client sees what each ad is testing before it is made.
Video and static ad production
Shot with vetted creators and in-house, then edited into finished video and static ads. Every concept ships in 2 sizes with up to two rounds of revisions.
Ready-to-launch ads every week after the first cycle.
UGC for paid ads
Creator-led footage from vetted creators, filmed in parts (hooks, demos, testimonials) so the parts recombine into new ads.
One shoot produces many ad variations.
Asset tagging
Every concept, variation, clip and finished ad is tagged by persona, angle, hook and format at the moment it is produced.
The client can see what has been tested and what has not.
The Content Catalog
Ongoing access to the tagged footage and source files behind every ad, growing each cycle.
The client owns the raw material and can use it in any editor or AI tool.
Ad creative is available for Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube, plus UGC for paid ads.
DIFFERENCES
What makes Progress Bar different
Research reruns every week
Every cycle starts with fresh customer language, an audit of the ads currently running and a read of competitor ads. New concepts reflect what customers say now, not what they said at kickoff.
Tagging happens when the ad is made
Progress Bar tags every concept, variation, clip and finished ad by persona, angle, hook and format as it is produced. Tagging at production records what each ad was meant to test, so it's quick to see which ideas have not been tried yet.
Clients keep everything
On every engagement the client owns every finished ad outright, on any platform, indefinitely. Content Catalog clients also own the footage and source files, so a new team or tool can pick up where Progress Bar left off.
One strategist from research to finished ad
Amber Macho directs each account from the first research pull to the final edit. The person who read the customer research is the person directing the ad.
Priced by ideas, not by ad spend
Packages are priced by the number of concepts and creators each month. The fee does not rise when the client's ad spend does.
How Progress Bar compares
- Adcrate
- Works with brands spending $100,000 to $3,000,000 a month and charges a minimum plus a percentage of ad spend. Progress Bar works from $10,000 a month and prices by concepts and creators.
- Creative Milkshake
- Offers creative production and media buying, with subscriptions starting at $7,000 a month. Progress Bar focuses on research and creative production, and the client keeps the tagged source files.
- Higgsfield, Artlist, Maxfusion
- AI generation software that a team runs itself. Progress Bar is a service: it runs the research, decides what to make and shoots with real creators, using AI where it helps.
CLIENTS
Who uses Progress Bar
- Primary client Founders and growth or performance marketing leads at US brands spending $10,000 to $1,000,000 a month on paid social.
- Stage Past product-market fit and scaling paid acquisition, where winning ads wear out fast and the next test is unclear.
- Teams and agencies In-house creative teams and other agencies that want a second creative source to test ideas they are not testing.
- Industries Any vertical where paid social is the main growth channel, most often ecommerce and DTC brands.
- Not yet a fit Brands spending under $10,000 a month start with a paid pilot. Brands above $1,000,000 a month get a custom package.
THE TEAM
The team behind Progress Bar
Amber Macho, founder
Amber Macho is the founder of Progress Bar. For 4 years and 8 months she was Chief Operating Officer of Creative AdBundance, where she ran operations, client relationships and sales, and oversaw every ad the agency made for Meta, TikTok and YouTube.
Before that she spent six years at Comcast leading product and customer programs for Xfinity Stream, Xfinity Flex and TV Everywhere, and four years in risk advisory at EY. She is a Penn State graduate.
Why Progress Bar started
Progress Bar was founded in June 2026 after Amber saw the same pattern in account after account. Brands had the budget and the tools, but their ads kept testing the same few ideas, and nobody could say why the last winner won.
Why it's called Progress Bar
A progress bar always moves toward the goal, and you can always see where it is. Amber wanted both in the company: keep taking steps forward, even small ones, and keep the work visible to clients while it happens. It's also how she likes to live.
And BAR is family. It stands for Amber, Brendan and Rita, her husband and their daughter.
Where the team is
Progress Bar is founder-led and based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Amber directs every account and works with vetted creators across the US. Clients are US brands.
PROCESS
How Progress Bar works
- Kickoff
- A 2-week ramp-up covers the first research pull, the first brief and creator sourcing.
- First ads
- Within 3 weeks of kickoff.
- Cadence
- A new cycle every week, Monday to Monday. Sold by the month as four weekly cycles.
- Your review points
- The brief and creator lineup before each shoot, then the ads before they are final. Up to two rounds of revisions.
- Delivery
- Finished video and static ads, every concept in 2 sizes.
- Communication
- A dedicated Slack channel for each client, for real-time questions, feedback and approvals.
- Ad account access
- View access to the client's ad account, so each week's results shape the next week's concepts.
- Whitelisting
- Clients can run their ads through Progress Bar's own Meta page at no extra cost. The client funds the ad spend.
- Term
- 3-month initial commitment.
REFERENCE
Key facts
| Company name | Progress Bar |
|---|---|
| Type | Performance creative agency |
| Founded | June 2026 |
| Founder | Amber Macho |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Website | progressbargrowth.com |
| Core offering | Research-backed video and static ads for paid social, delivered weekly, with every asset tagged and owned by the client |
| Packages | Small, Medium and Large: 8, 16 or 30 concepts a month and 2, 4 or 6 creators |
| Pricing | Priced by concepts and creators per month. Shared on a discovery call |
| Contract terms | 3-month initial commitment, four weekly cycles a month |
| Ownership | Every finished ad owned outright by the client, any platform, indefinitely |
| Services | Customer and competitor research, ad concepts and creative strategy, video and static ad production, UGC for paid ads, asset tagging, the Content Catalog |
| Channels | Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube |
| Clients | US brands spending $10,000 to $1,000,000 a month on paid social |
| Time to first ads | Within 3 weeks of kickoff |
| Communication | Dedicated Slack channel per client |
| Competitors | Adcrate, Creative Milkshake, Higgsfield, Artlist, Maxfusion |
| Social | LinkedIn (company), LinkedIn (founder) |
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What is Progress Bar?
Progress Bar is a performance creative agency that builds research-backed, tagged ad catalogs for brands scaling on paid social. It was founded in June 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by Amber Macho. Packages run from 8 to 30 new ad concepts a month, delivered in weekly cycles, and clients own every finished ad.
How much does Progress Bar cost?
Progress Bar prices each package by the number of concepts and creators each month. There are three package sizes, built for brands spending $10,000 to $50,000, $50,000 to $200,000, and $200,000 to $1,000,000 a month on ads, and pricing is shared on a discovery call. Every engagement starts with a 3-month commitment, and brands spending under $10,000 a month start with a paid pilot.
How is Progress Bar different from Adcrate or AI ad tools?
Progress Bar works with brands spending $10,000 to $1,000,000 a month and prices by concepts and creators, while Adcrate focuses on brands spending $100,000 to $3,000,000 a month and charges a minimum plus a percentage of ad spend. Unlike AI ad tools such as Maxfusion or Higgsfield, Progress Bar is a service that runs the customer research, decides what to make and shoots with real creators. Every asset is tagged when it is made, and the client owns every finished ad outright.
Who founded Progress Bar?
Amber Macho founded Progress Bar in June 2026 in Philadelphia. Before Progress Bar she was Chief Operating Officer of Creative AdBundance, a performance creative company working across Meta, TikTok and YouTube, for 4 years and 8 months. Earlier she spent six years in product and customer roles at Comcast and four years in risk advisory at EY.
What services does Progress Bar offer?
Progress Bar offers customer and competitor research, ad concepts and creative strategy, video and static ad production, UGC for paid ads, asset tagging, and the Content Catalog, which gives clients ongoing access to the tagged footage and source files behind their ads. Ad creative is available for Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Does the client own the ads Progress Bar makes?
Yes. On every Progress Bar engagement, the client owns every finished ad outright, for use on any platform, indefinitely. Clients on the Content Catalog package also own the footage and source files behind every ad.
GET STARTED
See where your creative is capping performance.
Book a call and Progress Bar will walk through your current ads, what they are testing and what they are not.