How to do it
People skim through newspapers and magazines and they aren't
necessarily looking for information on products or services
(unless they're reading the classifieds) It's therefore
absolutely vital that your advertisement grabs their
attention and encourages them to read more. Many ads are
designed merely to create awareness of a product or service,
however, small to medium size businesses need a result.
Use words that attract attention in your headline - The two
most powerful words in a headline are - YOU and FREE. Other
great headline words are - How to - New - The Secrets of -
Amazing - Breakthrough - Announcing - Discover - Protect -
Facts you - At last
Don't worry too much about a photograph or a graphic - A
good headline is what you need to grab attention and
differentiate you from your competitors. There are several
ads in my local paper for plumbers. All but one has the name
of the plumbing business at the top of the ad - "Fred Smith
Plumbers." One of the ads has "DYNAMIC PLUMBERS" at the top
of the ad. I had to read more to find out what made this
plumbing service "DYNAMIC." To me - one plumber is much like
another; however, this one grabbed my interest.
Offer something free - A sample - an hour of your time -
information - a drink - a coffee - some food - a place for
children to play - a book - an audio or video tape. Offer
something that has a high perceived value for the customer
but a low cost for you. Remember - you want them to respond
to your ad, not your competitors.
Use simple language - Get to your point FAST - remember,
people will only spend a few seconds looking at your ad, so
don't beat around the bush.
Offer benefits - Tell the customer how your product or
service benefits them or solves their problems. Don't start
sentences with - "We do ……." start with - "You will ……."
No jargon - Watch out for abbreviations, jargon, buzz words
and technical information. You might understand the language
but does the customer?
Don't be boring - Don't use words like -"Quality service"
(What does that mean?) - "Established in 1862" (Who cares) -
"We provide an individual service" (Doesn't everybody?) Look
at what some of your competitors say in their advertising
and do something different.
Touch the emotions - Make your ad look and sound human, warm
and friendly. Perhaps put a name in - "Call Jim now for a
FREE quotation."
Use testimonials - Put in the names of people and businesses
that you've worked with and what they said (with their
permission of course)
Call for action - Your advertisement must prompt people to
do something. You must ask them to phone you - come and see
you - ask you to see them or place an order - NOW! Make it
as easy as possible for them to do that - a free phone
number - a freepost address - a simple tear-off coupon to
complete - something free or any other incentive for them to
take action NOW!
People skim through newspapers and magazines and they aren't
necessarily looking for information on products or services
(unless they're reading the classifieds) It's therefore
absolutely vital that your advertisement grabs their
attention and encourages them to read more. Many ads are
designed merely to create awareness of a product or service,
however, small to medium size businesses need a result.
Use words that attract attention in your headline - The two
most powerful words in a headline are - YOU and FREE. Other
great headline words are - How to - New - The Secrets of -
Amazing - Breakthrough - Announcing - Discover - Protect -
Facts you - At last
Don't worry too much about a photograph or a graphic - A
good headline is what you need to grab attention and
differentiate you from your competitors. There are several
ads in my local paper for plumbers. All but one has the name
of the plumbing business at the top of the ad - "Fred Smith
Plumbers." One of the ads has "DYNAMIC PLUMBERS" at the top
of the ad. I had to read more to find out what made this
plumbing service "DYNAMIC." To me - one plumber is much like
another; however, this one grabbed my interest.
Offer something free - A sample - an hour of your time -
information - a drink - a coffee - some food - a place for
children to play - a book - an audio or video tape. Offer
something that has a high perceived value for the customer
but a low cost for you. Remember - you want them to respond
to your ad, not your competitors.
Use simple language - Get to your point FAST - remember,
people will only spend a few seconds looking at your ad, so
don't beat around the bush.
Offer benefits - Tell the customer how your product or
service benefits them or solves their problems. Don't start
sentences with - "We do ……." start with - "You will ……."
No jargon - Watch out for abbreviations, jargon, buzz words
and technical information. You might understand the language
but does the customer?
Don't be boring - Don't use words like -"Quality service"
(What does that mean?) - "Established in 1862" (Who cares) -
"We provide an individual service" (Doesn't everybody?) Look
at what some of your competitors say in their advertising
and do something different.
Touch the emotions - Make your ad look and sound human, warm
and friendly. Perhaps put a name in - "Call Jim now for a
FREE quotation."
Use testimonials - Put in the names of people and businesses
that you've worked with and what they said (with their
permission of course)
Call for action - Your advertisement must prompt people to
do something. You must ask them to phone you - come and see
you - ask you to see them or place an order - NOW! Make it
as easy as possible for them to do that - a free phone
number - a freepost address - a simple tear-off coupon to
complete - something free or any other incentive for them to
take action NOW!
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