| ||
| ||
|
Advertising Information | |
|
|
How You Can Create Advertising That Sells
A well-planned and properly executed marketing program should include a sufficient commitment of capital resources to an on-going, well executed advertising program. Yes, this includes your business. Businesses spend too many dollars, however, on ads that simply will not result in increased sales and profits. These ads are poorly conceived, poorly written, poorly designed, poorly targeted, and poorly placed. Sounds like a poor way to do business, doesn't it? I often ask clients (as tactfully as possible), why they have run a particular ad. I get a lot of blank stares. A few tense moments will pass while the client tries to think of a clever answer. "To get the company name out in front of the public so I can get more business." they reply, with some relief. This poor soul has just described a lack of a well defined goal, which leads almost inevitably to what I call an institutional ad. An institutional ad can best be described as one which identifies the advertiser and lists address, telephone number, hours of operation, and (maybe) the company logo. That's it. What a terrible waste of money! Unless your company grosses a billion dollars a year, you can't afford to do institutional ads. If your company does gross over a billion dollars a year...you're probably too smart to run institutional ads. Every ad you run must result in increased sales and profits and an enhanced image for your company. Every ad should make the customer a solid offer and give the customer sound reasons to buy from you now. Remember, the customer is sitting back and asking, "What can you do for me?" If you're careful to answer that question with a powerful offer and reasons to buy now, you're on your way to advertising success...which results in increased sales and profits. How can you improve your chances of increasing sales? Let's look at some profit-producing ideas... SEEK PROFESSIONAL HELP Very few businesses are prepared or qualified to produce quality advertising. If you spend more than $2,000 per month in advertising, you should seriously consider hiring a qualified advertising professional. There are any number of skilled freelancers who can develop strategy, and create your marketing materials with a keen eye to using proven methods and techniques. Good advertising talent always pays it's own way through increased sales and profits, improved cost-effectiveness, reduced selling costs, and shortened selling cycles. If your resources are limited, don't feel lost. There's no reason why you can't learn to write an effective ad. That's what the rest of this article is all about...how *you* can create advertising that sells. FOLLOW A PROVEN FORMULA One of the oldest and most useful formulas for ad design takes its name from the opera Aida by Giuseppe Verde. In this case the letters A-I-D-A stand for ATTENTION, INTEREST, DESIRE, AND ACTION. In it's simplest form this formula serves as a structural blueprint. It guides us to: (1) Get the prospect's Attention, (2) Foster his or her Interest in your offer, (3) build Desire for your product or service and (4) Generate some type of Action on the part of the buyer. As we expand on each of these elements individually, you'll discover for yourself how to apply the formula to your specific situation. ATTENTION (The Headline) Hit your prospect right between the eyes with a magic wand. How? With a powerful benefit headline. The headline is the most important single element of your ad. You have two to three seconds to stop the reader as he or she passes by. You must stop the reader, and interest them in your benefit, if you expect them to read further. A powerful headline will (1) stop the reader (2) isolate and qualify your best prospects, and (3) pull your reader into the sub-heads and body copy. How do you write the attention-getting headline? First, carefully review all the benefits of-use of your product or service. Second, take your most important benefit and weave that benefit into your headline. Use action words to describe the benefit to one individual reader. Here are some examples... "Save 50% On Office Supplies...Send For Your Free Catalog Today !" "How YOU Can Create Advertising That SELLS!" "New! Amazing Techniques That You Can Use To Land A High-Paying Job...Today!" "How To Design Profit-Producing Web Sites That SELL!" APPEALING TO BUSINESS EXECUTIVES When writing your ad to a business-to-business audience you should keep in mind the six key benefits most likely to get attention: 1.Save Money 2.Save Time 3.Increase Sales 4.Increase Profits 5.Enhance Image 6.Boost cash flow Most other benefits are subordinate to these key six. I call them the"Business Benefit Six-Pack." Show your customer how your product or service provides these benefits, and you will dramatically improve your results. INTEREST AND DESIRE> (The Offer, Body Copy, Benefits-Benefits- Benefits) You build interest in your product or service (and the desire to buy) by making the customer a compelling offer and by describing as many benefits as possible in simple and interesting terms. Tip # 1: Top ad pros always write the ad first, then buy whatever space necessary to display the ad message with clarity and power. Tip # 2: Words sell...graphic design displays the words in a visually appealing way. Don't confuse the two. No amount of trendy design will make a poorly written ad sell for you. Good design reinforces good copy...it cannot take the place of it! The implication for internet marketers is that content is king. Avoid glitsy, moving graphics that only distract from your message and increase load times. Good design and good copy should work synergistically. Tip #3: Long copy sells...as long as it's good copy. I call it "greased slide" copy. You get the reader on the top of the slide when he reads a powerful headline, and he can't get off until he has taken the action asked for (i.e., ordered the product, made the trip to the store, dialed the phone, clicked the order/inquiry button, filled out the on-line order, etc.). ACTION(Ask For The Order) Now comes the moment of truth. You must ask for the order. Give reasons for the customer to buy now...and make it easy for him to do so. In direct response marketing, this will involve a coupon for mail orders, a toll-free order line, an e-mail address, an on-line order form, a fax order line..any means to make it easy and simple to order! Take the fear out of the purchase. Give solid guarantees. Offer secure ordering for on-line customers. Show testimonials from satisfied customers. Show what the customer is going to lose if he doesn't order now. If you are a retailer, include a map to your store(s) (newcomers love them). Show the credit cards you accept, list the hours of operation, tell them about your friendly staff, include a special coupon or other incentive. In other words, "Roll out the red carpet." INVEST IN FUTURE PROFITS So there you have it. A primer on good advertising. If I've piqued your interest to learn more, then check out the other articles available at this resource. Remember, bad advertising...no matter what the media...is an unproductive expense. Good advertising is an investment in future profits! Good advertising and good management go together. You can't have a successful business on-line or off-line---without both. Thom Reece is CEO of Online Marketing Resource Center [http://www.E-ComProfits.com] and publisher of "Thom Reece's Web Marketing Strategies & Techniques Newsletter". Free subscripton at: http://www.WMSTDirect.com, mailto:thom@e-comprofits.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Advertising - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
How To Make Your Yellow Page Ads Work I hear it often, "advertising in the Yellow Pages directory doesn't work!" I smile knowingly and wait for a pause in the conversation, and this is what I say in response to their claims?"It's not the medium - it's the message?and it's probable the market too!" Blank stares often accompany that opening statement. But they do work - and they work well? IF you know how to use them. 13 Facts About Newspaper Advertising Advertising in the paper works for many people in business. The astute merchant understands the newspaper's weaknesses and works to avoid them whenever possible. A Lesson In Advertising From The Eighteenth Century Back in the 1760s, the great Dr Samuel Johnson delivered himself of the dictum that 'promise, large promise is the soul of advertising'. It's a good thought, a great thought; and I contend that what was true then is equally true today. Classified Ads That Get Results Classified ads do not have the big market appeal that a full color display ad has, but they are still one of the most economical ways to get your business into the public eye. And, because classifieds do not demand expensive eye-catching designs or ingenious wording that you often see in direct-mail campaigns, they are a perfect marketing avenue for even new entrepreneurs. 7 Unique Ways To Get FREE Advertising 1. Give Testimonials When you purchase a product or service and it exceeds your expectations e-mail the business a testimonial. Information To Include On Your Business Card The logo and graphic elements that you include on your business card are quite important, but having the right text and contact information on the card is equally important. Here are our tips about the elements to include:Your name - Consider whether you want to include your middle name or initial, degrees or professional credentials that are unique to your field. Should You Advertise on TV? When people discover my background in advertising, the questions flow. One of the most frequent questions is "Should I advertise on TV?"I can't answer that questions until I ask a number of questions first. Increase Business By Being Nice I have been reading articles on increasing sales using search engine optimisation as well as writing them for a very long time and I have not seen many which point out the best way to increase sales.The answer is obvious yet often overlooked; you just have to be as good to your customers as you would expect any other site owner to treat you. Persistant Advertising Will Do No Harm! From my experience, I've been on many discussion groups and have spoken to many other like minded people. The one topic that always seems to arise is how to get massive sales right away. 11 Ways To Make Your Business Cards Work For You 1. Spend money on decent quality business cards. Joint Ventures Increase Profits Quickly A joint venture is when two or more businesses join together to work on a project for a set period of time. Doing joint ventures with other businesses can increase your chances of beating your competition, increase your sales and increase your profits quickly. Vinyl Banners for the Right Occasion The sinage marketplace is competitive! Consequently, some companies are going to focus on price and neglect quality. To complicate the situation, companies that produce stock vinyl banner material offer a bevy of different materials based on weights/thickness, color, reflective properties, ink absorption properties, etc. Direct Response Advertising; Radio vs TV Radio advertising vs. television advertisingMany new advertisers assume that they should start on radio and "move up" sometime later to TV. Make Your Business Cards Work What's the cheapest, most under-used marketing tool you have?The answer's no secret .. The Power of... You certainly must know that Many Big Marketers consider COPYWRITING to be the most important skill you need to be earning online.There's a lot of good copywriting around. Advertainment is Sneaking Into Music, Movies, TV and More The very name "advertainment" sends thrilling vibrations up the spine of anyone with marketing in their blood or communication in their genes. And it produces a strong shiver of disgust from many of my colleagues in the music industry. Commercial: Consumer - Discounts - Misleading Advertising Marketing is an important tool for attracting customers. It is commonplace to see banners announcing bargains of "70% off the retail price. 3 Elements To A Deal-Sealing Classified Ad Have you ever wondered why your perfectly fine classified ad fails to attract the attention you desire? There should be dozens-no, hundreds-of perspective buyers swamping your e-mail inbox with offers. After all, you are offering a mint baseball card, a vintage coat, pristine used car, those wholesale-priced sporting goods, and whatever other attractive items are in your inventory. How to Use the 3 Most Common Direct Marketing Measurements to Increase Your Profits! John Wanamaker, a 19th century entrepreneur, once famously made the statement, "I know that half of my advertising is wasted, I just don't know which half." Fortunately for today's marketers, there are scientific ways to determine which half is wasted, and which half is not, through the use of common direct marketing measurements. Marketing Advertising, While Advertising Your Market! Today in the Business world whether online or off, it seems that everyone is vying for position, yet few are able to leap to the forefront of their competition.On the Internet there are thousands of programs and Business Opportunities being created every month or so it seems! Everyone is trying to find his or her niche in the Business world.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
