Display-Ad Analysis

The basic difference is that you have more room in which to emphasize the "master formula." Most successful copywriters rate the headline and/or the lead sentence of an ad as the most important part of the ad, and in reality, you should do the same.

After all, when your ad is surrounded by hundreds of other ads, and information or entertainment, what makes you think anyone is going to see your particular display-ad? The truth is, they're not going to see your ad unless you can "grab" their attention and entice them to read all of what you have to say. Your headline, or lead sentence when no headline is used, has to make it more difficult for your prospect to ignore or pass over, than to stop and read your ad.

If you don't capture the attention of your reader with your headline in you display-ad, anything beyond is useless effort and wasted money. Successful advertising headlines - in classified ads, your first three to five words serve as your headline - are written as promises, either implied or direct. The former promises to show you how to save money, make money, or attain a desired goal. The latter is a warning against something undesirable.

EXAMPLE OF A PROMISE: Are You Ready To Become A Millionaire - In Just 18 Months?

EXAMPLE OF A WARNING: Do You Make These Mistakes In English?

In both of these examples, I've posed a question as the headline. Headlines that ask a question seem to attract the reader's attention almost as surely as a moth is drawn to a flame. Once he's seen the question, he just can't seem to keep himself from reading the rest of the ad to find out the answer. The best headline questions are those that challenge the reader; that involve his self-esteem, and do not allow him to dismiss your question with a simple yes or no.

You'll be the envy of your friends is another kind of "reader appeal" to incorporate into your headline whenever appropriate. The appeal has to do with basic psychology: everyone wants to be well thought of, and consequently, will read into the body of your ad to find out how he can gain the respect and accolades of his friends.

Wherever and whenever possible, use colloquialisms or words that are not usually found in advertisements. The idea is to shock or shake the reader out of his reverie and cause him to take notice of your ad. Most of the headlines you see day in and day out, have a certain sameness with just the words rearranged. The reader may see these headlines with his eyes, but his brain fails to focus on any of them because there's nothing different or out of the ordinary to arrest his attention.

EXAMPLE OF COLLOQUIALISM: Are You Developing A POT BELLY?

Another attention-grabber kind of head-line is the comparative price headline: Three For Only $3, Regularly $3 Each! Still another of the "tried and proven" kind of headlines is the specific question: Do You Suffer From These Symptoms. And of course, if you offer a strong guarantee, you should say so in your headline: Your Money Refunded, If You Don't Make $100,000 Your First Year.

How To headlines have a very strong basic appeal, but in some instances, they're better used as book titles than advertising headlines. Who Else wants in on the finer things - which your product or service presumably offers - is another approach with a very strong reader appeal. The psychology here being the need of everyone to belong to a group - complete with status and prestige motivations.

Whenever, and as often as you can possibly work it in, you should use the word "you" in your headline, and throughout your copy. After all, your ad should be directed to "one" person, and the person reading your ad wants to feel that you're talking to him personally, not everyone who lives on his street.

Personalize, and be specific! You can throw the teachings of your English teachers out the window, and the rules of "third person, singular" or whatever else tends to inhibit your writing. Whenever you sit down to write advertising copy in tended to pull the orders - sell the product - you should picture yourself in a one-on-one situation and "talk" to your reader just as if you sitting across from him at your dining room table. Say what you mean, and sell HIM on the product your offering.

Be specific and ask him if these are the things that bother him - are these the things he wants - and he's the one you want to buy the product... The layout you devise for your ad, or the frame you build around it, should also command attention. Either make it so spectacular that it stands out like lobster at a chili dinner, or so uncommonly simple that it catches the reader's eye because of its very simplicity. It's also important that you don't get cute with a lot of unrelated graphics and artwork. Your ad should convey the feeling of excitement and movement, but should not tire the eyes or disrupt the flow of the message you're trying to present.

Any graphics or artwork you use should be relevant to your product, its use and/or the copy you've written about it. Graphics should not be used as artistic touches, or to create an atmosphere. Any illustrations with your ad should compliment the selling of your product, and prove or substantiate specific points in your copy.

Once you have your reader's attention, the only way you're going to keep it, is by quickly and emphatically telling him what your product will do for him. Your potential buyer doesn't care in the least how long it's taken you to produce the product, how long you've been in business, nor how many years you've spent learning your craft. He wants to know specifically how he's going to benefit from the purchase of your product.

Generally, his wants will fall into one of the following categories: Better health, more comfort, more money, more leisure time, more popularity, greater beauty, success and/or security. Even though you have your reader's attention, you must follow through with an enumeration of the benefits he can gain.

In essence, you must reiterate the advantages, comfort and happiness he'll enjoy - as you have implied in your headline. Mentally picture your prospect - determine his wants and emotional needs - put yourself in his shoes, and ask yourself If I were reading this ad, what are the things that would appeal to me? Write your copy to appeal to your reader's wants and emotional needs/ego cravings.

Remember, it's not the "safety features" that have sold cars for the past 50 years - nor has it been the need of transportation - it has been, and almost certainly always will be the advertising writer's recognition of people's wants and emotional needs/ego cravings. Visualize your prospect, recognize his wants and satisfy them.

Writing good advertising copy is nothing more or less than knowing "who" your buyers are; recognizing what he wants; and then telling him how your product will fulfill each of those wants, Remember this because it's one of the "vitally important" keys to writing advertising copy that does the job you intend for it to do. The "desire" portion of your ad is where you present the facts of your product; create and justify your prospect's conviction, and cause him to demand "a piece of the action" for himself.

It's vitally necessary that you present "proven facts" about your product because survey results show that at least 8% of the people reading your ad - especially those reading it for the first time - Will tend to question its authenticity. So, the more facts you can present in the ad, the more credible your offer. As you write this part of your ad, always remember that the more facts about the product you present, the more product you'll sell.

People want facts as reasons, and/or excuses for buying a product - to justify to themselves and others, that they haven't been "taken" by a slick copywriter. It's like the girl who wants to marry the guy her father calls a "no good bum." Her heart - her emotions - tell her yes, but she needs facts to nullify the seed of doubt lingering in her mind - to rationalize her decision to go on with the wedding.

In other words, the "desire" portion of your ad has to build belief and credibility in the mind of your prospect. It has to assure him of his good judgement in the final decision to buy - furnish evidence of the benefits you've promised - and afford him a "safety net" in case anyone should question his decision to buy. People tend to believe the things that appeal to their individual desires, fears and other emotions. Once you've established a belief in this manner, logic and reasoning are used to support it.

People believe what they "want" to believe. Your reader "wants" to believe your ad if he's read it through this far - it's up to you to support his initial desire. Study your product and everything about it - visualize the wants of your prospective buyers - dig up the facts, and you'll almost always find plenty of facts to support the buyer's reasons for buying. Here is where you use results of test conducted, growing sales figures to prove increasing popularity, and "user" testimonials or endorsements.

It's also important that you present these fact - test results, sales figures, and/or testimonials - from the consumer point of view, and not that of the manufacturer Before you end this portion of your ad and get into your demand for action, summarize everything you've presented thus far. Draw a mental picture for your potential buyer.

Let him imagine owning the product. Induce him to visualize all of the benefits you've promised. Give him the keys to seeing himself richer, enjoying luxury, having time to do whatever he'd like to do, and with all of his dreams fulfilled. This can be handled in one or two sentences, or spelled out in a paragraph or more, but it's the absolute ingredient you must include prior to closing the sale.

Study all the sales presentations you've ever heard - look at every winning ad - this the element included in all of them that actually makes the sale for you. Remember it, use it, and don't try to sell anything without it. As Victor Schwab puts it 90 succinctly in his best-selling book, How To Write A Good Advertisement: Every one of the fundamentals in the "master formula" is necessary. Those people who are -easy' to sell may perhaps be sold even if some of these factors are left out, but it's wiser to plan your advertisement go that it will have a powerful impact upon those who are "hardest" to sell, For, unlike face-to-face selling, we cannot in printed advertising come to a "trial close" in our sales talk - in order to gee if those who are easier to sell will welcome the dotted line without further persuasion.

We must assume that we are talking to the hardest ones - and that the more thoroughly our copy sells both the hard and the easy, the better chance we have against the competition for the consumer dollars - and also the less dependent we will be upon the usual completely ineffective follow-through on our advertising effort which later takes place at the sales counter itself.