Creating Advertisements that Attract Attention
When asked what he thought was the greatest slogan he’d ever heard, an advertising industry luminary responded, “Farm-Fresh Eggs Sold Here.”
Cutting through the serenity of a back country road, the sign demands your attention. If you’ve ever enjoyed sunny-side-up and scrambled varieties, “farm-fresh eggs” sparks your interest and fills you with desire. All at once, the words “sold here” command you to stop the car and take action. To buy.
This short headline captures the four-part formula for effective content for your advertisements. Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action.
Attention
If you know what your customers want, it’s not hard to get their attention. Just think about the greatest benefit your product or service can provide and feature it unabashedly.
For example, if you’re selling snowblowers, there’s nothing wrong with a big, bold headline that says something as clever as “January Sale” or as personal as “Save your Back”. Both headlines sell from different points of view.
Whichever angle you decide to take, your beginning will be most successful when you get right to the point: “How much time do you lose to computer crashes every week?” Make them think; grab their attention.
Interest
Once you have a customer’s attention, don’t disappoint. Hold their interest with important, relevant details about what you’re selling. In the case of a headline such as the “January Sale” or “Save your Back”, show a picture of the snowblower. Or at least write a very clear, bold statement that you are talking about a snowblower.
Short, simple sentences in your text body keep a reader’s interest best. As does believable, everyday language. Readers, for instance, tend to tune out clichés like “We are committed to providing the ultimate in quality and service.” Instead, try saying, “We have hundreds of satisfied customers. If you’re not happy with our service, we’ll give you’re your money back.” This proves quality and service.
Desire
Desire is key to getting your customer excited about what you’re selling. Give your customer the opportunity to imagine what it’s like to own or use your product.
You can build desire with an eye-pleasing photo of a new ski-jacket. You can use a detailed description that helps your reader nearly feel the microfibers adjust to their body temperature, keeping them warm on the life and cool on the slopes. Or you could use both.
The key to building desire is to focus on benefits, not features. A feature tells you what the product has, such as a “hyper-fast internet connection.” Benefits, on the other hand, tell you how that feature improves your life. A hyper-fast internet connection lets you “listen to music on the Internet without jarring pauses, and lets you get more work done in less time.”
Action
Now that you have people’s attention, interest, and desire, don’t forget to ask for the order. It’s not enough to say “Buy now.” Give a compelling reason to visit your store or call your company immediately.
For instance, advertise your limited stock. “First come, first served” compels action. So does “This offer expires September 26.” Most businesses notice that they get more responses when they put an expiration date on the offer.
Be clear, be direct. Effective content woos customers in and instructs them in how to make a move to buy.
Don’t be intimidated, the appeal can be simple to make. Make your advertisements bold, confident, and brief. If you can get them excited, customers will come for more.
