It never fails. You see a print, outdoor or online ad for a company, review it a couple of times, and still can’t figure out what the company does or sells.
That’s bad, and usually a waste of a company’s marketing resources.
While advertisements certainly need to be catchy and smart, companies sometimes go overboard, and even out of their way, to leave a lot for the consumer to figure out. In a world where people are touched by thousands of messages a day and are usually unengaged, especially with what you are trying to sell to them, don’t leave it to chance. You have to bang consumers over the head a bunch of times, as it is, to get their attention. Why make it even harder?
Don’t get this marketer wrong: You definitely want your ads to be compelling and memorable. A great photo with headline that grabs the audience’s attention is important. But you’ve always got to come home with your message. Make sure you say who you are, what you offer and how to find out more.
Less is usually more when developing copy for advertisements. Keeping ads elegant makes the words you do choose count. Don’t feel like you have to fill the entire ad with words. In fact, some ads that pack the most impact are often filled with lots of white space.
Effectively conceptualized billboards that are well-designed are the best examples of elegant, to-the-point-advertisements. If you can read an outdoor advertisement at 65 mph, that first gets your attention with a great headline or image, then in just a few words explains what the advertiser offers and how to buy it — that’s a simple message that gets the job done.
If you run marketing for a larger organization, take ownership of your company’s advertising. This is especially important when your organization seems to always turn into a bake sale committee of wannabe experts from every department, telling you to cram every possible idea into an ad.
Advertising needs to be compelling and resourceful. That means keeping it simple and not wasting money on ads that you have to be an MIT graduate to figure out. Get to the point. Consumers are usually too busy to connect the dots.
Remember, make sure your ads say who you are, what you offer and how to get it.
Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303.
