by Andre Bell
Billions are spent on
advertising every year. Most of it is wasted.
This is because few advertisers really consider what it takes to get
people to buy. Instead they attempt to be funny or clever, hoping
the ad will be remembered over time.
That's a HUGE mistake.
As you are about to
learn, getting people to remember you later is
the last thing you should be shooting for.
So if getting people to
remember you isn't the purpose of
advertising, what is its purpose?
Read on and you will
discover what 90% of Madison Avenue ad agents
either don't know, or don't want you to find out. Fixing these
mistakes in your advertising will increase your ads effectiveness
and response by 500%-10,000% and actually save you money on over-
priced "image" ads that do nothing but drain money out of your
pockets.
Read on and remove
these mistakes from your ads and finally start
making real, measurable money from your advertising.
1. Failure To
Understand The REAL Purpose Of Advertising.
Ask any ad agent the
reason to advertise and they will say things
like, `exposure', `to be seen', or `to get your name out there'.
These concepts may all
sound logical but reality is that none of
these ideas can put money into your pockets or cover the expense of
the ad themselves. Image ads are designed to appeal to you and your
sense of feeling good about seeing your image professionally
displayed.
Image ads do nothing
more than show your picture and contact
information and perhaps a slogan such as `we care', `we try harder',
or some other phrase that anyone else can also claim.
That is all wrong for small business.
Clients are more skeptical today than ever before. They don't
believe these slogans and are not drawn to image ads (unless you are
unusually attractive). Besides, it takes five to seven years of that
kind of `image' advertising before people to permanently remember
who you are—and still, there is no guarantee they will do business
with you.
The idea that people
need to see your ad 6-12 times before they'll
remember you is a fallacy. Having them remember you later is far
less important than having them take action and do business with
you, or at the very least identify themselves to you, now!
The real purpose of
advertising is to generate sales. This includes
attract new business, get existing clients to buy more, and get past
clients to come back. Nothing else matters but sales. Period!
"The only purpose of advertising is to make sales"
Claude Hopkins--Scientific Advertising
"The only
objective, reality-based measure of any ad is sales"
Ted Nicholas-Magic Words That Bring You Riches
This report will show
you how to get better results that are
actually predictable and measurable and will show you how to make
every dollar you invest in advertising fully accountable.
The first step begins
with recognizing that the only reason to
advertise is to make money. Once you agree with that, all else comes
easy.
2. Failure To
Acknowledge Prospects Fears
To boost response to
your offers allow people to reply or request
free information via recorded voice mail or other human-free form of
contact. Expecting complete strangers to feel comfortable picking up
the phone and calling you for the first time is a mistake.
Even if they want what
you have to offer most people are afraid of
wasting their time and afraid of high pressure salespeople. They
have questions and are afraid to ask because they think some pushy
salesperson will show up at their door unannounced (yeah, this still
happens in this day and age) or pressure them by phone.
To get over this fear
make certain to mention in your ads that free
information, free samples, or whatever are available via 24 hour
recorded messages.
But don't blow it once
they call. There is one thing you can say in
your recorded message that will cause 80% of callers to hang up.
Almost everyone who
uses recorded messages is making this same
mistake and losing business. Your results from offering 24 hour
recorded message will still be better than running a lame image ad,
but only about 20% as effective as it could be. You can learn how to
eliminate the one word that will cause 80% of your callers to hang
up in my advanced advertising and marketing guide available through
my site.
3. Failure To Make
Advertising Success Your Responsibility
Most people who
advertise leave advertising in the hands of ad
agents. They feel that since ad agents are in the business of
creating ads, the agent must know what works. This is a huge
mistake! Ad agents are nothing more than commissioned sales reps.
Their one and only goal
is to get your signature on their billing
contract.
A good ad agent will
help you get the most from your ad dollars
among their many publications, placement, deadlines, etc. But they
should NEVER be trusted to create an ad for you. Never!
There are two reasons
you should never trust ad agents to create
your ads for you.
First is because it
takes years to understand what makes people buy.
I've been writing ads and studying copywriting in my own businesses
and for others for 27 years. I've read nearly 2,000 books on
selling, marketing, copywriting, psychology, neuro-linquistic
programming, and nearly every business subject imaginable--and still
do not know everything. Not even close. No one does.
In most cases your ad
agent has not studied copywriting or sales
psychology. They are not trained to understand what makes people
buy.
They are trained in ad
layout, design concepts, company policies,
and sales closing techniques to get YOU to buy advertising in their
media.
You must take much of
what they say about ad success with a grain of
salt because their one and only goal is to get you to buy ads over
and over and over again.
The second reason not
to put make ad agents responsible for creating
ads that sell is because results is not their job. It is yours.
Their job is to provide
you a place to communicate your message.
Results and ad content
are your responsibility.
This report will give
you the tools you need to create ads that are
1000 times better than any ad your ad agent can create for you.
These concepts are
focused on one thing. Results!
"Guru" Ad
Secrets (& stupid mistakes advertisers make)
Many of the following
copywriting secrets can give you as much as
1900% increase in advertising response when properly adopted.
Cumulatively adopting all that apply to your ad can give you as much
as 10,000% or more increase in response and effectiveness than you
are seeing now. But don't take my word for it, try it yourself and
see. You'll be glad you did.
This is of course
assuming you have corrected the first three
mistakes already mentioned.
4. Headline Is Missing
Or Inappropriate.
The most important
element of your advertisement is its headline.
The headline is any word, phrase, picture, sound, question, or any
other element used to capture the attention of your prospective
client. If your ad fails to capture attention your efforts are lost.
This is because 90% of
the ads effectiveness is based on capturing
attention; the headline. Make certain your headline appeals to your
prospective client's self-interest or curiosity.
5. Missing Call To
Action.
You advertise because
you want your reader or listener to do
something; come into your office, call you, visit your website,
place an order by phone, or whatever. So why not tell your client to
do these things? You wouldn't normally expect teenagers to clean
their rooms or handle their chores without telling or asking or
training them to do so. It's no different with ads. You must ask or
tell your prospect to act, or else most won't. Infomercials are
kings of action. "Call now", "pick up the phone" "order
now". They
leave no room for guessing the next action to take. You must not
either.
6. Contact information
excluded from ad (this is horrible and
inexcusable).
You must make it easy
for people to buy from you. Where appropriate
list your address, phone number, website, fax, email, etc. If they
can't find you they can't buy from you.
Look through any
newspaper or local weekly and you will find at
least one or two ads that have absolutely no contact information
whatsoever. The advertiser (foolishly) assumes that everybody who's
interested knows where and how to find them. This is stupid! Most
people will call someone who makes it easy for them to buy. I'm
looking right now at a spa ad that appeared in a local newspaper
that says:
"1 Year Free! Buy
Now, Pay Later.
No Down
No Interest
No Payments
For
12 Months!"
Guess what's missing
from this ad. Yep. The contact information.
Despite this being a
larger ad the company name is missing, the
address is missing, there's no phone number or website or anything
at all that will allow someone who wants to take advantage of this
offer to buy this spa.
I called 411
information. No luck. I checked google.com and I
checked yahoo.com. Still no luck.
I tried to locate the
local advertiser online by tracing the
manufacturer information for this spa. Still no luck in finding who
ran this ad.
Most people won't go to
such lengths to try to buy (and even if they
did it wouldn't have helped). So these ad dollars were completely
wasted.
Make certain not to
exclude contact information from your ads.
Otherwise your ad dollars will be wasted too.
7. No specific offer.
Remember, the reason to
advertise is to generate sales.
An ad cannot sell for
you if there is nothing in the ad to buy. Most
ads do NOT include an offer of a product or service to buy. Most ads
simply list the company name, a list of services, a photo of the
owner or product, and some lame slogan. If you sold baseballs and
you were advertising because you wanted people to buy the baseballs,
what should be in your ad? Yep. Baseballs. Maybe a sale of 2-for-1,
coupon for free baseball glove with each baseball purchased, or
something baseball-related to get people to respond now.
I can't understand why
most companies pay for what is nothing more
than an oversized and glorified business card instead of an ad
featuring a product or service they want you to buy. Instead,
advertise a free report or sample that appeals to your target market
so you can at least identify the people who want what you are
selling. Then you can later follow up that interest in person, by
phone, by mail, newsletter, via the internet or whatever.
If you want people to
buy what you are selling then you must
advertise something related to the product or service that you are
selling. Or advertise the product or service itself. It's a no
brainer.
Here's a clever example
of an offer I just read: "$500.00 Grocery
Shopping Spree Certificate at the close of escrow when you buy from
me". I've no idea if home buyers are concerned with this offer or
not. I do know that this is a better ad than a photo of the realtor
and some lame slogan like, `we're number one' or `we care more'.
Though there are other
mistakes in his ad, my hat's off to this guy
named Ben for at least trying something different and for
advertising a specific offer
8. Emphasizing features
rather than benefits.
Features do not sell,
benefits sell. Most ads fail to
answer `w.i.i.f.m.' What's In It For Me. Appeal to your client's
wants, needs, values, and interests instead of talking about
yourself or your product or service and your ad response will more
than double. I guarantee it!
9. No sense of urgency
or deadlines.
Humans by nature are
procrastinators. To get people to buy now
instead of later you must offer deadlines or give reasons to respond
now, instead of later.
10. Missing incentives
for quick action.
An incentive could be a
free gift, a bonus, an information-based
report, a discount, two-for-1 sale, or whatever is effective for
your offer as a bonus for responding quickly. You must offer an
incentive that people actually want. Let me say that again. You must
offer an incentive that people actually want! Any other incentive
will backfire and cost you responses.
11. Stupid Slogans
It is a mistake to
think lame slogans about being best, caring more,
or being #1 in sales awards instead of focusing on your client's
wants, needs, and desires will result in more business. Slogans are
a complete waste of marketing dollars. Slogans don't sell! Period.
Every few months I'm
contacted by some sincere business owner or
decision maker who wants me to create a slogan for them. Convincing
them that slogans don't sell is one of the hardest things to
accomplish that I've ever come across.
I could provide reams
of reports and data from independent
associations and marketing groups but in the end most business
people do not understand that buyers are selfish. They only
want `w.i.i.f.m.'. Slogans are self-centered and completely counter
to communicating `w.i.i.f.m.'. If anything, focus on creating a hard
hitting USP and forget about slogans.
12. No system in place
to convert inquiries to sales.
Most advertisers do NOT
know what steps to take after running an ad
or starting a marketing plan. They simply wait and 'play it by ear'
hoping the details will take care of themselves. Here's a news
flash, the details won't take care of themselves!
You should plan and
`systematize' your advertising campaign before
the ad ever runs. Have you ever forgotten to follow up on a lead or
inquirer? Everyone has at some point. To put an end to this create a
complete advertising campaign that outlines what to do if someone
inquires and buys, doesn't buy, asks for free information, etc. That
way no one who inquires fall through the cracks and everyone
possible is converted from an information gathering prospect into a
cash-in-hand client.
13. Failure to quantify
and substantiate claims.
How many ads have you
seen that claim `best', `fastest', `sharpest'
etc.? These advertisers have done nothing more than to fall back on
bragging instead of communicating benefits clearly and effectively.
Since we are in the age
of scepticism these phrases do nothing to
boost sales. If anything they cause people to distrust the
advertiser. Avoid opinion-based superlatives (like `best') at all
cost in your advertising. You are wasting valuable ad space and no
one believes these phrases anyways.
14. Lacking
testimonials or case studies showing specific benefits
provided by your product or service.
Use full names if
possible of people who have commented on their
satisfaction and more importantly quantitative results achieved from
doing business with you. "We've boosted sales 3,700% in 90 days by
implementing André's advertising recommendations. We've been so busy
with new sales we've had to pull the ads and had to hire three new
staff members just to make the deposits!" – John Doe
15. AIDA formula not
fully realized.
If you've studied sales
and marketing you recognize AIDA to stand
for Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action. All advertisements
should follow the AIDA formula or a similar effective formula. You
grab attention with your headline, you build interest with facts
features and benefits they are interested in, you fan the flames of
desire by helping them visualize ownership and the benefits of doing
business with you (address w.i.i.f.m.), and you ask for action—buy
now!
16. No credibility
statements.
All things being equal,
would you rather do business with someone
who has 30 years experience or six months experience? Are you more
trusting of buying a burger from some out of the way nobody-ever-
heard-of roadside diner called "pa's vittles and stuff" or from a
place that says '3 billion served'? Would you rather do business
with a hole-in-the-wall location or do business with a company that
says `now in 12 countries'? Would you rather take your car to a
place that advertises `Dave's part-time auto shack, now open' or a
place that advertises that they offer the longest warrantee of one-
year on all parts and labor plus they've been in business a jillion
years? Obviously you'd want to do business with the company that
appears to be the most stable.
Including credibility
statements in your ads will boost response.
Superlatives like `best' are not credibility statements. They are
skepticism makers. Avoid superlatives and stick with credibility
statements.
17. Lacking value-added
bonuses or free trials or free information.
Most ads give no reason
to buy now (if ever). The ad I already
mentioned from the realtor named Ben is a perfect example of
offering a bonus for doing business with him. Keep in mind though,
to be effective a bonus must be something that people actually want.
Otherwise you are wasting your ad dollars.
18. Failure to test and
compare competing offers, headlines,
pricing, media, guarantees and so on.
Once you've found an ad
that seems to be pulling effectively
consider it your `control' piece and try to see if you can boost
response and sales by changing a different element in the ad the
next time the ad runs. If you can make the ad more effective you
make more money. Testing headline changes can produce as much as
1900% greater response to your ads. You never know if better results
can be achieved if you don't test.
19. Neglect plain and
sincere language.
There is a myth that
using `big words' and formal language impresses
people. It does not. Instead big words and formal language alienate
people. If you want to communicate clearly with the purpose of
selling then aim to keep the reading level of your ads within the
same readability ratings of the Los Angeles Times or Wall Street
Journal. If people have to work to understand your ad, they'll skip
reading your ad. And if they don't read your ad, they won't buy from
you.
20. Seek sales, not
applause.
Most ads are created to
impress the purchaser of the ad. After all,
the ad agent doesn't have to convince your market to read your ad
for the agent to earn a commission--they simply need to convince you
to buy the ad. The easiest way to do so is to appeal to your
interests. And your number one interest is the same as everyone
else's interest. Yourself. So they suggest ads that contain your
photo or you doing something you like doing—so you fall in love with
their ad concepts.
I found an ad in the
paper this morning of a realtor sitting with a
cello. Above her picture is the slogan, `Whether You're Buying Or
Selling, Don't Fiddle Around'.
Cute. This is probably
how the ad agent pulled this off:
Asked a series of
questions like, "what do you like doing in your
spare time?"
"You play the
cello! That's great. We can create an ad with you
sitting with your cello and the ad will read, `Whether You're Buying
Or Selling, Don't Fiddle Around'.
"The ad will
communicate what you like to do, give the reader some
insights into you as a real person, and will help them get to know
you better. Oh, and all your friends and family will love the ad
too! It will be great! Let's run with it? Ok?"
The realtor's head was
probably spinning thinking that the ad would
somehow magically attract buyers and sellers all because of a clever
phrase and her sitting with a cello (at least I think it was a
cello).
The sad thing about
this ad is that this realtor looks like a really
nice person. Something about her picture says she is my kind of
person; to the point, likes to laugh, and has no time for b.s.
Unfortunately she was
sold an ad that cost her money with a
photographer, lost opportunity costs, and lost money to the ad
agent. Don't fall for it!
Make certain your ad
communicates clearly what is of interest to
your target market instead of communicating attempts at cleverness
or ads that appeal to your interests. Few of us can afford to buy
enough of our own products to justify the cost of advertising to
ourselves ;-)
Had the ad communicated
to the needs and desires of buyers and
sellers the ad would be much more effective, much less expensive,
and much more responsive and profitable. It would have been music to
her ears (pun intended).
21. Speak to people
one-on-one, not to people as a group.
How many ads have you
noticed that sound like the writer is talking
to a large group or multiple people instead of to you? This is a
common mistake.
For some reason ad
writers forget they are communicating one-to-one.
No matter if fifty or
fifty thousand people read the ad, they each
read it singularly. Your ad must communicate singularly otherwise
you cause people to start day dreaming wondering who you are talking
to. This makes your message less effective and turns people off.
22. Only use pictures
if they help sell, not distract.
What I'm about to say
next may offend you. But it must be said.
We live in a world where each and every one of us has prejudices.
I'm prejudiced against okra, cottage cheese, and buttermilk.
I have prejudices, you
have them, and so does everyone else. Though
we may like things to be different, it isn't. Keep this in mind
before you decide to prominently display your picture or anyone
else's picture in your ads.
Women are better off
not including their picture or at least not a
picture of them smiling gleefully if your message will be sent to
corporate men, especially if they have never heard of you before.
Men as a whole have
biases that could cause you to lose
opportunities for no reason other than personal prejudices.
Some people purposely
use photos to exclude those with prejudices
from responding to eliminate having problems later. The problem with
that is you both lose. You lose opportunity to gain a client and
they lose the benefits of what you offer.
If you choose to use a
photo then I recommend you compare results of
you appearing professional and authoritative vs. friendly. Compare
the results of you alone and with your staff. Use whichever is most
effective and discard the other.
The same is true for
minorities. If you are advertising in primarily
non-minority areas it would be best to consider removing your
picture. Get commitments by phone, mail, the internet, courier or
whatever. Let your words do your selling for you, not your face.
Fortunately most areas
of California are more flexible than the deep
south. I have friends of all races living `back there' and
unfortunately for them things are not as flexible as they are here.
Though we've come a
long way here in California, there are
still `good old boy' networks that bar women and minorities from
doing business with certain companies; either purposely or
subconsciously.
Call me a bigot or
whatever but those are the unfortunate realities
of the world we live in. Use the reality to your advantage and you
will have far greater success. Ignore them and risk bumping your
head or spinning your wheels needlessly trying to get business that
is not available to you had you removed your picture.
Another consideration
to look at when deciding to use pictures or
not is if the person you choose to display in your ads is
unattractive. Sorry but I got to say this.
There is an ad that is running regularly in our area that
says `friendly service' and the man in the photo looks scary as
all `heck'.
Just think, I'm a guy
who feels this way.
How much worse is it
for the little old man or woman who sees that
ad but wants the service?
There's no way on earth
they will pick up the phone and call that
company, because the employee featured in the ad is anything but
friendly looking.
I plan to
'accidentally' run into the owners of that business so I
can recommend they remove that picture from their ads, or at least
get the guy in the photo to smile; his picture is hurting sales, not
helping.
The reverse of this is
often true too. Attractive people SHOULD
almost ALWAYS display their picture in ads. The public is attracted
to attractive people. That's why they are called attractive :) So if
that describes you, then by all means test to see if your picture
helps or hurts results. It will most likely help.
23. `Me' oriented
instead of 'you' oriented.
This is a big mistake.
Most ads talk about themselves, their
products, their services, their employees and owners. The ad writers
think this is what people want to hear. It isn't.
I've run test ads
without any information whatsoever about myself or
my experience or background and found that people don't care. What
matters is if you effectively communicate what is of interest to
them and about them. Results. Solve a problem. Offer solutions.
Focus on them and your
ads will out pull any ads you could ever run
that talk about yourself.
The exception to this
is if you tell a rags-to-riches story or an
underdog story that implies the reader of your ad can obtain the
same results you've achieved. If the story can be told compellingly
then do so. But make certain to draw the connection that your
prospective client can achieve the same results. So in the end they
vicariously see themselves succeeding through your experience.
24. No guarantees.
Speaking of guarantees,
people are sceptical. They fear losing
money, wasting time, or being embarrassed by a bad decision. To melt
their resistance and fears you must offer some kind of guarantee
(provided legislation doesn't prohibit guarantees for your
industry). Guarantees ALWAYS increase ad response and sales. Make
your guarantee as strong, persuasive, and attractive as possible and
your response will soar. My $1,000 consulting guarantee has
continued to increase response over the same offers made without the
guarantee.
25. Making an ad look
like an ad.
This is a HUGE mistake.
Most ad designers make the mistake of
creating ads that immediately turn people off. Think about it. When
people read a magazine, newspaper, or listen to the radio what's the
chance they are actively looking for your ad? None. People read and
listen to radio because they want to enjoy what they are reading and
listening to. If your ad looks like an ad most people don't even
read it. They skip over it. The way to guarantee your ad gets read
is to use an attention-getting headline and copy layout similar to
the articles in the magazine or newspaper you are advertising in.
This is a no brainer.
If your ad looks like an article more people
will look at it. This is called editorial style advertising. It's
500% more effective than a standard display ad. Use editorial-style
advertising and your response will grow. On the radio, editorial
style is to sound like a talk show, interview, or info-mercial.
26. Thinking that
advertising is the end-all, be-all of marketing.
This is completely
untrue. Advertising is only one of 185 marketing
methods I've identified to help my clients attract more business,
sell more to their existing clients, and reactivate their clients
who've drifted away. Focusing on advertising alone is foolish
because you could be missing out on two to three times the income
you are now seeing simply because of not using multiple streams of
marketing income.
GET MOVING!
Now you've discovered
the top 26 ad mistakes everyone is making and
how to fix them. I recommend that you begin today using these
secrets to improve your advertising and marketing. Once you rid
yourself of these advertising mistakes, your sales and profits will
grow like crazy.
I also encourage you to
do more than just advertise. Advertising can
be a great way to eliminate cold calling and get people to chase
after you, but it is expensive and risky. There are more ways to
skin the marketing cat than just advertising. Take advantage of them
all.
=====================================================
André Bell is
principal marketing consultant with André Bell
Consulting Group and author of the new book, "101 Marketing Secrets
Revealed" available through his site at www.economicbooster.com
