What’s in an Ad
Print ads generally have four written parts: headline, support ded with nothing but negatives. Others point to the enduring effectivenesscopy, call to action, company name and a visual. Visuals are usually more important than copy because they’re more effective in attracting readers’ attention and can instantly present your product or service in a dramatic and motivating way.
Unless you’re commissioning your own original artwork or photography, the visuals you’ll use will probably be either drawings and photographs from your suppliers or non-copyrighted artwork (clip art) found in clip-art books and scrap-art computer programs. Choose the strongest visual among them, the one that best draws the eye and explains what you’re selling, and then move on to copy.
The most prominent piece of copy, your headline, must not only work with your visual, amplifying its meaning, but also attract attention with a word, phrase or sentence announcing a benefit that appeals to your target market. One expert wrote that a headline is that final, mind-changing, sales-clinching comment you’d make when leaving the office of a prospect that, until then, had respon of the standard headlines “Sale,” “Free” and “Buy now and save.” Collect ideas that are right for you from your salespeople, from the ads in your file and from advertising books. And remember it is not so much the words, but the ideas they express, that sell. Determine your message then find words to convey it.
Below the headline, support copy explains the headline’s premise and adds secondary benefits or any assurance readers might need to dispel suspicions that have been raised by the headline, such as the assurance of “same great quality” when you’re offering a “new low price.” Following this copy, as a sign-off, is a call to action urging the reader to respond - “Call for an appointment today,” or “Remember, sale ends March 21.”. Your company name, traditionally at the bottom of the ad, should include your address and phone number. Make your phone number larger to help stimulate response by phone. Add a cross street to your address (e.g., “5730 Sheridan, at La Monte”) if you’re a new business or if, for other reasons, people might have difficulty finding you.
The next step is to combine all these visual and copy elements into an eye-catching, easy-to-read ad that is formatted to the dimensions stipulated by the publication. It’s best to study the ads in that publication in advance and consider what your ad might look like in order to stand out on the page. Experiment with different layout ideas rendered in thumbnail sketches and then fine-tune your ad to fit the layout you prefer. Obviously, it’s highly advisable, if not imperative, when you’re doing ads in-house, that the person composing your ad has design experience. Not only is skill required to make an ad look right, but the quality of your ad must compete favorably with others appearing in the publication.
It’s also a good idea to prepare your ad well ahead of the deadline. This way, you can put it aside for a few days and then review the ad with a fresh perspective while there’s still time to make revisions. As a final check, lay your ad on a page of the publication where it will appear and make sure it stands out from the articles and other ads on the page.
Everyone persuades for a living. There’s no way around it. Whether you’re a sales professional, an entrepreneur, or even a stay at home parent, if you are unable to convince others to your way of thinking, you will be constantly left behind. Donald Trump said it best, “Study the art of persuasion. Practice it. Develop an understanding of its profound value across all aspects of life.”
Conclusion
Persuasion is the missing puzzle piece that will crack the code to dramatically increase your income, improve your relationships, and help you get what you want, when you want, and win friends for life. Ask yourself how much money and income you have lost because of your inability to persuade and influence. Think about it. Sure you’ve seen some success, but think of the times you couldn’t get it done. Has there ever been a time when you did not get your point across? Were you unable to convince someone to do something? Have you reached your full potential? Are you able to motivate yourself and others to achieve more and accomplish their goals? What about your relationships? Imagine being able to overcome objections before they happen, know what your prospect is thinking and feeling, feel more confident in your ability to persuade. Professional success, personal happiness, leadership potential, and income depend on the ability to persuade, influence, and motivate others.
Kurt Mortensen’s trademark is Magnetic Persuasion; rather than convincing others, he teaches that you should attract them, just like a magnet attracts metal filings. He teaches that sales have changed and the consumer has become exponentially more skeptical and cynical within the last five years. Most persuaders are using only 2 or 3 persuasion techniques when there are actually 120 available! His message and program has helped thousands and will help you achieve unprecedented success in both your business and personal life.
If you are ready to claim your success and learn what only the ultra-prosperous know, begin by going to http://www.PreWealth.com and getting my free report “10 Mistakes That Continue Costing You Thousands.” After reading my free report, go to http://www.PreWealth.com/IQ and take the free Persuasion IQ analysis to determine where you rank and what area of the sales cycle you need to improve in order to close every sale!
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You Are Wrong
It appears that most gurus if you want to call them that represent themselves as experts. In several statements that I’ve read, they refer to other marketers as making mistakes. Yet, when they make the same mistakes, they call it testing.
I read a quote one time about a child learning to walk. When the child is serious about learning to walk, falling is simply a form of learning. However, it’s not looked upon as a failure or mistake.
Another word that I’ve heard plenty of times this year is the word “secret”. Actually, that word has been overused and over abused. As anyone knows, if it’s a secret on the internet, most everyone knows about it. Secret is also known as a power word.
You can compare secrets to fishing. I know of a web site selling secrets of catching crappie at night. The secret has been around since 1947 and very few fishermen know about it. Well, if you know anything about fishing, then you can guess where I’m going with this one. More than likely it’s the difference between a fairy tale and a story from a cowboy.
Now, that you know that you haven’t been given the right secrets to success and everything you do is wrong, you may as well face the fact that someone out there is undoubtedly going to tell you more goof ball lies.
It may be time to wake up and realize that marketers that sell “marketing information” will never tell you exactly what to do in order to make money. If they did, you wouldn’t be a customer any more. Also, it amazes me that they’d want the competition.
“Saturation” is a word you should learn. There will be a point on the internet where the most unpopular word around will be considered a keyword at a price most people starting out cannot afford. I’m talking about pay per click advertisements.
At some point, you may even figure that the people selling books on google adsense and google adwords are creating an irreversible mountain of competition for themselves. It’s my opinion that the ones writing these books are slowing down on the profits and needed another avenue.
It’s been said over and over again that you need your own product, but I think you’d still be right where you are today if you did not do everything you’ve done so far. The one thing you must not do. Do not quit. This is the only sure way of failure.
You’ve learned a great deal and you may have even got burned out. You may have been scammed and ripped off. You may even be one of those unfortunate people that had their identities stolen. Just learn from it and go on. Don’t follow those footsteps.
Do not join chain letters, matrixes, money making machines, or anything where a product is not a reasonable price. Last, if it cost you money to get into a business selling for someone else, “run”.
Now, only you know why you haven’t made any money. Write down everything you’ve done and figure out what you could have done different. Most of the time it comes down to not doing enough. If you still believe you can work 2 hours per day at this business starting out, then think again. Marketing is a full time job.
PS. I have no secret that you haven’t been told before. I don’t figure you’re doing anything wrong, you just haven’t figured out what you want.
Randall Stafford has been marketing on the internet seriously for the last 2 years with some success. He’s been on the internet since 1994 and dabbled with it. If you want to succeed, you don’t quit.