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 Advertising will make or break your
business. It is crucial to your success that you learn to
write great ad copy. Here are a few simple concepts to get
you there.
1. The Headline: This is THE most important part of
your ad, especially when using online advertising. The
point of the headline is to grab a potential customer's
interest and then entice the reader to go on and read the
rest of your ad. The best headlines tend to be those that
emphasize the benefits to the customer, ie. what your
product or service can do for them, WHY they MUST have it
- right now!
2. Formatting: If your ad is taking the form of a
webpage, or any other ad that allows the use of
HTML/formatting, take advantage of it. Make sure your
headline stands out from the rest of your ad by using a
larger font, bolding, italics (careful here: make sure it
is readable, some fonts aren't), or a different color.
Remember to ensure that the overall look is business-like.
Some ad sites (like AOL) allow you to post a graphic along
with your ad: definitely do so! It will really make your
ad stand out compared to the ads of those who haven't
bothered and makes you look much more professional.
If you're advertising to safelists or using any other type
of email advertising, use interesting characters to make
your subject line stand out, some examples: >>
<< <= => /// $$$ ~~ :) ;) Also, make sure you
can actually READ the most important part of your subject
line - it would be awful if you were to create the World's
Best Subject Line, only to have most email clients cut off
the 'best part' so it's never even seen!
3. Focus: Don't try to sell with your ad. The point
is just to get the potential customer interested enough to
click on the link to your website or autoresponder: that's
all!
4. Unique Selling Position (USP): Whether you're a
reseller, selling your own product, or are a member of an
affiliate program, you need to find something UNIQUE about
purchasing from YOU. Why should a person buy a product
from you, when they can buy the exact same thing from
thousands of other people, at the same price, with the
same guarantee, etc.? If you have your own website,
offering a bonus of some sort is an obvious solution here.
If you DON'T have your own site yet, it's a bit harder.
However, what you CAN do is tailor your advertising to a
unique AUDIENCE instead. For example, write ads aimed at
different target markets: moms at home, the elderly,
students, retirees, entrepreneurs, disabled persons, etc.
Emphasize what your product can do for THIS person, in
their particular situation, and you may give someone an
idea they hadn't thought of, to your advantage!
5. YOU! Inject some of YOURSELF into your ads!
Using your own experience, or testimonial, can be HUGE in
getting through to your customers. Explain how it has
helped you, how easy/profitable/inexpensive it is. Your
enthusiasm and passion for your product can be your best
ally when writing ad copy.
6. Call to Action: Oddly enough, research has shown
people are FAR more likely to click on a link, buy, or
subscribe if you simply tell them to. So, including a
"Click Here" or "Visit Our Website
Now" can actually result in a higher response rate
than ads without these simple instructions.
7. Ad Tracking: Don't even bother advertising
without ad tracking. It is absolutely essential to your
business success. You MUST know which ads are working,
when, and where. You will probably be surprised: sometimes
an ad you love will be a real dud, another you might find
somewhat questionable will blow up your hit counter! Play
around with different headings, wording, where you post,
categories where you place your ads - they can all yield
different results. I like to test my headlines on free FFA
and Classifieds sites, then use the winners as subject
lines for my safelist advertising.
Keep these seven Essential Elements in mind when creating
all your advertisements (you might even want to print out
this article for easy reference) and you'll soon have
customers clamoring for your products and services!
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