Anyone who has ever put down hard-earned dollars for
commercials can tell you the difference between a good commercial
and a bad one. Good commercials work. A few plays on the air
and prospects are flooding through the doors and ringing the phone.
A bad commercial does just the opposite. It sits there. No
response. No results. Only a painful invoice to pay 30 days later.
Whether you are advertising on television or radio (or even
newspapers), a few simple guidelines can save you from the no-
results commercial trap.
Make your offer attractive. All the advertising in the world
won't attract buyers to a product or service that they don't need, is
of poor quality, or is over priced. On the other hand, even a little
advertising will bring surprising response for an offer that prospects
immediately understand to be a very good value.
Put your commercials only on the stations and programs
your prospects use. There's no point in wasting your message on
people who wouldn't be interested in your product or service. Make
your media choices match the audience you are trying to reach.
Make sure you commercial copy is well written. This last
point could be the most important. A really well-written commercial
will work just about anywhere. Surprisingly, copy writing is the one
factor that is most often left to chance.
When George the tax accountant buys his radio commercials
for the spring tax rush, he leaves the commercial copy up to the
station's sales rep. Sure, George supplies the rep with a list of points
he wants included, but it's the sales guy who actually puts his points
to paper for the announcer to read. Some broadcast sales people
are good writers. More than a few can't form a complete sentence.
After all, they're sales people, not copywriters.
Insist on working closely with your ad sales rep. Write your
own copy, get a ghost writer to help you, or stand over the shoulder
of the sales rep while she writes it. Use these safeguards to insure
effective copy.
1. Keep sentences short! That's the way people talk in real
life. Long, extended sentences make your copy too complicated.
Long sentences also force the announcer to rush so he doesn't run
out of breath. Listen to the commercials on your favorite radio
station. You'll be surprised at how often announcers have to break
for breath in unnatural places due to over-extended sentences.
2. Don't cram too much information into your commercial.
It's better to put in less copy so the announcer can read slower and
more clearly. Rather than throwing lots of details at the listener or
viewer, focus on a few key points you want them to remember.
Read your copy OUT LOUD, as the announcer will, to see if it will
fit into the thirty or sixty seconds allotted for your commercial.
Very often commercial copy will be way too long and the
announcer will indiscriminately leave out sentences to make it fit.
3. Finally, keep your copy client-centered. Tell the viewer
or listener how your product or service will make their lives better,
easier, or sexier. Don't depend on the listener to figure out for
himself how the "gizmo 2000" will make him happier. EXPLAIN
HOW it will make him happier. Then take some time to say more
on just how happy he will feel. Concentrating on the listener's life
and emotions gets most people's attention better than anything else.
Radio and TV work particularly well for this kind of advertising.
Most commercials either work or don't work due to one of
the few points I've mentioned. As a business person, knowing these
and watching out for your interests in the commercial making
process will help insure your commercials are a big success.
Kevin Nunley helps small and mid-sized businesses build effective marketing. Reach him at DrNunley@aol.com or at (801)253-4536. Ask for his free marketing report and list of Special Reports and Tapes that make you a marketing whiz in dozens of areas. Also ask how he can help you build your on-line presence.
