No matter what form of media you use for your message, be sure to explain your message in clear, easy-tounderstand terms.
You want consumers to see at a glance what you’re selling and then make snap decisions as to whether they want to read or listen further.
Place your most powerful selling message at the beginning of a radio spot or in the form of a headline for printed advertising or Internet banner ads. For example, if you’re having a two-for-one sale, you want to get that information out there right away. Don’t drone on for half a radio spot without giving the listeners a reason to actually hear it. Get down to the nitty-gritty and then explain the various details.
Here are two examples of opening copy for a radio spot to advertise a twofor- one sale. See if you can tell which spot is better: Smith’s Hardware, conveniently located in the Neighborhood Shopping Center, a family owned and operated business for over 50 years, and a store where you’ve come to expect the very best in top-quality merchandise and friendly, helpful service, is proud to announce its annual two-forone sale!
Announcing the annual two-for-one sale at Smith’s Hardware — the sale you’ve been waiting for since last year. Buy one gallon of paint, get another gallon absolutely free! example gets the most important point across immediately; the rest of the 60 seconds can be filled with the specifics about convenient location, store history, and other good reasons to visit. The first example may put listeners to sleep within the first couple of lines. Nothing in the first spot makes consumers
want to listen.
Following the same rule in a print ad simply means that two-for-one sale becomes the headline, with all the other information the consumer needs to know placed beneath it (as briefly and succinctly as possible). In this case, the two-for-one sale is the creative hook, because it’s the single element of the ad that separates it from other ads for similar stores.
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