What Makes a Good Ad?

Follow 4 Rules for Ads that Motivate Prospects:

Rule #1 :
Good advertising changes the customer's relationship with what's being marketed.

The first step to affecting the way customers think is to make them look at what you offer in a
new or different way. A good ad has the power to completely change the mind of the reader,
viewer or listener, whether that applies to choosing the best tires to purchase for rainy locales or
the qualifications of a political candidate. Your ads can open minds to possibilities by introducing
a new type of service or revealing fresh discoveries or facts. Advertising that does a good job of
educating audiences -- such as in business-to-business trade publications -- can demonstrate
the advantages of a new product. And direct mail advertising, for example, can allow you to tell
a deeper story and create a strong, new connection with your customer.

Rule #2 :
Effective advertising tells prospects "why."

Good advertising makes it immediately clear why prospects should care about your marketing
message. For best results, your ads must demonstrate a valuable benefit that's considered
desirable by the target audience. This benefit can be either tangible or intangible. For example,
saving money is a tangible benefit, while peace of mind may be intangible but equally desirable
depending on your target audience and what you’re marketing. What benefits do your ads
promise and are your promises markedly different from those of your competitors? If not, you
need to re-think your product or service offering from your customers’ point of view until the
benefits you offer sufficiently differentiate your company.

Rule #3 :
The best ads ring true.

Broadcast ads on radio and television work best when they present scenarios that feel real
and true to the intended target audience. Prospects should be able to identify with the
characters or the situations presented and see themselves reflected in a positive light. The offer
should present a believable solution to fulfill a perceived need. Print advertising, out-of-home,
and online advertising, while less able to present real-life scenarios, nonetheless must offer
reasonable solutions that meet the real needs of the target audience.

Rule #4 :
Successful advertising moves customers to the next level.

The bottom line is that marketing exists to support sales. If your current advertising doesn't
produce, it's like a slacker employee -- your best option is to fire it. Before you design your next
campaign, decide what you want your prospects to do in response to your advertising and
design each and every ad with that result in mind. Whether you want them to call for a free
appointment, visit your website, go to your store, or visit your trade show booth, be sure your
call-to-action takes your prospects to the next level.

Next, be prepared to track and measure the responses as they arrive. After all, you can't run
an effective campaign unless you know what has worked historically. Continually fine-tune your
ad campaign to capitalize on the elements that make the phone or the cash register ring, and
soon you'll have good ads that make all the right things happen.

Source:
http://www.practical-entrepreneurship.com/resources/advertising/089_what_makes_a_good_ad.pdf

Wrote by : WenYan