Creative Strategies That Can Turn the Tide... (Download)
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“Creative”. An interesting word when used
in the advertising context. Most of us like to think something
is “creative” if it does what it is supposed
to do (i.e., sell something) or is extremely innovative
(i.e., sells something AND doesn’t cost an arm and
a leg); but I have know some of those shinney-toed, silk-suited,
silver-tongued, etceteras from the advertising industry
who believe that something is creative only if it wins
awards from their peers. If it happens to sell product
(God forbid!) ... so much the better.
Well, I am here to
tell you that you don’t need to
go for a walk through a cow pasture any longer. No, sir.
We’re going to strip away the secret from the term “creative” right
before your eyes. We’re going to draw sabres and
cut a swath through the on-rushing hordes. What we are
going to do is help you SELL more of whatever it is that
you market ... and listen for the weeping and gnashing
of teeth from the so-called “professionals”.
First, let’s set some groundwork that has to be done
before anything else can be addressed:
You have to know your product(s); How is it different from
anybody else’s;
Who your market is and why they buy; Why they should buy from you.
Seems simple
doesn’t it? And that’s the ultimate key - Keep
It Simple,
Stupid! (Remember: “KISS”?). Why? Because there is more advertising
out there competing for your customer that there are fleas in a pack of hounds.
Here’s an example:
Over $100 billion is spent on advertising annually; It
works out to over $400 for every man, woman and child in the country; These
dollars buy roughly 560
messages per day, per person; Of these 560, people will “recall” only
76; Of these 76, only 12 will be “remembered”; 3 of the 12 will
be remembered negatively.
ONLY 2% (9) WILL BE REMEMBERED POSITIVELY!
You have to
be in that 2% or you are wasting your money. And no matter
what media you use, if your “creative” product
isn’t right - you’re
wrong.
On the surface it does seem awful simple and that might
explain why everybody is an advertising expert, why everybody
thinks
they can “create” an
ad better than anyone else. It’s kinda like eatin’ and cookin’.
Everybody knows how to eat, and think they know what’s good, so they
cook what they like to eat but can’t get anybody to eat what they cook.
What you have to do is find out what they want to eat and cook that.
Same with
advertising.
Advertise what people are buying (want, need, use = volume);
tell them why they should buy it from you (price, convenience,
quality, service); tell them in their own words (targeting);
and tell them who you are and where you are.
Most people
scan ads, they’ll stop and look/read/listen
if something catches their attention. If their curiosity
is piqued, and they like what they see or hear, they’ll “remember” it.
That’s where you want to be. If people remember,
it is because you have told them something they did not
know before or needed to be reminded of. And remember,
not everybody wants to buy what you have to sell; and not
everybody who wants to buy, wants to buy it today. Advertising
has a cumulative impact - a person needs to see or hear
an ad three or four time before they start to notice it.
And you might have to run that ad eight to twelve times
before it reaches everybody you want. If fact, studies
have shown that the better ads keep producing after years
of use without any changes.
The reason there are so many
new ads all the time is because the people who place them
get tired before the target does
(not to mention the fact that ad agencies make more money
onproduction than media. So, the more ads they make for
you ...). Everytime I hear someone say “the last
ads I ran really worked, now we’re doing a whole
new series...” is like handing me a lemon to suck
on. Why change horses in the middle of the stream unless
you want to get wet?
