Harold Mansfield
02-25-2009, 09:50 PM
It is absolutely amazing to me how many ideas that you can get from watching ads on T.V. I mean theses guys are obviously the very best and they know how to get people on the phone with thier CC in hand.
I just recently started to pay attention to T.V. commercials closely..I actually make it a point on Sat morning now to look for infomercials, instead of cartoons.
Couple of things I learned recently from commercials and infomercials.
1. Put the CC logos and payment options right in the ad :
It sounds so simple, but I get so caught up in the copy, that I forgot the simplest way to say "We are open...This cost money...Get yours ready!"
Infomercials are great at this, (Ron Popiel of course was the best) : After a brief pitch, they place the payment option right next to the phone number and leave it there for the duration of the commercial. IT's so simple , yet it goes unnoticed.
Just recently I re-wrote some ads that I have on a classified site, and added a simple group of CC logos in the ad and noticed a significant change in my click through ratio.
2. Using the economy to generate a sense of urgency.
I thought this to be a little cheap, but I gave it a shot. I have a few niche ebay auction sites (where of course people list things that they want or need to sell)
, so on a couple of ads I changed the opener to something like "The struggling economy is your gain...hundreds of people...blah,blah, blah..at fair or below book value"
..and dammit it worked !
I have gotten some good copy ideas for my ads from T.V. infomercials. Even products that are scams, wastes of money or are just downright wrong, have some very serious pitchmen working for them.
The one thing I learned the most was to Dumb It Down a little. Get to the point using the simplest language possible. The least amount of brain power that people have to use , the easier it is to get them to buy. "If it's that simple , it must be a good idea !"
Late night/early morning is the best to see some of the real pros in action, especially with some of the junk they have to sell, yet they get the job done, and call centers are taking orders. Saturday morning cable is another good time.
If you ever need some zing to your copy, or get in a rut...seriously..turn on the T.V. and take notes.
I just recently started to pay attention to T.V. commercials closely..I actually make it a point on Sat morning now to look for infomercials, instead of cartoons.
Couple of things I learned recently from commercials and infomercials.
1. Put the CC logos and payment options right in the ad :
It sounds so simple, but I get so caught up in the copy, that I forgot the simplest way to say "We are open...This cost money...Get yours ready!"
Infomercials are great at this, (Ron Popiel of course was the best) : After a brief pitch, they place the payment option right next to the phone number and leave it there for the duration of the commercial. IT's so simple , yet it goes unnoticed.
Just recently I re-wrote some ads that I have on a classified site, and added a simple group of CC logos in the ad and noticed a significant change in my click through ratio.
2. Using the economy to generate a sense of urgency.
I thought this to be a little cheap, but I gave it a shot. I have a few niche ebay auction sites (where of course people list things that they want or need to sell)
, so on a couple of ads I changed the opener to something like "The struggling economy is your gain...hundreds of people...blah,blah, blah..at fair or below book value"
..and dammit it worked !
I have gotten some good copy ideas for my ads from T.V. infomercials. Even products that are scams, wastes of money or are just downright wrong, have some very serious pitchmen working for them.
The one thing I learned the most was to Dumb It Down a little. Get to the point using the simplest language possible. The least amount of brain power that people have to use , the easier it is to get them to buy. "If it's that simple , it must be a good idea !"
Late night/early morning is the best to see some of the real pros in action, especially with some of the junk they have to sell, yet they get the job done, and call centers are taking orders. Saturday morning cable is another good time.
If you ever need some zing to your copy, or get in a rut...seriously..turn on the T.V. and take notes.