By Karen Gibson
Keywords: ad copy, writing ad copy
Great ads sell. More importantly, writing ad copy successfully draws the interest of potential customers and persuades them that there is one product better than another or only one way to do something. Although advertising is a business, it starts with a creative spark. Ignore the spark, and the ad won't sell. If you fan the spark into a flame, however, you'll have a product or service that sells. Here are a few suggestions on how to write great ad copy.
Know Your Subject
What are you selling? Find out all there is to know about the product or service for your intended ad copy before you write about it. Check out the competition, and come up with ways in which what you're offering is different. These differences could be selling points for your ad copy.
Know Your Audience
Ad copy targets a specific demographic, and a well-written ad should make each person in the target audience feel as if you've written the ad specifically for him. Ads that appeal to a person on an emotional level work well. Young, urban professionals believe that successful people go to Starbucks and order complicated beverages. The Nintendo Wii appeals to an older audience, as well as kids, because adults can exercise with the virtual golf, bowling and baseball games.
Ad copy should focus on the benefits of a product or service because we all want something that can change our lives for the better.
Brainstorm Your Ideas
Put on your creative hat, both figuratively and literally. Do what you need to do in order to write creatively. Focusing on the product and target audience should have started the creative process, and now it's time to start writing.
Put all of your creative ideas on paper, and then take a break. Take a walk, answer your e-mails or have some lunch. Come back to your ideas when you are refreshed and ready to review them in a new frame of mind.
Cross off any unacceptable ideas. Think about specific limitations that affect your ad copy. Perhaps the advertiser wants seasonal copy related to a holiday. Consider what advertising medium will be used, whether it is print, radio or television. A printed ad copy must work visually, but a radio ad must work without visuals. Television ads work with both auditory and visual stimulation.
Keeping these things in mind, look at your ideas. Expand on those ideas that might work for your ad copy. Appeal to the customer using persuasive words to motivate him to buy your product or service.
Fine Tune Your Idea Learn to write concise ad copy by eliminating unnecessary words. If your ad involves too much reading, your audience is more likely to ignore it. Instead of writing, "You should think about calling.," simply write, "Call."
Use specific nouns and exciting verbs to bring ad copy to life. Use capital letters and exclamation marks sparingly so that when you do use them, they make an impression.
Although writing ad copy can be frustrating, the power to persuade is gratifying.
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