The Copywriter Online

We can write ads that will knock your socks off…

                                                  … but we’d rather write ads that sell!

There are many clever advertisements out there but do they really sell? Can you remember what the ad was for, or which brand? 

The answer is often “No!”.

Don't sacrifice clarity for cleverness 

It's good if an advertisement can make people laugh but that shouldn't be it's main purpose. Certainly ads that make people laugh have engaged their audience but if they don't follow through strongly enough then people don't remember which brand or, sometimes, even what type of product the ad was selling!

So whether you're engaging a copywriter or an ad agency, or you're going to write your ads yourself don't be tricked into thinking that "clever is best"; it isn't, "clear is best".

Cleverness wins awards for agencies

Ad agencies love "clever", quirky ads because they are good contenders for creative awards but how successfully do they sell? Sometimes, spectacularly well, but many times poorly. Make sure your promotional dollars are targeted at selling your product or service and not at enhancing your agency's PR efforts.

What makes a successful campaign?

We have more than 20 years experience in the advertising, marketing and PR business and can write clear, attractive copy that will sell your product or service. But if you want to do it yourself then you need some rules to follow:

• Know who your audience is
• Understand what pushes their buttons
• See your product or service through their eyes
• List the features and turn them into benefits (for more on this see my article From feature to benefit)
• Write clear copy that catches their interest and explains the benefits

Ads are just one step in the selling process

A successful ad campaign is the result of preparation, research and testing and it doesn’t have to be expensive. Contact The Copywriter Online to discuss your advertising needs or read our article "How to improve your advertising, save money and get better results".

This article was written by Munaiba Khan of The Copywriter Online. Munaiba has more than 20 years experience in advertising, PR and marketing.