Best Niche Directory

1. Headline: On the average, 5x more people read the headline as the body copy. If people like the Headline they will continue to read the body copy. The Headline is what pulls them in. The headline should be simple and clearly state a benefit.

2. News and headlines: People read consumer magazines and newspapers to get news. If you have genuine news such as product updates or new innovations by all means put it in the headline.

3. Localize headlines: In local advertising, sometimes it pays to include the name of the city in your headline.

4. Talk to Your Prospects: When a specific group consumes your product; Speak to them in your headline – Travelers, Brides, business owners?

5. If the Reader is Interested THey Will Read Long Copy: Readership declines rapidly after fifty words, but continues steadily between 50 and 500 words. Potential buyers will read further into an ad. Spark their interest with the headline, Give them a reason to buy in the copy. We have included many articles from John E. Kennedy and Claude Hopkins on Writing Headlines

6. Before and AfterAds: Before and after ads are above average in grabbing the readers attention. Contrast seems to work well. If then seems to be well understood by the consumer.

7. Photos vs. Art: Photos work better than drawings most of the time. Consumers prefer to feel things are “genuine.” The photo should help pull readers in. It must be related to the benefit of to the goods you are selling. The photograph has to have story appeal.

8. Captions: Twice as many people read the captions under photographs as read the body copies. Never place a photo without a caption. Because Associated Press Style calls for captions under photos people expect it.

9. News layout vs. Art Style Layout The more the ad looks like the news in the publication generally the higher the readership. Though people do tend to look for the ads in trade publications. The arty layout is much easier to get approved by the client A good ad agency will take the time to explain to the client that the ad must have long copy to make sure the consumer buys the product.

10. Test and Retest Readership has been known to increase with repetition. Continually test new ads against the old ones and run the winner.

Tags: Advertising
Filed under: Advertising