Creating an ad that entices potential consumers may seem difficult, but it's actually not as complicated as you might think. The simpler, the better. An ad encapsulates the uniqueness, excellence, and how innovative your brand is. Advertising is indispensable in today's market economy. In the digital world, advertising is evolving very quickly. Today, many companies have abandoned traditional advertising media and turned to social media. Although the media used is no longer the same, the basic principles of advertising have not changed. To design, write, design and test your ad, follow the steps below.
Step
Part 1 of 4: Understanding Advertising Targets
Step 1. Identify your target
Your business or product may attract the attention of many consumers, but for advertising purposes, it is recommended that you target a more specific consumer segment. Understand that one ad will not capture everyone's attention and select the most important consumers for this project. For example:
- If you're advertising a baby stroller, your target audience is likely to be new parents/mothers, not people who don't have babies.
- If you're creating a graphics card ad, your target audience will likely be computer savvy enough to realize they can upgrade their graphics card.
Step 2. Describe your target audience
The more detailed your description, the more specific (and likely more effective) your ad will be. Imagine your target customer, and answer the following questions:
- What is their approximate age and gender?
- Do they live in a big city or in the countryside?
- How much do they earn? Are they the directors of a wealthy company or students and students who have to be frugal?
- What products do they consume? Do they use other products also made by your company?
Step 3. Describe the consumer's relationship with your product
Once you've described the lifestyle and demographic information of your target consumer, consider the consumer's interactions with your product. Consider the following:
- When will they use your product? Will they use it immediately or only when needed?
- How often do they use your product? One time? Every day? Once a week?
- Will they immediately realize the benefits/functions of your product or should you teach them?
Step 4. Get to know your competitors
Are there other products that have the same function as yours? Hopefully you've taken this into account when you're designing your product – now consider how your ad can beat (or complement) your competitors' ads and think about how they'll react to yours.
Think about whether there are other products besides yours that work the same? If so, focus on the differences, especially why your product is better than the competition
Step 5. Describe your market
Consider the positioning of your product – is it trending and in vogue right now? If so, ask yourself what and how you can make your product different from other products already available in the market. You should also think about the map of the competition and the customers at play today. Ask yourself the following questions:
- Do customers already know and trust your brand?
- Do you want to get people who are currently using a competitor's product to switch to using your product?
- Would you also target them without a current solution? Is your product the only one like that?
Step 6. Develop a strategy
Based on the information you already have about your advertising targets and how they value your product, you are now ready to think about advertising strategies. Your strategy must consider three things known as 3C's: Company (your company), Customer (your potential customers), and Competition (competitors).
Strategy is a complex topic, but by focusing your attention on the wants, strengths, and actions of three players (you, your customers, and your competitors), over time anyone can create complex strategies
Part 2 of 4: Writing Ads
Step 1. Create an attention-grabbing tagline
Keep the sentences short and fun; most products need no more than six or seven words. If you pronounce it and it sounds hard to digest, change it. Whatever sentence you use, your tagline should be able to attract consumers' attention and convince them that your product is different from other products. Consider using:
- Rima – “Me and you, love Dancow.”
- Humor – “It's big… but willing to share?”
- Wordplay – Every kiss begins with 'Kay'
- Imaginative – Yellow Pages: “Let your fingers do the running”
- Metaphor – “Light your red”
- Alliteration – “Dag dig dug duer Daia”
- Personal promise – Motel 6: “We turn on the lights for you”
- A condescending statement – Carlsberg beer has a sign in Copenhagen that reads, “Probably the best beer in town”.
Step 2. Create a memorable ad
Your message should be easy to remember when the consumer is about to make a purchase. If your ad uses common words (for example, “new and improved,” “guaranteed,” or “bonus” – anything else?), your ad will be indistinguishable from the rest. What's more, listeners are so used to advertising words that they don't listen to them anymore. (Check out Tom Waits' Step Right Up to hear meaningless words combined into an ad.)
- What consumers think is not as important as how they feel. If they are happy with your brand, then you have done your job.
- Surprise your readers to get them to pay attention, especially when you have a long message. For example, this long ad about the environment won't attract attention if it doesn't use a confrontational tagline; if readers want to know the meaning of the joke, they should read further.
- Notice the difference between entertaining and controversial. Using practical jokes to attract attention is a common method, but don't cross the line – you want your product to be known for its functionality, not for tasteful advertising.
Step 3. Use persuasive techniques
Remember that persuasive is not the same as "convincing". The point is how to make consumers feel your product is better than other products. For most people, how they feel determines what they buy. Below are some proven methods to make your ad memorable. Among others:
- Repetition: Make your product memorable by repeating key elements. People often have to hear your name over and over again before they realize they've heard it (a short commercial song is one way to do this although it can sometimes sound annoying if overdone). If you use this method, look for something more creative and don't use the obvious repetition used in Budweiser's ads (“bud-weis-er-bud-weis-er-bud-weis-er”). People think they hate repetition, but they remember it and with that, you've done half your job.
- Reason: Challenges consumers to find reasons not to use a product or service.
- Humor: Making consumers laugh will make you more likable and remembered. This way is very well communicated with honesty. You're not the most popular business in the industry? Advertise that your queue is shorter.
- Time pressure: Convincing consumers that time is very limited. Limited time offers, quick sells, and similar promotions are the most common ways of doing this. But, again, don't use meaningless words that your potential customers will quickly forget.
Step 4. Get to know your customers
Pay attention to your target's age, income level, and interests. You should also consider the tone and appearance of your ad. Check often how your target ad is responding. Even the smartest advertising will be ineffective if it doesn't entice consumers to buy your product. As an example:
- Children generally need more stimulus, meaning you have to get their attention on multiple levels (color, sound, and image).
- Teenagers love humor and respond to peer trends and influences.
- Adults will be more conscientious and respond to the quality, witty humor and value that the product offers.
Step 5. Find ways to connect consumer wants with your ad
Review your strategy. Make sure you concentrate on the most attractive features of your product. Why is your product attractive? What makes it different from similar products? What do you like most about the product? These questions are good steps to get your ad started.
- Ask yourself if your product or service is inspiring. Are you selling a product that will make consumers feel better about their social and economic status? For example, you might sell tickets to a fundraising party that are designed to feel elegant and luxurious even if the ticket prices are well below what high-end consumers can afford. If you do sell products that inspire, create an ad that radiates luxury.
- Determine if the product you are selling serves as a generic tool. If you sell vacuum cleaners, designed to make consumers' lives easier, use a different tactic. Don't emphasize luxury, concentrate on how your product provides opportunities for relaxation and peace of mind for your customers.
- Is there an unmet need, a stress in the consumer's mind, that could create a market for your product? Perform a needs gap analysis for your product.
Step 6. Make sure all relevant information is listed
If your consumers need to know your location, phone number, or website (or all of them) to access your products, include that information in your ads. If you're advertising an event, include the location, date, time, and ticket price.
The most important element is the “action command”. What should consumers do immediately after seeing your ad? Make sure they know
Step 7. Decide when and where to advertise
When you advertise an event, start promoting your event at least 6 to 8 weeks in advance if your target audience is more than 100 people; if it's less than that, start your ad 3 to 4 weeks in advance. If you're advertising a product, think about when consumers will need your product the most.
For example, if you're advertising a vacuum cleaner, your product might sell more easily in the summer, when people do spring cleaning (a tradition of large-scale house cleaning popular in Europe and North America)
Part 3 of 4: Designing Ads
Step 1. Choose an image that is easy to remember
Simple, but surprisingly generally the best option. For example, this striking and colorful silhouette of an iPod ad is very abstract, but because it looks different from other ads, it's easy for people to recognize it.
Step 2. Show the difference with your main competitors
A burger is just a burger, but if you think like that, you will never sell your product. Use advertising to highlight the advantages of your product over competitors' products. To avoid lawsuits, be sure to only use statements about your product, not theirs.
For example, this Burger King ad mocks the size of the Big Mac by providing a literal statement: that it IS a Big Mac box, leaving McDonald's with no basis for lawsuits
Step 3. Create a business logo design (optional)
A picture tells a thousand words, and when a logo is effectively used, words are no longer needed (the Nike tick logo, Apple's bitten apple logo, McDonald's yellow arch, Chevron "V" logo). If you're creating a TV or print ad, create a simple but eye-catching image that sticks in the mind of the audience. Consider the following points:
- Do you already have a logo? If possible, think of a fresh and creative way to present it in a different way.
- Do you have a common color scheme to work with? If your brand is easily recognizable through ad colors or logos, use these to help you. McDonald's, Google, and Coca-Cola are good examples.
Step 4. Find a software or technique to create your ad
How you create an ad depends on what medium you will be using. Realize that if you're starting from scratch, building the skills to use a design app or create your own designs will take some time. In these cases, it may be more helpful (and less overwhelming) to look to freelance sites like Craigslist and 99designs to help you out. If you want to try it yourself, here are suggestions to get started:
- If you're creating a small print ad (like a flyer or magazine ad), try using a program like Adobe InDesign or Photoshop. Or, if you're looking for a free program, use GIMP or Pixlr.
- If you're creating a video ad, try using iMovie, Picasa, or Windows Media Player.
- For voice ads, you can use Audacity or iTunes.
- For large-scale ads (such as banners or billboards), you may have to use a print service to create them. Ask for programs they recommend.
Part 4 of 4: Testing Ads
Step 1. Ask the consumer to contact a specific person by name
If consumers have the option of calling your office after they see an ad, for example, ask them to “call Ayesha.” In another ad, ask them to “contact Sarwedi.” It doesn't matter whether Aisyah or Sarwedi really exist or not; what is important is that the person on the phone records how many people are looking for Aisyah or Sarwedi. The number of calls can be used as an indication of which ad is more attention-grabbing.
Step 2. Develop online data tracking
If your ad is clickable or directs consumers to a specific website, you will be able to see how your ad is performing. Many online tracking tools can help you.
- Make your ad visible, but not intrusive. People tend to dislike giant ads, pop-up ads that pop up, and anything that just randomly plays music.
- If your ad is found to be annoying, people are more likely to turn it off. As a result, your ad is not seen much.
Step 3. Redirect consumers to other links on your web page
This is a great way to directly compare the performance of two ads published together. Get your website to lead to a different page for each ad you test, then track how many people go to each page. Now you have a simple and unobtrusive way to see which ads are getting people's attention the most.
- Monitor the number of people viewing each ad page. That way, it will be easier for you to know which ones are good and which are not. A simple counter can also be used.
- Even if you really like a certain design, your ad target may not be. If your ad isn't getting a lot of views, try another approach.
Step 4. Offer coupons using different colors
If coupon sharing is part of your advertising strategy, make sure each coupon is a different color so you can calculate the number of coupons by color more easily.
Don't like wearing colors? Take advantage of a variety of shapes, sizes and fonts
Step 5. Calculate the total response your ad gets
This step allows you to evaluate how well your first ad worked and then learn to do better later on. Ask yourself the following questions and then tailor your next ad based on what you've learned.
- Did sales increase after your ad, or did they drop?
- Is your ad contributing to an increase in sales?
- Find out the reason for the change in the sales rate of the product. Is it because of advertising or things beyond your control (eg economic recession).
Tips
- Check your ad many times.
- Less is better. The less material consumers have to read or hear, the better for your ad.
- Advertising costs a lot of money and good advertising will really benefit you. Hiring a professional advertiser can be the right choice.
- If possible, use active verbs such as "buy now".
- Avoid using dead colors or small fonts; This distracts consumers from advertising. Remember that the human eye is attracted to bright colors, and if you don't use vivid colors, your ad won't get much attention. Make your design a differentiating feature, not just an added consideration.
- Make sure your ad is well placed. Your target needs to see it.
- Consider the future. Advertising should take into account modern trends in design, technology, and language, but you don't want people to see your ad 10 years later and be surprised at the inappropriate content of your ad.
- Go back and read your ad, and ask yourself, “Does this ad interest me?” Or “Is this product good for me to buy?”.
