Nobody becomes a phenomenon in any field without putting in
the time and discipline. This is especially true today when it comes to writing
promotions in a field that is more competitive than ever. We've gone from three
TV channels to hundreds, there are more magazines than ever, and of course,
there’s the Internet, Facebook, and Google. These days, anyone with access to
the Internet can be an advertiser. So, to be a successful at promoting
anything, you must learn what makes your product unique or you’ll never be able
to make it rise above the noise. The trick is to find the story in the product,
and that takes skill. Maybe you’re selling something like a fish oil
supplement. You can turn it into something special by explaining, for example,
that your fish oil comes from a unique kind of fish living deep in Icelandic
waters, providing better Omega-3s.
The most famous headline
in advertising history.
David Ogilvy –
one of the advertising legends from the mid-twentieth century – wrote many
famous ads during his career, but the one that is said to have been the most
famous headline in advertising history was the one he created for Rolls-Royce.
The headline read: “At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new
Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock.”
This groundbreaking ad illustrates all the principles that
made Ogilvy’s work stand out. The headline itself was a wonderful example of
what he called the “big idea.” No one had ever seen a headline like that
before. It intrigued people and pulled them in to read the rest of the ad. The
body of the ad was made up of 13 interesting facts that clearly explained why
the Rolls-Royce was so unique, and why it was worth its sky-high price. But
this is the critical point: Ogilvy didn’t just sit around waiting for
inspiration to come. In describing the processes he used to write the
Rolls-Royce ad, Ogilvy said he started out, as he always did, by doing his
homework. Ogilvy said that as a marketer you had to study the product and find
out as much about it as you can. The more you know about a product, the more
likely you are to be able to come up with the big idea.
When he got the Rolls-Royce account, Ogilvy spent three
weeks reading about the car. In the process he came upon this statement from a
Rolls-Royce engineer: “At 60 miles an hour, the loudest noise comes from the
electric clock.” That became the headline, which was followed by 607 words of
factual copy. In a sense, Ogilvy didn’t even write the world’s most famous
headline; he took it from a company report. But his genius was in recognizing
the power of the statement to work as the lead-in to the rest of the ad.
Lessons for today’s
promoters on researching your product.
Many of the copywriters I work with today do just as Ogilvy
said to do: They spend as much time as necessary researching before they ever
start writing. Very often the facts themselves give rise to the big idea that
will really sell the product. It’s the research that gives rise to the creative
inspiration. Smart advertisers put this into practice. My colleague Brian Kurtz
told me about a company he works with that hires entry level copywriters who
spend the first year or two only doing research. They don’t write one stitch of
copy until after they master researching the subject area they’re going to be
working on. We should also remember to always deal in facts. Especially today,
consumers are wary of empty claims that seem to have nothing to back them up.
In promoting your product or service, or yourself, be sure to provide fact
after fact that explains why you’re the best.
Research Your
Audience, Too.
Eugene Schwartz is another legend who provided us with
insight into creative salesmanship. He expanded on the value of research by
explaining we should not only do research into our product, but we need to
research our prospects as well. Schwartz originated from Butte, Montana. Even
though he ended up in Manhattan, living a sophisticated life and amassing an
extensive collection of modern American art, he considered his small town
upbringing to be fortunate and invaluable to his success in the business. It
was because of his early experience that he understood the desires and
interests of the vast majority of Americans, and he never stopped learning as
much as he could about them. He said: "You cannot lose touch with the
people of this country, no matter how successful or how potent you are. If you
don’t spend at least two hours a week finding out where your market is today,
you are finished!"
For the same reason he read the National Enquirer every
week, and went to popular films – the blockbusters that all of America was
watching. In order to write effective ad copy he learned to “Talk little,
listen much.” He would listen to cab drivers, waitresses, shopkeepers –
everyone he met, so he could become familiar with the language they used and
the kind of images that appealed to them.
Today you don’t have to read the rags in the supermarket.
Just go on to one of the popular Internet news sites and you’ll get all the
information you need. Your best research on the hidden desires of your
prospects is truly a mouse click away. So, spend time thinking about your
target audience and how your product will help them. Even better, get in touch
with members of your target audience and learn directly from them what they’re
looking for and what they like (and don’t like) about your product.
Research is the key
to creativity.
Just to make the point one more time, don’t think you have
to be a great creative genius to write great promotions. Everything you need is
in the facts about your product and your audience. Do the research, get the
facts and all the pieces will fall into place. They really will.
Credit: entrepreneur.com
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