What Makes A Great Online Ad?

By Author: Bob Osgoodby
Total Articles: 34
Comment this article

Trying to sell your product or service online differs from all
other forms of advertising, and very few people seem to realize
that this is completely different from all other traditional
forms of advertising. Print media allows the use of attention
getting graphics. Radio allows music or jingles and of course TV
provides both visual as well as auditory stimuli.

Now a Web Page can also do this, but you have to get people there
to see and/or hear your message. Spending a lot of money for a
Web Page that no-one sees is like putting a "Bill Board" on a
major highway and putting your Ad on the back of it. Sure you may
get an occasional person who walks behind it, but you are not
accomplishing your purpose.

The bottom line on any advertising campaign is to design your ad
so that it gets attention. Classified Ads in the Newspaper are a
good place to start in designing your online ad. In order to do
this, you will have to examine the classifieds for a few days.
Which ones run day after day and are really commercial in nature.
They all have ...
... something in common, and after awhile you can get
to spot them.

OK - with that behind us, we have to get our message across with
words - and only words. All "great" ads have three things which
make them work. The first is an "attention getter", the second is
the "tease" and the third is the "call for action".

A great ad will first get someone's attention. If it doesn't do
this, you are wasting your time and advertising dollars. An
"attention getter" is basically the title of your ad - you must
use powerful words here - FREE GIFT, EARN WHILE YOU SLEEP, I WAS
REALLY STUPID etc. are just a few examples. Don't forget that
FREE is one of the most powerful of these words. Titles that
promise BIG EARNINGS or $$$$ EARN THOUSANDS $$$$ have become
passe, and should probably be avoided.

Next we have the "Tease" - your purpose here is not to sell them
something immediately. If we were selling a used refrigerator, we
might say something about it to get them to call. Our purpose
here is to get them to contact us for further information. You
give them enough information to pique their curiosity. Don't try
to sell them here - you simply don't have enough space to present
your offer properly - in fact you could turn off a prospect if
done improperly.

Third, we have the "Call to Action" - this is what you want them
to do. Online, we only have a few options, but they are very
powerful. E-mail to you is one and a visit to your Web Site is
another. If you have an 800 number, that should be included. But
forget giving them a number to call that will cost them long
distance charges - they simply won't do it. Forget about writing
you for information - capitalize on their impulse.

Now how do I know I have a "great" ad? That's easy - you get
responses. Does that mean sales - no. It means responses. The
sales part is a whole different animal.

To wrap us this part of the discussion, we must remember that it
takes at least 5 to 7 exposures, on the average in traditional
advertising, to get a customer to "walk through your door".
Advertising online is the same. You cannot expect your ads to
generate leads if they are only done once or twice, or by using a
shotgun approach. Consistency here is the key - keep your offer
in front of your prospects on a regular basis.

Don't be afraid to experiment with your ad copy. Keep a notebook
which has copies of your ads with one per page. When you get a
response, make a note there and include their E-mail address.
Rotate your ads on a fairly regular basis to ensure they are all
getting a fair chance. After awhile, you will see which ads are
generating the most responses. Discard those that are not and
concentrate on improving those that are. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bob publishes the free weekly "Your Business" Newsletter
Visit his Web Site at http://adv-marketing.com/business to
subscribe.