Tag Archives: ads

CAPS, Bold, !!! … — !

Quick Easy Tips… How to Write BETTER Ads!

I learned a long time ago and have preached for many years that one of the most important elements in successful advertising is the “MESSAGE”! When teaching and preaching radio advertising, I start with these rules:

  • People don’t dislike ads, they dislike BAD ads! AND…..

  • NO ONE listens to your radio stations for the ads; we must make them “HEAR” the ads…

Why are most ads … BAD ads? The main reason is that the announcer is simply reading the scripts as they are written, Bland and BORING with a capital “B”!!!

Are your ads written in proper English, using perfect grammar and punctuation OR… do you write them (and produce them) like people really speak?  I could talk for hours on how to write and produce ads that work, (it’s one of my favorite subjects) but today I am speaking directly to the elements (CAPS, Bold, !!! … —) of the script!

Nine times out of ten, scripts are written in normal script style with proper sentence format and near perfect grammar. Unfortunately, that is exactly how the announcer reads it. Again — BORING! STOP Doing This!!!

If you want a healthy or … pregnant pause, use … or —. If you want emphasis on a certain word …. use all CAPS and/or BOLD type and certainly use !’s. If the word needs EXTRA emphasis, !!! is better than ! or !! And, never… NEVER write a full script in ALL CAPS – but a single word HERE and there is O.K. !

These little tips will help announcers voice and produce BETTER ads! Your announcers will appreciate it – your listeners will like it – and…your CLIENTS will LOVE IT!!

Better ads get better RESULTS! Great Ads – Get GREAT RESULTS!!! And, Great Results nearly always equal – Longer Term Business and BIGGER $$$’s!

If you would like help training your team on how to write GREAT ADS, we provide half day and full day workshops on this exact subject!!! To visit about this workshop – CONTACT ME…—!!!

The Great Debate…10’s, 15’s, 30’s or 60’s?

What is the best length for ads? The correct answer is… whatever it takes – to make it a GREAT ad! The only wrong answer to this question would have been had you suggested just one of these options.

We need to first understand, believe, and realize that no one listens to your radio station for the ads. It’s our job to get them to listen with creative, compelling, well written, and well produced ads that are strategically on target. The length of the ad has very little to do with how effective it is.

If you are a proponent of 60 second ads, you can probably put up a great debate as to why 60’s are better than 30’s, and vice versa. What I can tell you is that bad 60 second ads are simply a bigger waste of money than bad 30’s.

What about 10’s or 15’s? One of the very best ad campaigns I’ve ever heard is the QUIKRETE campaign titled “Long Story Short”, created by Fitzgerald and Company. They are 10 second ads with a brilliant strategy and were executed perfectly! To hear these ads, click here. They’re great entertainment and can be used as examples when discussing length of ads with clients and in training your team to either ask better questions and/or write better ads. Yes, asking better questions always leads to better ads.

The reason for this article isn’t to debate the best length of ad. The fact remains, regardless of the length, the “better” the ad, the “better” the results. Our point is… what are you doing on a daily or weekly basis to help train your team; sellers, writers and production departments on how to write and produce better ads?

Better ads will lead to better results for your clients, AND, your station will sound better, allowing you to create more revenue with bigger and longer-term contracts.

If you would like to discuss this topic, or if you would like help in training your team on creating and writing better ads, contact us and let’s discuss how doing this can help you generate more revenue. The pay-offs can be huge!

STOP THE MADNESS

Imagine you have never done business with me before, and I approach you with an exotic sports car I have for sale. I tell you the car is ‘valued at’ $100,000, but I’m only asking $50,000.

What are you thinking?

Probably one or more of the following;

1.) Who or what makes the car ‘valued at’ $100,000
2.) Why are you knocking $50,000 off of the alleged value?
3.) Is it stolen? Is it defective?
4.) If you are ‘asking’ $50,000 less than the value, I’m sure you’re open to a lower offer.
5.) If it sounds too good to be true, it is too good to be true.

We often see radio presentations claiming a value that is so far greater than the ‘asking’ price, that the offer is not credible.

Here is the thing; when you make a presentation, do you prove and validate the value you claim? And, when you offer your campaign at a price lower than the alleged value, do you justify that discount?

Or do you just leave your prospect thinking;

a.) You’re desperate
b.) You have misled them and inflated the value
c.) You have no confidence in your rate card or your value and you’ll do or say anything just to get an order.

Do you want to improve your closing ratios and the size of your average order? It’s all in the way you make your presentations. Click here to discuss how ENS Media can help you make bigger, better, and more believable presentations.