Great actors share the spotlight.
But if you’re running an ad in a newspaper or magazine, you want to hog the spotlight. The aim is to get as many eyes as possible going directly to your ad-rather than going to whatever else is on the page.
The success of your ad may depend on how well it captures attention. And yet, most ads I see do an awfully good job of blending in rather than standing out.
So here are 10 things you can do to capture a greater “share of eyeballs.”
1. Use Big Unexpected Words in the Headline. A man selling a wart cream with small ads used a one-word headline: WARTS. This let him make the word as big as possible, and it got the attention of anyone who had the problem. Remember, the more words in the headline, the smaller the type will have to be.
2. Use Unexpected Visuals. An unexpected visual can really pop off the page. For Christian Brothers Wine I wrote an ad showing the wine bottle floating in the clouds. The headline: Where the Good Grapes Go. Think of some unusual ways to show your product.
3. Use Cartoons. Tests show that when there is a cartoon on a page, eyes naturally go there. I created a series of ads using cartoons for PestFree, showing the crazy reactions people have to cockroaches. Business went up 25%.
4. Look Different. If everything else on the page is color, use black and white. Or, if everyone else is using lots of pictures, try an ad that is all type. If all the other ads look very professional, make yours look personal; try handwriting it, perhaps.
5. Try a Series of Small Ads. Instead of running a large ad, try running a series of 3 or 4 small ads in the lower right hand corner of successive pages. The ads should all look the same but have slightly different messages. This gets a lot of attention.
6. Use Silly Rhymes. In some cases, using rhymes or poetry can be appropriate and generate greater interest and readership. For a yarn store, in place of headlines for their small ads, we put poems like this:
Yarns and gifts, books and kits,
Your hands will have some happy fits!
7. Use the Element of Surprise. Even if you’re selling something ordinary, you can find a surprising way of describing it, as in this headline for an ad for Olive Oil from Greece: 4,000 Years Old and Still a Virgin.
8. Use Long Headlines. This contradicts the first rule, but if you’re running a larger ad, a long headline can sometimes stand out simply by virtue of being so long. David Ogilvy wrote a famous and successful ad for Rolls Royce with a 17-word headline.
9. When in Doubt, Put Puppies or Children in the Ad. Or Both.
10. Break Any of These Rules-If it Will Help You Stand Out.
The point is, don’t simply put down the information and think you’re done with your ad. Look for different, unexpected ways to present the information. Realize that you’re in a battle for eyeballs. Find a way to hog the spotlight.
