4 Ways To Make Newspaper Ads Work!

Too often when I read the paper I see ads that make the hairs on the back of my neck stand up with just one look. Most of these ads are almost certainly a waste of time, but they could improve so much by just a little tweeking ... which is why I want to give you 4 tips on how to do this:

1 –
Six simple rules that increase sales from newspaper ad headlines… Research shows that 80% of people will only read your headline – and that’s if your ad is stunning! Here are six tips to make your headline work:
*Most important, mention a benefit – “The handles on these webstone designer coffee mugs fit even the biggest hands”.
*Speak well of your product. They’re not just coffee mugs, they’re designer coffee mugs.
*Mention the name of the product – Webstone designer coffee mugs.
*Use rhetoric to pull more readership in your headline – “Sick of coffee mugs that are hard to hold? The handles on these Webstone designer mugs fit even the biggest hands”.
*Don’t be afraid to make your headline long. E.g. See the headline in point 4 above. Short headlines often don’t sell any more product.
*Use news – “Now Webstone’s designer coffee mugs with the big easy handles feature Ken Done’s latest native art designs”.

2 –
Use photos that have ‘story appeal’. Don’t use illustrations! Choose photos that make the reader thing “what goes on here?” E.g. don’t run a photo of a car company chief standing next to the latest model – have him/her in a suit, but lying on a mechanics gurney under the car or standing in the open driver’s door holding up the optional ‘Momo’ steering wheel. Where possible avoid illustrations. Your customer finds photographs more believable.

3 –
Always run a ‘caption’ under the photo. Imagine if the NZ Herald ran a photo of Helen Clarke with no caption underneath. You’d know very well who the photo is of, but instinctively you’d look under the photo for the caption. Research shows that twice as many people read the caption under the photo, than read the body copy. So never miss the opportunity to tell all those readers your selling story in the caption under the photo.

4 –
Write long copy, but tell the whole story in your first 50 words. Readership falls off after your first 50 words, so you’ll need to tell your whole selling story right there. But remember that if your copy is good, many of your customers will read more than a thousand words. You’re still reading after 441 words on this page alone!

So I hope to see some of your ads in the paper soon, and some that might even tempt me to buy your products!


To succeed... You have to believe in something with such a passion that it becomes reality - Anita Roddick