Beginner's Guide to Advertising

by Tom McKay

Originally published in The Crafts Report

Scan the pages of most newspapers or magazines, and you'll notice lots of ads. Actually, that's not quite correct. The pages may be packed with ads, but few actually catch your eye. Even fewer are attractive or interesting enough to persuade you to read them.

As a small-business owner, your challenge is to write and design an ad that will break through the clutter, attract the reader's attention and persuade them to buy. That's a pretty tall order, whether you're General Motors or Jenny the Jeweler.

As an artist, craftsperson, gallery owner or retailer, you have an additional challenge. You want to avoid appearing crass. Chances are, you'd like to keep your sales message low-key. But how can your small ad be as classy and cool as your product, and still stand out on a page crowded with ads waving their arms and screaming, "Hey! Over here!"

Begin at the Beginning

Just like a good news reporter, you should begin by answering the five W's: who, what, when, where, and why.

Who are you trying to reach? Visualize your potential customer. What is their age, sex, and income level? Are they married or single? Grandparents, baby boomers or Generation Xers? Are they old customers or people who have never seen your work before? Collectors or the general public? Do they understand your product, or do you need to explain what it is or how it's made?

After you have a fix on who you're trying to reach, think about what you want them to do after reading your ad. Call for a brochure? Visit your store or gallery?

Where (and how) do you want them to do it? In person? By phone or fax? Mail order?

When should they do it? Now is always a good answer. Successful ads often create a sense of urgency, in which the buyer fears losing out if they don't act quickly. Such persuasion can take the form of limited time offers, special discounts, and the like.

Why should they buy your work? And why now? Beauty? Status? Convenience? This is the most elusive question, since often all crafts producers are really selling is the warm and fuzzy feeling which accompanies ownership of a quality handmade product.

Until you have definite answers to each of the five W's-- until you're clear who you're after and what you want them to do after seeing or hearing your ad -- your message hasn't a chance of being effective. To reach your destination, after all, you must first decide where you're trying to go.

Make Your Point

Next, decide what single message you're trying to get across. Don't try to tell your life story, or appeal to everyone. Focus on one carefully-crafted message or selling point, and aim it directly at your target customer. An ad, just like your business, should have a single, narrow focus. Al Ries and Jack Trout, in their excellent book The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, explain, "The essence of marketing is narrowing the focus. You become stronger when you reduce the scope of your operations. You can't stand for something if you chase after everything."

One winning theme is focusing on what sets you apart from other craftspeople in your genre. In the ad world that's known as your Unique Selling Proposition, or USP. For example, 7-Up was the Uncola, the choice for anyone sick of plain old cola. Avis tried harder because they were only #2 in the car rental market. Apple originally positioned itself as "the computer for the rest of us", i.e., everyone befuddled by computer geek-speak. How is your product or service unique?

Another good approach is to showcase the benefits your product offers a buyer. Years ago, Burger King's benefit was choice: "Have it your way." Crest toothpaste fights cavities. Listerine reduces plaque and prevents gingivitis. Miller Lite tastes great and is less filling. It's even more challenging to communicate the "benefits" of buying hand-crafted goods.

After you've answered the five W's, chosen the single point you want to make in your ad, and discerned your product's uniqueness and benefits, you're almost ready to start writing. But before you do, plan to include the four elements of a successful advertisement, whether it's for the local newspaper or a national magazine like The Crafts Report. Utilize the timeless A-I-D-A formula, as successful ads usually do. No matter how small your ad, it should always include these four elements: Attention, Interest, Desire and Action.

Attention You're competing with lots of other ads. Grab the reader's attention immediately with a bold headline, especially one that promises a benefit. Your ad's headline "is the most important element," writes David Ogilvy in Confessions of an Advertising Man. "On average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar. If you haven't done some selling in your headline, you have wasted 80% of your... money."

Interest Seduce the reader into the rest of your copy by providing fascinating information and benefits about your product or store. As Ogilvy explains, "You cannot bore people into buying... you can only interest them in buying."

Desire Paint word-pictures that stimulate their desire and make them want to buy. A good way to do this is by showing the benefits of your product and how it will enhance the purchaser's quality of life.

Action This is an essential step that's often overlooked. Your call to action must clearly tell the reader what to do next, and when. For example, "Call now for a brochure." "Visit our gallery this weekend." "Come to my booth at next weekend's festival." Remember, if you don't tell the reader what to do after reading your ad, chances are she'll do nothing.

Three types of ads

To help focus your creative urges, which must be running wild by now, let me introduce you to three different types of print advertisements: promotional, image, and informational.

Promotional ads, by far the most common type, may be hard-sell or soft-sell, but they are definitely sales-oriented. They are created to do just one thing -- sell the product, not win awards for clever wordplay or jaw-dropping graphics. But like gourmet coffee, promotional ads come in a wide variety of flavors and strengths. Many can be utilized effectively by a crafts producer or retailer to promote their business. These include:

Announcement of a grand opening, open house, or some other noteworthy event.

Testimonial by a satisfied customer or client. These can be especially effective. Have you ever asked your customers for a testimonial? I'll cover that topic in a future article.

Savings incentive, such as a coupon, sale or special event.

Demonstration of your product, how to use it, or how you make it.

Classified ads.

Other types of promotional ads, for obvious reasons, would probably be less effective in selling arts or crafts items. Among them are:

Price-and-item ads, like supermarkets and auto dealers use

Comparison ads, touting "ours" vs. "theirs"

Contests, sweepstakes and giveaways. Be especially careful with these. There are federal and state laws governing these events, and even an innocent misstep can land you in hot water with the Federal Trade Commission.

The second major category is the image ad. These are less concerned with overt selling and more interested in creating a mood, conveying an emotion, or positioning a company's product or service in the minds of the public. Examples include soft drinks like Pepsi and Mountain Dew, with their hip, high-energy, youthful image. Volvo ads inevitably promote the safety of their vehicles. Nordstrom's image is incredible customer service. This approach can prove very effective for galleries, shops and craftspeople producing a high-ticket, high-profit item. But you must have the resources to reinforce your message constantly.

Finally, informational ads can be a highly-effective approach for those involved in the crafts world, just as they are for the high-tech and financial industries. This type of advertising allows you to provide customers and the general public with valuable information they might not otherwise discover, on a subject you know well. Another benefit: informational ads automatically position you as an expert in your field. Consumers are always more comfortable buying from an expert, especially when making expensive purchases. Informational ads can also take many forms, including:

Letter to Reader

Questions & Answers

Expert advice

News, the latest trends and developments in your field

How-to explanation or demonstration of some aspect of your product or creative process.

Much of the information you create for informational ads can come from -- or be channeled into -- other info-oriented marketing vehicles like newsletters, brochures, product tags, etc.

Well, that's all there is to it. Easy, isn't it? Now that you're finally ready to grab a pencil and start writing, let me leave you with another bit of timeless wisdom from the annals of advertising.

The codfish lays a million eggs, the helpful hen but one.
But the codfish doesn't cackle to tell you when she's done.
And so we scorn the codfish coy, while the helpful hen we prize
Which indicates to thoughtful minds... it pays to advertise!

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