Merry Christmas!
Of course, it would be more politically correct to say "Season's Greetings" or "Happy Holidays". How about "Happy Whatever-You-Celebrate"?
If you're a Christmas kind of person, generic greetings just don't get your attention, do they?
So it is with advertising your business.
You cannot be all things to all people, so why not discover your niche and pursue it with gusto? If Christmas is your 'niche', resonate with your target audience by saying so. You'll waste precious time and resources trying to be generic enough to appeal to everyone, and you risk appealing to no one.
If you don't know who your ideal customer is, take time to find out. Otherwise, like trying to sell snow shovels in Florida, your marketing message will fall on deaf ears or consumers will perceive you to be clueless.
May your New Year be prosperous. That's a message we can all relate to!
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Keep It Simple
Have you ever been listening to someone tell a story and found yourself growing impatient for them to get to the point? We're so busy multi-tasking, we don't have time to be bogged down with details. We're a society of short cuts, abbreviations, contractions and condensed versions. I once saw a question posed to Marilyn vos Savant, the Mensa brainiac who writes the Ask Marilyn column, inquiring if there wasn't some way to shorten the w-w-w abbreviation for the World Wide Web!
We want our information now, in short, sweet snippets. To borrow the immortal words of Sgt. Joe Friday on Dragnet, "Just the facts, ma'am." If we want details or embellishment, we'll let you know, or seek it out on our own.
The K.I.S.S. rule bears repeating. "Keep It Simple, Stupid." When you're composing advertising copy, get to the point. Marketing gurus say most ad copy should be on a second grade comprehension level. Any more complex and it becomes work to discern the real message. You deserve to be proud of your product or service, but the consumer public isn't nearly as emotionally attached. You must give them a compelling reason to do business with you, and , go figure, you must ask for their business.
Here are a few tips to help you zero in on the most relevant points to make:
1. If you don't have a 30-second elevator speech, create one.
2. Figure out a way to describe your business using no more than 10 words.
3. Identify your Unique Value Proposition - the reason consumers should buy from you and not
your competitor
Learning to be succinct can also save you money. You might be able to run a smaller print or online ad. Perhaps you can use 30-second radio spots instead of :60s. Brevity can be beautiful.
Need a little help with copywriting? E-mail Carole@TheMediaFairy
We want our information now, in short, sweet snippets. To borrow the immortal words of Sgt. Joe Friday on Dragnet, "Just the facts, ma'am." If we want details or embellishment, we'll let you know, or seek it out on our own.
The K.I.S.S. rule bears repeating. "Keep It Simple, Stupid." When you're composing advertising copy, get to the point. Marketing gurus say most ad copy should be on a second grade comprehension level. Any more complex and it becomes work to discern the real message. You deserve to be proud of your product or service, but the consumer public isn't nearly as emotionally attached. You must give them a compelling reason to do business with you, and , go figure, you must ask for their business.
Here are a few tips to help you zero in on the most relevant points to make:
1. If you don't have a 30-second elevator speech, create one.
2. Figure out a way to describe your business using no more than 10 words.
3. Identify your Unique Value Proposition - the reason consumers should buy from you and not
your competitor
Learning to be succinct can also save you money. You might be able to run a smaller print or online ad. Perhaps you can use 30-second radio spots instead of :60s. Brevity can be beautiful.
Need a little help with copywriting? E-mail Carole@TheMediaFairy
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)