No matter how good your product or service is, if nobody knows about it, you will not get enough sales to sustain your business. Advertising is the blood of your business. And that brings us to the question: What’s the secret behind ads that sell?
Exploit the 8D’s and you can even sell a rock
The most important thing you need to know when creating advertisements that sell is this: What drives people to buy? Like marketing, advertising is more science than art. There’s always psychology behind it.
Your customers have core desires that have been hard-wired in their brains (and yours). What are they? Drew Eric Whitman, in his book Cashvertising, called them the Life-Force 8 (LF8). For the lack of a better word, let’s call these eight primal desires the 8D’s:
- Desire to stay alive.
- Desire to enjoy foods and beverages.
- Desire to be safe and free of pain.
- Desire for sexual companionship.
- Desire for comfortable living.
- Desire to protect our loved ones.
- Desire for approval and validation.
- Desire to excel at what we do.
When these desires aren’t met, they create a form of tension which compels a person to act. For example, if there’s a rabid dog in front of you and the only way to drive it away is to throw a rock at it, would you hesitate in buying a $10 rock if it’s a matter of life and death?
Use the fear tactic wisely
Marketers are fond of using the fear tactic in their advertisements. Why? Because it works. Here’s an example of fear-based marketing from Apple’s recent 15-second spot:
Despite the playful music, the message from Apple’s ad is clear: iPhones are more secure. This copy feeds on a user’s fear of getting hacked — thanks to Uber leaking 57 million user data in 2017. And of course, the infamous Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal.
While the fear tactic is effective, it must be used carefully. Like a deer caught in the headlights, too much fear causes paralysis — inaction. Keep these four simple rules in mind when using fear:
- Crank up the fear, but not too much. Paint a picture that scares your audience. Provide enough detail so they break a cold sweat and experience that chill running up their spine, but be careful not to overdo it!
- Your advertisement must offer a solution to overcome that fear.
- Your solution must be perceived as effective. This means you should have facts and testimonials backing up your claim.
- Your audience should believe that he or she is capable of following your recommended solution. Simply put, make it easy for your audience to buy your product or service.
Take advantage of peoples’ egos
We all have egos. We all want that feeling of validation. That need to belong. And even at times, the compulsion to be perceived as greater than our peers. Things like success, attractiveness, sexual prowess, and intelligence are very powerful marketing tools when exploited correctly. Many people want to spend lots of effort, money, and time just to excel at one or more of these egocentric drives.
Be perceived as credible
If your customers don’t believe you, don’t expect them to buy. Credibility is crucial. So, how do you increase the credibility of your product, service, or brand?
One of the most effective ways to boost credibility is to earn the recommendation of a higher authority such as churches, national agencies, and scientific communities. People have learned to trust these institutions. So, do everything you can to get their stamp of approval.
Your ads must be in the right context
Different kinds of products require different kinds of ads. We can categorise these products into two: low relevance products and high relevance products.
Low relevance products such as food, petrol, soap, etc. require quick and intuitive buying decisions. The parts of the brain responsible for this kind of decision making are those responsible for emotion and intuition. These regions are usually influenced by images, colours, and smells. Ads with flashy colours, catchy slogans, and minor information work well for this type of products.
High relevance products, on the other hand, refers to expensive or life-changing purchases such as buying a car, insurance, or a house. This kind of decision making requires more energy and time and makes use of parts of the brain that control logic and reason. Advertisements for this type of products require facts, statistics, and other tangible evidence.
Nail the headline
Do you know that 60% of people who skip ads read only the headline? People have short attention spans. And most of the time, the only chance you get to expose your audience to your product or service is through your headline. So, nail it! How? Follow these steps:
- Put the biggest benefits in the headline.
- Make sure you are addressing the right audience.
- Use the magic words like “free”, “how”, “just released”, and “new”.
Advertising can be very expensive if you don’t know what you are doing. Creating ads that sell takes more than just slapping an image and a slogan together. There’s science behind it. Need the help of experts? Get in touch with us today.