start by thinking about the client.
by bruce w. marcus
professional services marketing 3.0
there are some basic advertising principles that are indigenous to all advertising. even in tax and accounting, you violate them at your own risk.
more professional services marketing 3.0: everything you need to know about your next brochure | being social in the new world of social media | there’s a leak in my firm | what ads, the web or social media still can’t do | advertising as a marketing tool that sometimes works | eight client retention strategies for the new competitive environment | why “niche marketing” should be superseded by “total context marketing” | ten strategies for the smaller firm facing competition from larger firms | the client service team in action | ten things every firm needs to make clear firm-wide |
today, every ad campaign, and every ad, should address the question, “what do we want readers to know, think, or feel, after reading these ads?” ads work best when you clearly understand your market, and clearly understand how your service relates to the needs of that market.
let’s break it down:
1) the foundation for the ad – nine rules on which every ad must be built.
2) writing the copy – three guidelines on the art and science of manipulating symbols and ideas to inform and persuade.
3) thirteen rules professionals already know.
4) three reasons a good ad is not about good writing.
the foundation for an ad
1. know your market. not only who your prospect is, but what kind of service your market really wants and needs and is willing to buy, and what kind of problems they’ll look to you to resolve.
2. know your service, in terms of what the prospective client is willing to buy, not simply what you’re offering to sell.
3. every ad campaign should begin with a stated objective. ask, “what do you want the reader to know, think, or feel after reading the ad?” the objectives are not general, they are specific to each firm, each campaign, each ad. they dictate that the copy, and all other elements of the ad, are focused and relevant..
4. obviously, truth is basic. you don’t promise what you can’t deliver.
5. the purpose of a headline is to attract attention and to bring the reader to the ad. a headline that offers nothing to the reader in terms of either benefit or interest may effectively mask the cleverest ad, and one that’s offering the most useful service.
6. the text should spring from the headline, and follow through the promise it offers. it should explain and clarify the facts and claims. it should be a logical progression of ideas, covering all of the points you mean to cover, even if it’s done only with an illustration.
7. copy can appeal to the intellect and reason, or it can appeal to the emotions, or it can do both.
8. the illustration, which should have some relevance to the text, or otherwise attract the reader to the text.
9. the ad usually ends with a logo and a signature for identification and impression, and sometimes also a slogan.
writing is not the manipulation of words — it’s the expression of ideas. words, grammar and punctuation, are merely the tools and devices we use to express ideas most clearly. to think of copy as a configuration of words is the same as thinking of a symphony as a configuration of notes.
writing the copy
the artistry of advertising lies in the ability to manipulate symbols and ideas in order to inform and persuade people. as in any art form, there are no rules that can guide you in doing this, except to list those factors that seem to work most consistently.
1. and yet, remember, some of the most successful ads are those that violate the rules:
2. two universally accepted axioms are that an ad must be simple, and it must look and sound as if it’s worth paying attention to.
3. and obviously, it must be complete — it must contain all the information you want to convey.
these axioms — if indeed they are axioms — spring from the fact that few ads are successful when these rules are ignored.
4. beyond that, clarity is essential. no matter how an ad is written it must be understood and easy to read.
there are some other guidelines that professional copywriters also find useful:
1. talk to the reader, the listener, or the viewer.
2. don’t announce, don’t preach. and,
3. don’t get carried away by words and lose sight of the message.
4. “you” is better than “we.”
5. write short sentences, with easy and familiar words. you want the reader or listener to do the least possible work to get your message. even when you’re talking to very bright people, communication is of the essence, not language manipulation.
6. don’t waste words. whether you use three or a thousand words make sure each is exactly the one you need. you’re not writing an insurance contract for accountants. an ad is information and persuasion.
7. use the present tense and the active voice (“all professional copywriters have extensive experience in preparing material,” rather than ” … extensive experience in the preparation of material.”). if you do want a formal style, it should be deliberate; and you should have a clear idea of why you are using it.
8. punctuate correctly. punctuate to help the reader, and not merely to follow specific rules.
9. the less punctuation the better, within the bounds of clarity, but don’t be afraid to use it if it helps the flow of an idea.
10. don’t be afraid to use contractions and personal pronouns, just as you would in chatting informally with a prospect. after all, that’s what you’re trying to accomplish in your ad.
11. watch out for clichés. they turn some people off. more significantly, people don’t hear them as they pass mindlessly off the tongue without bothering to visit the mind, and the point you’re trying to make is lost. (again, unless you’re doing it deliberately.)
12. to be enthusiastic and exciting is to be well along on the way to being interesting.
13. humor is dangerous, unless you’re professionally funny. nothing defeats an ad like unfunny — and usually irrelevant – ad copy.
why do ads that seem well written sometimes not work?
because:
- they miss these points of advertising.
- they attempt to merely translate somebody’s idea of persuasive talk into the ad medium.
- they don’t know that “you” is better than “we.”
- they didn’t bother to learn the market.
and (5) because somebody didn’t recognize that the art of advertising copywriting is not the art of literary writing. different medium, different art form.
bruce w. marcus is a pioneer in professional services marketing and coauthor of “client at the core.” this is adapted from his new book, “professional services marketing 3.0,” available for purchase here.
copyright. used by permission.