Are Your Commercials Easy to Ignore?

The point of buying advertising time is to make your business stand out. So, why are so many commercials so easy to ignore? How are businesses allowing this to happen? Actually... it’s pretty easy. Don’t fret. Read this article and take the points to heart. If you’re brave enough, your ad won’t land on the bone heap of invisible commercials. Let’s do this! Do you over-think creative? – It’s ok to scrutinize a script. You should take a personal interest in your creative. But many of us critique a script word by word. What often happens is you’ll end up picking your script apart until it’s useless.

How do you avoid this?

Hire a professional that you trust and let them do their job. A good creative writer has had their hands on thousands of campaigns. They’ve learned what does and doesn’t work. When you receive a script from your writer ask them why it was written the way it was. They should be able to transfer their confidence to you. DO NOT ask the advertising representative. They aren’t the experts. You need to ask the writer.

Every sentence should be written as a working part to an effective script. Each cog is placed for a certain reason. When you begin to tinker with the cogs, the machine stops working. This is the main cause of an ineffective commercial. I’ve found that each revision to a script tends to make it a little less effective until it ends up being just another ordinary script. Find a writer you trust, and let them work wonders for you.

Do you embrace fear? – Buying commercial airtime is scary. It’s even scarier to air a commercial that truly stands out. Which is funny, because that’s the entire point. A great commercial should make you feel uncomfortable when the time comes to hit the approve button. If you feel nothing, neither will anyone else.

• Don’t be afraid to piss someone off. We want people to talk about you. Complaints are a great sign that you’re getting an effective message out. Don’t worry. These people are not your target customer.
• Don’t be afraid to be a pioneer. The best commercials are based on ideas that no-one has ever tried.
• Don’t be afraid to offer a difficult deal. Deals don’t mean as much to people as they used to. They’ve just been beaten to death. So, if you’re going to offer one make it count.

Do your commercials sound like commercials? – It’s really easy to approve a bad commercial. It’s really hard to approve a great one. Bad commercials sound like commercials you’ve heard before. They don’t test any fences. They don’t offer anything new. They shouldn’t exist at all. Be honest with yourself when you approve a script. Does it sound like a typical commercial? If it does, it will be very easy to ignore. Don’t air it.

There are many ways to make an ignorable commercial. Thankfully, there are many more ways to make one that stands out. The litmus test is whether the creative sitting in front of you gives you butterflies. If it does, you may be on to something.

As always... I’m happy to help you find your way.