Learning how to write adverts that generate interest and lead to sales can be the skill that really allows your business to take off big time.
Every successful ad has 5 fundamental elements which make them effective. The 4th fundamental of an ad is to persuade people to grasp the advantage that your product offers them.
In this series of posts, we are talking about the 5 fundamentals of writing an advert. When you learn how to write ads the right way by incorporating these 5 fundamental elements you will be miles ahead of your competition.
To summarise, the 5 fundamental purposes of a successful ad are:
- To get attention
- To show an advantage that can be obtained through the use of your product or service
- To prove your claims
- To persuade people to grasp the advantage
- To ask people to take action
In this post, we will be talking about ad fundamental 4 – persuading people to grasp the advantage or opportunity you are offering in your ad.
Persuade people to grasp the advantage – ad fundamental #4
If you create your ad copy by following the steps we have outlined so far, your ads should successfully:
- Grab the attention of those in your target audience
- Show them an advantage that can be obtained through the use of your product or service
- Prove that advantage with facts, social proof, testimonials etc.
Now the next step is to persuade them to grasp this advantage. This step is often left out by many copywriters because they confuse it with the 5th fundamental purpose of an ad – which is to ask people to take action on your offer (your call-to-action).
There is however a huge difference between fundamental 4 and 5. In step 5 we are presenting our call-to-action – this could be asking someone to click a button, subscribe, make a purchase, download something etc. It is completely action orientated. In this 4th step we are not asking them to take action yet. We are simply presenting them with powerful reasons why they should purchase your product in order to benefit from the advantage it offers them (which you have outlined in step 2 and proven in step 3).
You can think of step 4 as a sort of summarising section of your ad where you are giving your reader a final nudge in order to push them over the fence. It’s the last bit of actual selling you do before asking for the sale or closing.
Painting a picture
This 4th part of your ad copy is all about painting a picture in your prospect’s mind of what your product will do for them.
You want them to be able to imagine themselves using your product and enjoying the benefits you have already outlined. You are gathering the various threads of your advantage claims and proof (fundamentals 2 and 3) and weaving them together in to a strong close.
You are reminding them and summing up what you have already stated in the earlier parts of your ad copy, and bringing it all together in a powerful way that gives them the additional motivation necessary to stimulate them in to taking action (the last part of your ad).
So, how do you get people to grasp the advantage you are offering them?
Stress the benefits of your product in use
Summarise the benefits that your customer will enjoy from using your product. Use words that describe how they will feel when they are using your product and enjoying the advantages it has given them. Reiterate what they will be able to gain, be, do, or reduce from the use of your product.
Talk about how these advantages will improve other aspects of their lives where relevant. Talk about how will it benefit and impact their business life, social life, health, relationships, status, etc.
Example: Let’s say we are selling an accounting software package that offers the advantages of doing your business accounts much quicker, and makes managing your company finances easier, thus saving you a lot of time.
Our ad copy might go something like this:
“Imagine how much more productive you will be when you implement this software in your business. Think about all the extra hours you will save by using this program.
No more late evenings in the office mulling over paperwork – instead you’ll be able to get home earlier and spend more time with your loved ones.
Imagine what a difference it’ll make to your relationship with your spouse when you are able to get home early every evening and spend quality time with them.
Imagine having the time to sit down for dinner every evening like a family, instead of coming home late to a microwaveable meal that you eat alone in front of the TV.
Imagine how much more time you’ll get to spend with your kids. No more missing out on their recitals, football games, or school plays. You’ll be able to be there for all those precious moments, and they’ll love you more for it!”
In our example you can see how you take the advantage of your product (which in this case is the extra time it gives them) and paint a vivid picture of them enjoying those benefits and relating them to all areas of their life.
When you can relate the benefits of your product to the wider areas of your prospects’ lives you will be tapping in to their emotions, which as we know are the driving force behind purchase decisions.
You are making the benefits real to them and providing them with the extra motivation to persuade them to take action on your offer.
You can also take a negative approach
In the above example we talked about summarising the benefits your prospect will enjoy by using your product or service. We can call this the positive approach where we focus on what they will gain if they buy your product.
The opposite of this is the negative approach – where you summarise what they stand to lose if they don’t buy your product.
Example: Using the same example of accounting software, a negative approach to using our 4th ad fundamental might go like this:
“How many more hours will you have to spend in the office working late and mulling over your accounts if you don’t grasp this opportunity?
How many more evenings will you come home late to find your kids and spouse have already gone to bed, and you’re left to eat your re-heated dinner alone in front of the TV?
How much more strain do you want to put on your marriage because you can’t find the quality time to spend with your partner?
How many more important dates and occasions will you miss in your children’s lives?
Do you want to be the parent that always misses your children’s football games or school plays because you’re always working late?”
You are painting the picture of how their lives will be negatively impacted if they fail to grasp the advantages your product offers them. Talk about what they stand to lose, or how the other aspects of their lives will be negatively affected if they don’t take action. You can use both the positive and negative approaches in your ad copy or can choose to use one or the other.
Some products lend themselves better to the negative approach e.g. if you are selling home insurance you can talk about what would happen if they experienced a disaster like a fire and didn’t have any insurance coverage.
It really depends on the nature of your product and the market you are operating in. A good idea is to create several versions of your ad and test them against each other – one that uses the positive approach, one that uses the negative approach, and one that combines both.
It really comes down to knowing your target audience and doing your market research to really understand what makes them tick.
When you understand the motivations of your target audience you will know which approach to take.
Summary
Learning how to write adverts is an important skill that can make a huge difference to your business.
The 4th fundamental purpose of an ad is to persuade people to grasp your advantage. This is a last push where you paint an image in your prospects’ minds which allows them to see themselves enjoying the benefits your product offers them – what do they stand to gain?
You can also take a negative approach and paint a picture of what would (or wouldn’t) happen if they don’t grasp this advantage – what do they stand to lose?
This part of your ad copy could be as short as a few sentences, or it could be as long as several paragraphs. It’s an important part of your sales message and pre-frames your prospect for taking action, which is the 5th and final fundamental purpose of your ad.
If you haven’t read the previous parts of this 5 part series of posts on the 5 fundamentals of an ad then check them out here:
1st Ad Fundamental – To get attention
2nd Ad Fundamental – To show people an advantage
