Page 163 - Duct Tape Marketing

Duct Tape Marketing

time, but remember that the ad is read by each prospect one at a time.
So write your ad as though you are talking to one prospect sitting
across the desk from you.

Like a good sales call, your ad should lead readers through a series of
steps toward the logical conclusion that they must contact you to receive
their free report. From there the act of turning this lead into a client
becomes a somewhat predictable game—but we’ll go into much greater
detail on that point in a later chapter. It’s the message that counts.

One of the things that often hampers the effectiveness of an ad is
the aspiration to make ads look pretty. Or worse, make them pretty
and make them clever. Know this: your prospects are probably not
coming to you to be entertained. This is a tough one for some to swal-
low, particularly those who come from industries where their peers
place a high value on image or looking good (you know who you are).

The purpose of an ad is to convey a message and make an offer.
I’m not saying that your ads should be ugly, but I’ll take simple and
ugly with the right message over breathtaking but “not really even
sure what you sell” every day. The most effective small business ads
focus on grabbing and keeping your readers’ attention, offering them
a host of benefits, and inspiring them to do something—one thing.
At times this isn’t always art-school elegant, but a confused prospect
is no prospect at all.

Single Most Intended Response
Don’t try to do too much with your ads. Don’t try to explain

every possible service or combination of services or divisions of service
that exist. It’s tempting to think that if you spend the money on the
ad, you want to get your money’s worth. Of course when you take this
approach, the opposite is what generally occurs.

In all of your ads, you must decide the one thing you want your
readers to know or do the most and then focus every word in your ad
in directing them to that and only that.

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