Writing An Advertising Copy
In the world of consumerism advertising is the biggest marketing tool. An advertisement can make or break a marketing campaign. It not only helps in getting your product/service heard but it can actually persuade a consumer into buying the product. Given its huge impact a lot of thought process goes into writing an advertising copy making it one of the most difficult tasks of the advertising world.
To write a successful ad copy you need to keep a lot of things in mind.
Knowing you prospective clientele: It is very essential to know who your prospects are as it is to know about the product/ service you are selling. These would help in conceptualizing the idea behind the copy.
Stick to the constraints: Before writing an ad copy one needs to understand the constraints of the media for which the advertisement is being developed. While for a television or radio advertisement time is the man constraint, for a billboard campaign word limit becomes the constraint.
Understanding the objective: One needs to be very clear about the objective of the campaign. A clear understanding of the objective generally leads to a focussed copy.
Focus on the elements of a good ad: Keep in mind the elements of a good advertisement:
Attention: Getting noticed is half the battle won. In our chaotic world the hardest thing to do is to draw attention. So there has to be something about the advertisement—-the punch line, the illustration, the layout–that would make the viewer or the reader sit up and take notice.
Clarity: In the clamour to vie for attention one should never forget to make the message underneath crystal clear. The viewer should not keep wondering about the functionality of the ad.
Persuasiveness: the ad should be persuasive. It should be able to convince the viewer of the necessity of the product or service being offered.
Keeping the above points in mind you can conceptualize your idea and start to write the ad copy. Finally some tips which may further help you:
Play with words to your heart’s content. Be innovative. You can paint your canvas with words, but always sticking to the constraints given.
Use short sentences without wasting words.
Instead of preaching or declaring talk to you reader or viewer or listener in active voice and present tense.
Avoid clichés and make the copy as unique and innovative as possible.