How To Write Order Pulling Ads 5

Once you have your reader’s attention, the only way you’re
going to keep it, is by quickly and emphatically telling him
what your product will do for him.




Your potential buyer doesn’t care in the least how long it’s
taken you to produce the product, how long you’ve been in
the business, nor how many years you’ve spent learning the
craft. He wants to know specifically how he’s going to
benefit from the purchase of your product.

Generally, his wants will fall into one of the following
categories:

better Health.
more Comfort.
more money.
More leisure time.
more popularity.
Greater beauty.
Greater success and/or security.

Even though you have your reader’s attention, you must
follow through with an enumeration of the benefits he can
gain. In essence, you must reiterate the advantages,
comfort and happiness he’ll enjoy - as you have implied in
your headline.

Mentally picture your prospect - determine his wants and
emotional needs - put yourself in his shoes and ask
yourself: If I were reading this ad, what are the things
that would appeal to me? Write your copy to appeal to your
reader’s wants and emotional needs/ego cravings.

Remember, it’s not the “safety features” that have sold cars
for the past 50 years - nor has it been the need for
transportation - it has been, and almost certainly will
always be the advertising writer’s recognition of peoples
wants and emotional needs/ego cravings. Visualise your
prospect, recognise his wants and satisfy them.

Writing good advertising copy is nothing more or less than
knowing “who” your buyers are; recognising what he wants;
and then telling him how your product will fulfil each of
those wants. Remember this because it’s one of the “vitally
important ” keys to writing advertising copy that does the”
job you intend for it to do.

The “desire” portion of your ad is where you present the
facts of your product; create and justify your prospect’s
conviction, and cause him to demand “a piece of the action”
for himself.

it’s vitally necessary that you present “proven facts” about
your product because survey results show that at least 80%
of people reading your ad - especially those reading it for
the first time - will tend to question its authenticity.

credible your offer. As you write this part of your ad,
always remember that the more facts about the product you
present, the more product you’ll sell. People want facts as
reasons, and/or excuses for buying a product - to justify to
themselves and others, that they haven’t been “taken” by a
slick copywriter.

it’s like the girl who wants to marry the guy her father
calls a “no good bum”. Her heart - her emotions - tell her
yes, but she needs facts to nullify the seed of doubt
lingering in her mind - to rationalise her decision to go
ahead with the wedding.

In other words, the “desire” portion of your ad has to build
belief and credibility in the mind of your prospect. It has
to assure him of his good judgement in the final decision to
buy - furnish evidence of the benefits you’ve promised - and
afford him a “safety net” in case anyone should question his
decision to buy.

People tend to believe the things that appeal to their
individual desires, fears and other emotions. Once you’ve
established a belief in this manner, logic and reasoning are
used to support it. People believe what the “want” to
believe. Your reader “wants” to believe your ad if he has
read it through this far - it’s up to you to support his
initial desire.

Copyright Avril Harper, UK

Recommended Direct Mail & Copywriting Resource:

The Golden Mailbox, by Ted Nicholas & Stuart Goldsmith