Most ads fail.
There’s the famous quote. I know half my ad dollars are wasted, I just don’t know which half.
I’m here to tell you it’s WAY more than half.
But why do ads fail?
There are many reasons. But the main one is this.
You don’t have the right appeal in your ad.
Here’s just one example.
I got a real estate agent flyer in my letterbox.
They either want me to sell or buy a house.
So what was their appeal?
“Be part of the market.”
WFT.
Can you recall anyone, ever, thinking I want to be part of the market?
Of course not.
I either want to sell my house fast and for top dollar OR I want to buy a better house.
That has to be the appeal if you want a response.
All they did was waste paper and blow a chance to get more clients.
All appeals need to be aimed at the core drivers of human nature.
There are lots of lists of them but this is the most useful I’ve found. Use any of these and tie it to what you’re selling and your ad will perform much better.
- Survival, enjoyment of life, life extension
- Enjoyment of food and beverages
- Freedom from fear, pain, and danger
- Sexual companionship
- Comfortable living conditions
- To be superior, winning, keeping up with the Joneses
- Care and protection of loved ones
- Social approval
So ditch boring and appeal to core human nature.
That’s how you turn no response into a flood of responses.
