Sometimes you can be very clever with your advertising and get away with it — people will get it, remember it, and praise your cleverness. Maybe they’ll even buy from you. But most of the time, advertisers take cleverness too far, and the whole campaign becomes meaningless and useless.

I was fooled by an ad just this past week. As I’m browsing through the newspaper I notice an upside-down ad. I think to myself, “Wow, the newspaper misprinted this ad — sucks for the advertiser — and I’m sure they’ll raise hell!” There was no prominent headline (upside-down or not!), so I didn’t stop to look at it.

The next day I see the same ad, still upside-down, but in black & white. I think, “I can’t believe this! The newspaper printed it upside-down AGAIN! What morons!” I don’t stop to check out the ad in detail because all I can think of is how incompetent the newspaper is.

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Posted in Advertising, Marketing

Lately, it’s gotten much more interesting to look at ads in newspapers and on TV. Just some time ago, infomercials were reserved for late night TV only. Direct response ads hardly showed up in newspapers. That’s because newspapers and magazines tend to consider these ads “junky.” The reason we’re now seeing infomercials on prime time TV and direct response ads taking up full pages in newspapers is, quite simply, they sell.

That’s right. As advertisers are pulling back, networks and newspapers are willing to accept “junky” ads and show infomercials at 7 o’clock in the evening. No, these are not highly artistic ads. There’s nothing “sexy” about them. They don’t have “clever” copy or meaningless headlines. No blocks of useless white space. Yet they consistently continue to sell more than typical ads you’re used to seeing. Why? Because they use tested elements that work.

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Posted in Advertising, Direct Response Marketing