“That sucking sound? Oh, it’s just my advertising…”
Six Signs an Ad Sucks
We know not everyone can afford an agency, or they don’t know how to look at an ad that’s been created for them and decide if it’s any good. Here are a few things to look for:
- Too many ideas in one ad. With the average attention span at something like 9 seconds, you get to make ONE point in nearly any ad in any form of media. Better make it good.
- The ad shouts instead of persuades. If your ads contain lots of exclamation points, it’s a sign the message alone isn’t persuasive. Check your local newspaper for this and you’ll see: Weak ads end like THIS!!
- The ad says nothing at all. We love hearing people talk about brand-building ads, then show us a business-card sized ad or banner ad with only their name, logo and contact info. So you’re Joe Plumber or Jim’s Cafe; so what? SAY something, or at least ASK for a sale.
- The ad is ugly. While art is subjective, knowing how to lead the eye to the most important information and prep the brain for a sale is not. If you aren’t having a professional create your ads, odds are you just climbed the suck-o-meter several steps.
- The ad is insulting. This usually happens when someone is trying to be funny. DO NOT shrug off the potential that you might offend someone, even a “fringe group.” The innerwebs are powerful, and those fringe groups often know how to use them.
- The ad is hidden. If you are running a print ad that’s buried in a bunch of other “ads in a box,” you have likely wasted your money. Your marketing pro can help you avoid this with unusually-shaped ads, clever negotiations with the media outlet, or simply advising you on where your dollars are better spent.
The list of sucky possibilities is nearly endless? What OTHER signs do you think indicate a bad ad?