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"Producing
Powerful Ad Layouts"
by Charles Sisk
Anyone can lay out a good ad. Anyone.
You don't need years of graphics arts or
marketing instructions. All you need to do is to remember some
simple tips that can turn a drab, mediocre ad into a powerful order
pulling masterpiece.
First of all, there are two ways to build an
ad. Either fill it with text, or leave plenty of open space. Both
ways are good, depending on the type of product or service you're
selling, and the crowd you're trying to reach.
If you're selling a product directly from your
ad, and it requires a lot of explanation or description, pack that
ad full of text. This will create a block of gray text which will
not stand out to the eye, so you'll need to put a strong black
border around your ad.
If you're trying to solicit responses, which
you'll follow up with more information, cut the text in your ad to a
minimum. The white space in your ad will draw the eye, so you won't
need as strong a border. You still should put a border around the
ad, but a thin double line will do, so as not to attract attention
away from the message of the ad.
A few words about the wording of your ad.
Make sure it follows a logical progression.
Start with an
attention-getting headline emphasizing the benefit the customer will
get from your product or service. For example, "Increase your
business' profits and lower it's costs!"
Follow up with a subheading hinting at what
will follow in the body of the ad ("Secrets of a professional
marketing consultant revealed!").
The body text of your ad should tell just a bit
about your product, but should concentrate on the benefits your
customer will receive. Personal benefits, not features, are why
people buy products and services.
End with your contact information, how
prospects can either contact you for more information, or how they
can order your product or service.
Spice up your layout with a bit of graphic art.
Clip art is widely available at office supply and art stores.
It should be easy to find a book of art that will apply to what you
are selling. Cut the selected art from the book and paste into your
ad.
Don't overdo the art, though. Use only one
graphic at the most. More than one looks unprofessional.
What follows is the biggest, most important tip
I can give.
Remember to emphasize benefits, keep things
even and straight, leave white space if applicable, and use art
sparingly as a compliment to your ad.
There, I said it again!
If you follow these suggestions, your
advertising quality will improve vastly.
 By:
Charles Sisk Contact: Charles Sisk
Charles
Sisk is President of Marketing Prosperity, a small
business marketing consulting firm and publishes the
Marketing
Prosperity Super Tips Newsletter,
the #1 Source of Small Business
Marketing Ideas.
Subscribe now at: http://www.MarketingProsperity.com.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 2.5 License.
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