Stand Out Advertising
Let’s face it. Most ads suck.
They’re annoying. They interrupt what you’re trying to enjoy. And you learn to ignore them.
People have the ability to go “Ad-Blind”.
But here’s the problem. If you can’t get somebody to give you their attention, good luck convincing them to give you their money.
Most advertisers try to mimic what’s working for their market. But you don’t want to look like everyone else in your market. When they Zig, that’s when you want to Zag.
I’ve found the best way to get attention to your ads is to create ads that don’t look like ads.
Instead, create ads that look like content, ads that look like articles, or ads that look like editorials. Just remember to include direct-response principles. Give people instructions on what to do next… that clear, singular, Call to Action thing I was talking about earlier.
Don’t copy what the Big Brands are doing.
What works for them, won’t work for you.
They’re in the game of “Reminder Advertising”. They have money to throw away in their advertising. You don’t.
Also, the ads that Big Brands run tend to be Boring AF. That’s because they practice something I like to call “Copy by Committee”.
It’s safe. It’s predictable. It’s boring.
It’s easy to ignore.
And I get it, big companies are afraid to offend the Twitter mob. They’re afraid to plant flags and take a stand. But boring-ass fence-sitters rarely inspire action.
So, instead of copying what the big advertising firms are doing, don’t be afraid to identify your market’s villains. And don’t be afraid to throw stones at those villains.
Don’t be afraid to identify controversial topics and speak your mind, speak your truth on those topics.
As long as those topics are relevant to your market.
Yes, you’ll alienate a small number of people in your market. But you’ll inspire fanaticism in many, many more.
Fanatics are the people who go out and buy everything you produce. They’re the ones that rally behind you. If you do get attacked, fanatics are the ones who go out and do your marketing for.
In order to inspire that kind of fanaticism, you have to be willing to stand out from the market.
So have fun with your ads and avoid making them look like ads. Avoid that safe, bland, boring, corporate, big brand style advertising.
That kind of advertising is for giant companies who want to avoid losing their market share. Your goal is to gain market share. It’s two completely different strategies.