HOW "INFO-LOADING" CAN INCREASE YOUR AD'S PULLING POWER
There are many schools of thought on how to write a successful
direct-response ad, letter or brochure. Some say you need to be subtle,
some say be harsh, some say be round-about, some say be direct. There
is
one technique, though, that is coming to the forefront as one of the
most
successful to employ.
Info-Loading is the style of overloading an advertsement with information
about your product or service. The theory is, you give the customer
more
information than they'd ever want on your product/service, and they'll
feel
more confident about you and what you offer. Also, the customer that
actually reads through it all is the one who's interested enough to
buy
what you offer. The good news is, it works!
Here's how to do it. Say you're planning a quarter-page display ad
in a
magazine. Instead of leaving a lot of white space, so it looks open,
and
instead of putting pictures in to catch the eye, fill the whole space
with
text! Load it with as much information as you can fit in, without
making
it unreadable. To prevent it from looking like a grey blur when the
reader's
eyes scan through the page, put a bold, black box around the ad, a
bold
headline, and emphasize important words and phrases with bold print.
You can do the same thing with a mailing. Put together a four-page
sales
letter loaded with copy, then add a brochure/flyer that re-emphasizes
the
important points in even greater detail.
A few cautions with this technique. First, make sure you actually
have
something to say! We are so conditioned to being economical with our
words in advertising that it'll be hard to info-load without feeling
repetitious. Instead of rambling on about features, tell customers
every
single benefit they'll get from your product/service. BENEFIT is the
important word.
Give Info-Loading a try. Depending on your audience and what you're
trying to sell, you may find that info-loading can load more sales
into
your bank account!