Almost any advertisement that has struggled for results in the past can earn a second chance with a little dusting off and a simple swivel of the camera. Video camera, movie camera, digital camera, 35mm camera, one of those old 110 cameras with the flash cubes, or even the camera in your mind...it doesn't matter. If your camera is pointed at you it's backwards and you're wasting film and ad dollars (not to mention those hard to find flash cubes).
Your potential customers don't really care about you. (Pause for effect and repeat). Your potential customers don't really care about you. They care about what you can do for them and indeed, about themselves.
No news there, right? Most people are already on the same page as you and I - but most people still ignore that fact when it comes time to write ad copy. 30 years in business, bonded and insured, weekly service, competitive rates, family owned and operated, yada, yada, yada, you've heard them all - probably even used a few yourself. The truth is most ads - in print, on the web, on TV, and in the mail - spend tons of space, time, and moolah talking about the company and the products. Most ads leave the most important word out. Most ads just don't seem to work.
But if it's so simple, why doesn't everybody who spends money advertising just put that word in? Who knows? People just love doing the same old things. Besides, doesn't it seem natural that your ads should talk about your company or your product? You're the one shelling out the money for the ad, so shouldn't you be able to tell your story? In this case, the truth just isn't fair.
The good news is that so few people properly leverage the power of this word in their advertisements, that when you finally let it creep into yours it has the potential to make a major impact.
So what's the word? Pull out the last advertisement that you ran. How many times does the word "you" appear in it? If it's not all over the thing, you can pretty sure that's why it didn't work.
OK you, you can sit down now.
In secret #2, find out the major advertising secret you can learn on a fishing trip.
About the Author
Jim and Travis are the creators of The Gravitational Marketing System which helps small business owners end unproductive cold prospecting and create a clock-work system that gets leads to call them, pay more for their product or service and naturally pull in tons of referrals and sales.
For FREE for small business marketing tips, shortcuts and secrets visit www.GravitationalMarketing.com