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That's the untold story behind your decision to get into thebusiness you're in today? Was it a lifelong ambition? Were youbusting your buns for someone else in the field and decided to goout on your own? Was it the inspiration of a family member orfriend in the same industry? Or was it just an opportunity thatfell into your lap?
Everyone has a story--a potentially interesting story--to tellabout how they got into the business they're in . . . a storythat can actually be used to promote your business. Even if youthink your particular tale seems mundane, trust me, it can beturned into a provocative hook for an ad that gets peopleinterested.
I once wrote a column about a former social worker who made arather radical career leap to running a maid service. She hadwritten to ask me if there might be a provocative way to promoteherself, and I told her, in effect, she was sitting on it. Isuggested she use the headline "Why I gave up social work torid the world of dust balls" in her ads, followed by herstory. I thought it would add lots of curiosity value and establishcredibility through the real-life element of the message.
Another example of the potential for an anecdotal ad involves myplumber. Here's a guy who, as a kid, used to go out on servicecalls with his dad, also a plumber, and enjoyed it so much thatafter college (where he majored in chemistry), he decided to becomea plumber himself. Besides that, he's a fourth-generationplumber. So he's got a potentially great yarn to tell thatwould sell anyone on using him to come out and fix their drippyfaucet. I might even recommend he spice up his Yellow Pages ad witha little of that history.
Then there's the friend of mine who's a high schoolhistory teacher by training but prefers working outside and gettinghis hands dirty as a landscaper. His story could be massaged into anifty piece of advertising with a headline like "Why Iswitched from teaching kids to sowing seeds." If it's doneright, I guarantee it would get noticed and read.
You get the idea. Instead of racking your brain trying to thinkof a grabby ad concept, hook prospects with an interestingfirst-person story. It will certainly separate you from yourcompetitors. And you'll have accomplished the hardest part ofadvertising: getting attention. That's my message to JohnArseneault, a self-employed accountant from Auburn, Massachusetts,who wrote recently. Apart from managing the books of severalcompanies, Arseneault has embarked on a side venture that resultedfrom a recent personal experience. When cancer took the lives ofboth his beloved grandparents, it spurred him to start anotherbusiness that would help others avoid the same fate. He founded thenonprofit Cans for Cancer, a recycling and redemption businesswhose proceeds help support the New England Medical Center CancerResearch Department.
The company, now in its third year, is doing well. ButArseneault wonders if the brochure he and his associates hand outto businesses could be strengthened. The answer is yes . . . simplyby relating his own poignant story right on the front.
Front-Page Story
The cover of Arseneault's brochure, like that of any suchbrochure, is the "host" of the piece. It is responsiblefor motivating--or, as we like to say in advertising,"teasing"--the reader to turn the page and look inside.So my suggestion to Arseneault is to tell the story on the cover ofhow Cans for Cancer came about and then discuss the details of theservice inside, which he already does.
My proposed cover headline is "The Family Tragedy That MadeMe Launch Cans for Cancer." This semi- tabloidization of theheadline adds an immediate curiosity-piquing element. And eventhough the story involves far more copy than you normally see onthe cover of a brochure, I think it will get read because of theevocative anecdote involved.
(By the way, Arseneault gets major brownie points for coming upwith the name "Cans for Cancer," which furtherembellishes the new headline. The name is short, extremelymemorable, clever and quite clear in meaning.)
The story is followed by a sub-headline that says "And whyI hope you'll join me." This is the "you" partof the sell, addressing the reader's own vulnerability to thedisease and cultivating his or her desire to improve the odds ofstaying healthy by joining the cause.
The content of Arseneault's current brochure is made up ofquestions and answers about the company, how the service works andwhere the redemption money goes. I'd also try to splice in apress clipping or two that Arseneault said he's received, aswell as any certificate or letter of appreciation or recognitionthe research organization may have given him. Either or both ofthese additions could replace the current inside flap copy of thisthree-fold brochure because it would help establish the legitimacyof Cans for Cancer before the reader gets into the meat of thebrochure.
With these suggestions, Arseneault should be able to garner someextra attention with his brochure.
Internet Caution
I devoted my December 1996 column to advertising opportunitieson the Internet and how to use the World Wide Web as a promotionalvehicle. But I really only scratched the surface, and, of course,the potential is vast and enticing considering the audience sizeand the rapidly evolving improvements in basic transmission.
But I wanted to add a reality check about the Internet. Althoughit is the new darling of the business world, it has its limitationsas an advertising medium that really cut it down to size whencompared to traditional print and even TV advertising. Internetadvertising cannot reach those of us whose exposure to ads on anygiven day preferably comes with one leg slung over an armchair, onthe patio in our favorite chaise, propped up in bed at night or,for that matter, sitting in the bathroom. At least right now, youneed to be poised in front of a computer screen for anything on theInternet to have an impact on you. And, of course, you still haveto go through the preliminaries of logging onto an Internet accessservice, manipulating your browser software, punching in yourpassword and identifying the sites you want to visit through anunfriendly address coding system. So, notwithstanding all themultimedia bells and whistles you can use on your Web page, thefact that your prospect first has to get through all these layersputs the Internet in the same unglamorous category as a packageinsert in its ability to get the reader's attention.
Of course, a lot of print advertising today comes with a Webaddress attached for people who want to know more about the productor service being promoted. And that makes it a strong resource fortwo-step marketing (first the lead, then the sale). But to make theall-important first impression, let's not be too quick
to dismiss low-tech, but easier-to-access, print on paper.
Jerry Fisher is a freelance advertising copywriter. Ifyou'd like him to consider your materials for a makeover, sendthem to the address below. For information on his new manual,Creating Successful Small Business Advertising, send aself-addressed, stamped envelope to "AdvertisingWorkshop," Entrepreneur, 2392 Morse Ave., Irvine, CA 92614, orcontact Jerry via Compuserve at 73150,132 or America Online atJerry228@aol.com
Contact Sources
Cans for Cancer, P.O. Box 2444, Framingham, MA 01703,(508) 770-1250.
