For your marketing to be effective at bringing in and converting leads, you’ll need persuasively written ad copy. Even if you aren’t a writer by trade or training, you can benefit from learning about how to more effectively craft copy. By understanding key aspects of persuasive writing, you’ll be able to improve your marketing materials. But what is persuasive writing?
What Is Persuasive Writing?
Persuasive writing aims to convince the reader of a particular opinion or viewpoint. As it relates to ad copy, persuasive text aims to convince readers to take an action that begins or continues the sales pipeline. Persuasive arguments can be designed in a number of different ways. Each technique relates to human behavior or psychology, and different audiences are more likely to respond to different types of persuasion. As with all aspects of marketing, you’ll need to understand who your audience is. Otherwise, you won’t know how to persuade them to engage with your product or service. So, how do these ads work? Read on for more information.
How Do Ads Persuade an Audience?
Ads persuade their audiences when they are easy to understand and elicit an emotional reaction. And when ads are memorable or make a lasting impression, your viewer doesn’t even need to make a purchase at first. With repeated exposure to your brand and advertisements, you can build up the sense of curiosity in your potential customer. Eventually, you can still finally persuade them. Often, ads fall short because they’re laden with overly-used keywords and phrases that readers are sick of. Even if these things are true, you’re going to need to be much more nuanced as well as specific if you want your audience to believe you. Think of how many ads people see on a regular basis. Then think of how you can break through that noise. Otherwise, your messages will fall flat. If you’re having a hard time crafting persuasive ads, then we’re here to help. With 60 Wizard of Ads partners and 128,500 ads produced, we’re confident we have the expertise and experience to boost your sales. Visit our website to learn more!
What is a Persuasive Commercial Text in Advertising?
Persuasive techniques in commercial text aim to get readers to take an action that leads to sales for the company running the ad. By making promises, creating scarcity or urgency around an offer, tapping into fears or desires and more, persuasive commercial text aims to drive action. It’s not enough for an ad to be interesting. If it doesn’t generate leads or sales, then it won’t be serving your company’s needs. To create commercial texts that serve your advertising needs, you can turn to the AIDA model.
Knowing AIDA
AIDA, which stands for Attention, Interest, Desire and Action, is formula advertising can lean on. By understanding these four different aspects of stages of ad copywriting, you can leverage persuasive techniques to boost your sales.
A - Attention
If you don’t first grab the attention of your audience, then they won’t even read the ad copy at all. No matter how good the content you’re writing is, if no one reads it…how could it help you? Headlines ought to jump out and catch the attention of the reader immediately. It’s just too easy for people to move on, going about their life, not thinking about your ad, business or product. Your words need to insert themselves into your audience’s conscious awareness.
I - Interest
After grabbing the attention of your reader, you’ll need to prolong it. Prolonged attention is interest, or how much someone cares to stay with your ad. Interest in ads can be generated by demonstrating you understand something about the audience. Tell them what you know about their needs or wants, and they’ll be tempted to see what else you have to say. There’s a reason so many ads use questions. Questions are often more illuminating than answers, so when you ask your readers the right questions, they tend to feel connected. And even if your questions don’t imply previous understanding, they can pique the interest of your audience by causing wonder.
D - Desire
Desire follows interest. You caught their attention. You piqued their interest. And now you have to tap into their current desire and then help drive their future desire. You have to make them want your product or service, essentially. At the very least, you need to make them want some solution, so you can convince them they need your solution, service or product.
A - Action
Here’s the part where a prospective customer can transition to a paying client. You’ve stoked their desire…now show them what to do with it. The action they take should lead into your sales funnel, or lead directly to a purchase. Special offers tend to be effective at driving action, but only if you’ve set up the previous steps first. If they don’t already want to do something, then you can’t convince them to do anything. Anything exclusive, limited, temporary or restricted tends to make people want to take action. Use this information wisely and ethically.
The 3 Pillars Of Persuasive Writing
Persuasive writing consists of three pillars: ethos, logos and pathos. Persuasive articles ought to tap into all three to some extent, but the most persuasive writing tends to rely most heavily on one of the three at a time. A bit of focus can increase how compelling your text proves to be. These three pillars of persuasive writing come from Aristotle’s rhetoric model, so rest assured they’re well-established and well-developed ideas!
Ethos
Ethos is an appeal to your audience’s ethics. The goal is to convince them by tapping into your authority or credibility on a topic. That sense of “ethics” can be informed by the writer’s experience, expertise or popularity. Your company’s success and brand recognition will fuel your ability to deploy ethos as a strategy. The more established a company, the more this pillar can be used effectively. Examples: Influencers use their clout or popularity to sell products on behalf of companies. And companies that are well-established point to their track-record, or longevity, as a source of credibility that makes customers trust them.
Logos
Facts and figures. Objective reasoning and scientific analysis. Logos appeals to someone’s sense of logic to convince them. By reasoning with your audience, you can help them understand why what you’re saying is objectively true. This mode of persuasion is most effective when data is available for you to rely on. Otherwise, your logic won’t be as convincing. Proof matters much more here than with the other two types of rhetoric. Examples: A car company that scores higher in crash safety assessments can point to the data on their car’s performance. An air conditioning unit that is more efficient can point to the electric cost associated with its use compared to their competition.
Pathos
Pathos appeals to emotion. When you can generate an emotional response in your viewer, then you’re making a strong impression. Pathos is easily taken advantage of, though. It’s important to set and stick to an ethical code when you create advertisements. It’s not ethical to use emotions to convince your audience to take an action that isn’t in their best interest. Examples: A fitness tracker app might try to make you feel motivated to get moving in an effort to gain you as a customer. Or maybe a liquor company might try to make you feel fancy for choosing their product.
Key Takeaways
We can’t stress the importance of upholding your ethical and moral codes when persuading your audience. If you’re not serving their needs, then whatever benefit you might find will be short lived. No matter what, audiences will catch on to the gimmicks, misrepresentations or even flat-out lies that they hear. To build a lasting business, you need to grow your audience in an authentic and sustainable way. That means looking out for their best interests in order to serve yours. When you’re marketing your products, ask yourself a few questions, and use the answers to draft your persuasive ad copy:
- Who am I targeting with my product or service?
- What problem or pain-point are they experiencing?
- How am I solving the issue for them?
- Why is my solution the best one for them?
If you can answer those questions, then you should be able to use this article to improve your persuasive writing in your ad copy. It might require some further market research or reflection. If you’re struggling at any point in the process, remember that Wizard of Ads® is here to help you. With our expertise and experience helping companies improve their sales, we’re confident we can help you achieve your marketing goals. Call-to-action here. Contact us today!
Ryan Chute
Helping small businesses become BIG brands with a holistic marketing strategy that speaks the same language across all sales and marketing channels.
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