Answers to "Can you find all 12 secret tricks hidden in this ad?"

1. Headline at the top, logo at the bottom.

Pretty basic. Your brain is trained to read the headline and search for a benefit at the top, and find the phone number at the bottom. A surprising number of manufacturer and mail order ads put the company name or logo at the top. It isn't as critical in this small ad, but when your ad is competing for attention in a crowded magazine, this will increase your response.

2. The headline and body copy involves the reader.

Headlines and copy that speak to the reader are usually more effective. A "What's In It For Me?" (WIIFM) headline is generally the strongest. Give your target reader a benefit for using your products or buying from you.

3. A power word in the headline.

Words like "secret," "save," "money," "new," and "free" have been proven to attract attention and increase readership and response rate. There are about a dozen more than usually work without fail. Include these in your ad to gain an edge on your competition.

4. A drop cap.

When using longer body copy, as this ad does, a "drop cap," or large first letter, gives the reader's eye a visual clue where to start. Pretty simple. This secret has been shown to increase readership of an ad. For short copy, bullet points or bold type can have a similar effect.

5. Serif type in body copy.

Serif type, which has little "feet" at the bottom and the top, is easier on the eye when reading long copy. This paragraph should appear in your web browser in serif type. Be careful when using serif type in reverse (white type/dark background) which is harder to read. A slightly out-of-register press will "blur" the type faster than sans serif type.

6. Bold face type to create another entry point into the body copy.

There are two types of readers: The minority that read every word (assuming your ad is well constructed) and those who skim quickly. Having a few phrases in bold will help a "skimmer" read your ad. This trick works well when you have several key points to make. Design your ads for both types of readers.

7. Power words in the body copy.

Similar to #3 above. These power words, "free tips," attract attention and can increase response rate.

8. Short sentences and easy to read copy.

This copy has short sentences and (please don't take offense) was written for the seventh grade level. When writing advertising copy for today's customer, don't talk over the average reader's head. Readers are getting more accustomed to a short, choppy writing style. When USA Today debuted in 1985 it was criticized for this style, but has since been copied by many publications (count the short 1 or 2-sentence paragraphs in your local newspaper today). Short copy is even more critical for web writing, too (in fact, this web page is actually a little too long and only the most curious readers will have gotten this far...if that's you, thank you and congratulations).

9. A reason to visit a web site.

The most effective ads not only list a web site, but have a reason for the reader to go there. These days, everyone has a web site, so the question is, how to you use your site to communicate and connect to your prospective customer and get them to visit it? Hey, this approach brought you to this site, didn't it?

10. Bullet point summary of key points.

As with #6 above, most magazine and newspaper readers skim. A bullet point summary of key points is a convenient way for a reader to absorb what's important without having to read the entire ad.

11. A free offer.

Everyone likes something for free! In this case, we're combining a power word, a free offer, and another reason for the reader to go to a web site.

12. A physical street address, hours, and a phone number.

Pretty simple, but many magazine ads lack even a street address. A physical address increases credibility and will increase the response rate of the ad. There are several other components to include in your address area to also increase the response rate.

13. Wait a minute, there's another secret? I thought there were only 12?

No, there are really 13. There is one more thing that I didn't show in the ad. And sorry, I'm not revealing it here, either. You have to call and find out, (330) 474-1650.

Copyright 2004-2006 Jon Hedges, all rights reserved. Limited reproduction crediting the author and web site HedgesCompany.com is permitted.