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10 Ways to
Write More Effective Ads
Incorporating
Proof and Believability
Page 1 of 3
When your prospect reads your ad, you want to
make sure he believes any claims you make about your product or
service. Because if there’s any doubt in his mind, he won’t
bite, no matter how sweet the deal. In fact, the “too good to be
true” mentality will virtually guarantee a lost sale…even if it
is all true.
So what can you do to increase the perception
of believability? Because after all, it’s the perception you
need to address up front. But of course you also must make sure
your copy is accurate and truthful.
Here are some tried and tested methods that will
help:
·
If
you’re dealing with existing customers who already know you
deliver as promised, emphasize that trust. Don’t leave it up to
them to figure it out. Make them stop, cock their heads, and
say, “Oh, yeah. The ABC Company has never done me wrong
before. I can trust them.”
·
Include testimonials of satisfied customers. Be sure to put full
names and locations, where possible. Remember, “A.S.” is a lot
less believable than “Andy Sherman, Voorhees, NJ.” If you can
also include a picture of the customer and/or a professional
title, that’s even better. It doesn’t matter that your
testimonials aren’t from somebody famous or that your prospect
does not know these people personally. If you have enough
compelling testimonials, and they’re believable, you’re much
better off than not including them at all.
·
Pepper your copy with facts and research findings to support
your claims. Be sure to credit all sources, even if the fact is
common knowledge, because a neutral source goes a long way
towards credibility.
·
For a direct mail letter or certain space ads where the copy is
in the form of a letter from a specific individual, including a
picture of that person helps. But unlike “traditional” real
estate letters and other similar ads, I’d put the picture at the
end near your signature, or midway through the copy, rather than
at the top where it will detract from your headline. And…if your
sales letter is from a specific individual, be sure to
include his credentials to establish him as an expert in his
field (relating to your product or service, of course).
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