- Make your ads draw in new customers. - Liquene
To design an effective ad, you have to first think about the purpose of the advertisement. Ideally, you want to grab the reader’s attention and convince him to take action after looking at the ad. Action may include setting up a consultation, buying a product, joining a mailing list or calling your business to procure services. Use a mix of text, graphics and color to keep your ad interesting and stick in the reader’s mind.
Step 1
Make the ad tell a story. Ads that just state your services and contact details are not likely to attract as many customers as advertisements that involve a character, conflict and resolution related to your business.
Step 2
Keep the ad simple. Don’t try to outsmart your audience or present them with complex ideas. Instead, make the message simple to appeal to a universal audience. Text should be basic with the correct spellings.
Step 3
Use colors that reflect your company. Businesses that provide services and products to families or children, such as toy stores and sporting retailers, should use bright colors. Companies that want to send a serious message, like finance businesses, should use simple color schemes.
Step 4
Create an ad that uses standard configurations. Avoid putting text in all capitals or placing a space between letters. Use numerals when you want to draw attention to something in the ad.
Step 5
Rely on images more than words. Successful advertising will show rather than tell. For instance, if you are marketing an acne product, instead of telling the audience how well it works, display before and after pictures of personal users.
Step 6
Design the ad for easy reading. Text should not be placed on an angle or in a downward direction. Left to right is the natural way that people read. Also, a type that works best for ads is the serif type. Serif helps assists your eye’s natural left to right eye rhythm.
Step 7
Aim for originality. Review past ad campaigns from your competitors. Avoid using similar ideas in your ads to stand out. Tell your product's story in a way that has never been done before.
Tip
If you are creating a radio or TV ad campaign, use video clips and music that create emotional responses in potential customers. Use test audiences to gauge reactions to your clips and decide what images and music to include in your final cut.
