13 tips for improving your commercials

1. Use the name of your product within the first ten seconds.
2. For products show the package.
3. Use closeups when your product is the hero of the commercial.
4. You have only 60 seconds. If you grab attention in the first frame with a visual surprise, you stand a better chance of holding the viewer.
5. If you have nothing to say, sing it. There have been some successful commercials which sang the sales pitch, but jingles are below average in changing brand preference.
6. Sound effects - such as sausages sizzling in a frying pan - can add to the effectiveness of a commercial.
7. It's generally more effective to have the actors talk on camera - rather than a voice over.
8. It pays to reinforce your promise by setting it in type and superimposing it over the video.
9. Avoid visual banality. Show the viewer something they have never seen before. You probably won't have much success if you show sunsets or happy families at the dinner table.
10. Generally, you should avoid using a great many scenes. On the average, commercials with a multitude of short scenes are below average in changing brand preference.
11. Try Mnemonics. This unpronounceable word is used to describe a visual device repeated over a long period. Example: Mr. Clean, the car driving through the paper barrier in the Shell commercials.
12. Show the product in use - and if possible, the end result of using it.
13. Testing shows that most commercials are miscomprehended by a significant number of viewers. Make your commercial crystal clear.

How to make television commercials that sell

1. Humor – Conventional wisdom has always held that people buy products or services for rational reasons, but in the past few years some humorous commercials have achieved success, both in sales and in creative award shows. Warning: Very few people can write truly funny commercials.
2. Slice of life – In these commercials, one actor discusses the merits of a product or service with another. The setting is designed to approximate real life. In the end, the doubter is converted – your widget really does work better.
3. Testimonials – The most effective testimonial commercials are those that show loyal users of your product testifying to its virtues – when they don't know they're being filmed. The interviewer pretends to find fault with the product, and the loyal user rises to its defense with genuine conviction.
4. Demonstrations – Ads that show how well your product performs are above average in their ability to persuade.
5. Problem/solution – You show the viewer a problem with which he or she is familiar, and then you show how the product can solve it.
6. Talking heads – This is the derisive term given to commercials that consist of a pitchman extolling the virtues of a products. Some agency people find them uncreative, but many advertisers still use them because they are above average in changing brand preference.
7. Characters – In some commercials, a "character" is used to sell your product over a period of years. The character becomes the living symbol of the product like Mr. Whipple in the Charmin commercials or Madge for Liquid Palmolive. Provided they are relevant to the product or service, characters can achieve surprisingly successful results.
8. Reason why – Commercials that give the viewer a rational reason to buy your product or service are considered uncreative but may be successful in generating sales.
9. News – Commercials that contain news are above average. For an old product you can create news by advertising a new way to use it, such as using baking soda to keep refrigerators smelling sweet.
10. Emotion – Commercials with a large amount of nostalgia, charm and even sentimentality can be enormously effective. Beware: Consumers may also need a rational excuse to justify their emotional decisions – so include one. Above all, don't attempt emotion unless you can deliver.

Television commercials that are generally ineffective

1. Celebrity testimonials – These are below average in their ability to change brand preference.
2. Cartoons – They can sell things to children but are below average in selling to grownups.
3. Musical vignettes – These spots, with a parade of fleeting impressions, were once fashionable, but are on their way out.

Four things most successful radio commercials have in common

1. Identify the brand early in the spot.
2. Identify it often.
3. Promise the listener a benefit early in the commercial.
4. Repeat it again and again.

Writing successful radio commercials

• Aggressive copy leaves a stronger impression than subtlety
• When using an announcer, specify the pronunciation of dificult words. You do this in capital letters within a set of parentheses, immediately after the word.
• Spell out numbers, symbols and abbreviations. The words will come out the way you want them to.
• Grammar doesn't enter into it. Write the way people talk.
• A one minute commercial should have a maximum of 150 words.
• For business-to-business radio, ask your self three questions
  1. What group am I trying to reach
  2. Why am I trying to reach them
  3. How will this particular message influence the individuals from Question 1 to accomplish the purpose of Question 2.
• Words to avoid in radio copy
  1. Descriptive words of more than three syllables are hard for the the listener to digest.