The Classified Challenge: Sell Within Seconds
Author: Lisa Lake
Classified advertising is a marketing method that's hundreds of years
old. In the last digital decade online classified advertising has
exploded. You can reach millions of readers within seconds after
creating and posting an ad. It's an inexpensive way to market yourself,
your service, or your product, and your customer comes LOOKING FOR YOU
when reading classifieds. Yet too few of them score. Why not? They're
vague. They don't sell within seconds.
Read through 20 or 30 online classifieds and you'll agree the best ones
stand out in three ways. They inform, they entice, or they challenge
the reader. This draws the reader into the ad immediately, likely
ending with a phone call or website hit or better yet, a sale. Good
classified ads needn't do all three. But they succeed in one of these -
informing, enticing, or challenging the reader -- and they get started
right away with a strong headline.
Let's look at a couple of online classified categories to find some
bombs and to find some winners. I chose 'Business Opportunities' for
its sheer size online (huge), and 'Weddings', under Services.
Classified readers are exposed to loads of poorly written ads in the
Business Opportunities section. "Earn BIG BUCKS!!!" "Opportunity
Knocking!" "Money Making Opportunity." "Don't Pass This Up!" "Earn
Unbelievable Income This Week!" "Home-Based Business Opportunity." That
last one does inform us, and you might even picture yourself working in
your basement in your plaid bathrobe; the problem is there are HUNDREDS
of others today with the same headline. What is something SPECIFIC
about the business opportunity you want to share with others?
On the other hand, the following ads are informative, telling me right
away about the nature of the opportunity. "Book TravelFrom Home."
"NOT MLM." "Save 80% On Dental Services." "Order Processor - Work From
Home." "Own Your Own Casino Website."
I realize with the boom in online business opportunities, daily there
are more and more of each of these examples of work opportunities
available. So entice your reader. These are pretty persuasive: "Flock
To Record-Breaking Company!" "Moms, Say Good-bye To Daycare!" And,
Follow A Proven Plan To Success.
Or challenge your reader. "On A Mission Moms?" "Serious Money For The
Serious Minded" challenges the experienced entrepreneur to stand up and
be noticed. He might say to himself, 'I'm smart, I've been around the
block a few times; so I'll read your ad to see if YOU'RE serious.' A
retired person without a lot of technical experience but who is curious
about online businesses might respond to the headline "Easy Set-Up" by
saying, 'You mean even I could do it? Tell me more.'
After you write your all-important headline, or simply approve it after
having an expert do it for you, ask yourself, would Joe Reader read on?
Say you're planning a wedding. My mother did everything for me while I
exercised furiously to fit into a size 8 gown. But lots of women are
marrying later now, planning for the biggest day of their lives
themselves - often online. Your audience here is educated,
sophisticated, and probably particular. Vague headlines like the
following are of no help to them whatsoever. "Getting Married?"
Florist." "Photographer For Hire.
Do those inform? Do they entice me, tempt me to scan the entire ad? Do
they test the reader with an I-dare-you-to-read-on headline?
Here are ads that inform the reader right away, selling their service
or product within seconds: "Music Matters DJ Service." Hey, if music is
important to you, if you want more than an old harpist at your
reception, wouldn't you keep reading? "Wedding Photography Candid
Style." This photographer specializes in warmth, more than the usual
posed photos in front of the altar. You might instantly picture a shot
of the bride holding her worn-out little flower girl on her lap, or
maybe a shot of her dancing with her blushing young nephew. And I love
this one: "Budget? Stress? Free Wedding Manual." That gets to the point
and directs the right market to read on: cheapos, girls paying for
their own second wedding, girls like me whose father had four daughters
to marry off. Another: "Best Price In Town For Photo & Video."
Or ads can entice the reader to consider something special AND
something specific for their wedding. "Great Private Weddings On San
Antonio Riverwalk." (Can't you feel the river mist, hear the music
streaming out of nightclubs, smell the enchiladas?) How about, "Elegant
Horse and Carriage" or "Hand-made Wedding Veils." Ooh, wouldn't that be
lovely? The reader will read on if it's a match. And because weddings
are sentimental, and it's not a lawnmower for sale here, I chose to
keep reading this one: "The Sights and Sounds of Your Wedding." The
body of the ad gave great, specific information like, 'Don't let your
wedding be a hazy memory. Our video packages include multi-camera
coverage of the preliminaries, ceremony, and reception.'
Lastly, this ad challenges the creative wedding planner: "Hire Elvis
For Your Wedding!" He's asking you if you're really brave enough to
throw a truly WACKY wedding, while at the same time giving you an
immediate mental picture of the thing.
Classified ads are useful, easy to use, and quick. Readers can search
locally or nationally, and by specific category. (The San Antonio
Riverwalk wedding ad ran within Texas, for example.) Online classified
ads are very affordable and reach millions of readers. So use them, but
write them wisely. Remember how? Inform, entice, or challenge -
starting with the headline.
Lisa Lake
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