Lawrence Medina

Making an ad is rather simple, but no matter how simple it may seem, it doesn’t mean it’s good. Most people can write a book, draw a picture, or make a statue, but just because they brought it into existence doesn’t mean it is good or even passing.

Before we dive into the markers of a good ad, I think we should look at what a passing ad is. Let us first define what I mean by “passing.”

A Passing Ad

We look at them all the time. I’m sure you may be looking at a few right now on your browser. It’s there, with a weak headline or graphic. Nothing more than a simple shout in the wind.

In my previous post, I discussed the anatomy of an ad. Which we can boil down to a simple layout. You may believe that the layout alone is what creates a passing ad, but it’s not the whole of what makes it as such.

A passing ad is simply masquerading as an ad. A passing ad is closer to a headline. It just serves as an announcement of whatever the advertiser is advertising.

The above ad could be considered passing. As it does not ad anything to the brand, nor does it explain anything about what the brand does. It is simply there. Your eyes will glaze over it and simply ignore it.

Sure, the messaging may be there, but it’s weak. There is no stickiness. Nothing that will make you remember Charles Schwab as you go about your day. A passing ad is akin to a mediocre ad. An ad that just meets the bare requirements of what it means to be an advertisement.

Now you may be thinking, “at least it wasn’t a bad ad.”

How a Bad Ad is Better than a Passing Ad

In a lot of ways, a passing ad is far worse than a bad ad. Passing ads are forgotten, bad ads are at least talked about. Bad ads are remembered, obviously for how amazing they were, but how poor their attempt was.

When it comes to advertising, an ad that isn’t talked about is… well, terrible. That means it wasn’t memorable and didn’t deliver on its message.

A bad ad is memorable. People will remember either how much of a train wreck it was or how badly it missed the marker.

However, this doesn’t mean you should aim to make a bad ad, because people talk about it. There is a reason these ads are bad. They can destroy your brand’s image or even mess up your intended messaging. Remember a key part about branding is your consistency. If your message slips too drastically or simply states the wrong thing… then you run the risk of losing or alienating your audience.

If you create a passing ad, it just means you’re aiming to play it safe. If you accidentally create a bad ad, then you can chalk it up to experimenting—or a momentary lapse of judgment.

Let us now delve into the markers of a good ad.

The Elements of a Good Ad

Memorability (Stickiness)

A good ad should be memorable. If you walk past or watch an advertisement and you can’t get it out of your head, then that ad was memorable. If something sparks the memory of that ad, then it was memorable. If you can’t stop thinking about elements or parts of the ad then… you know what I’m getting at, right?

But what makes for a memorable ad?

When it comes to wordplay, often times only other writers will appreciate cleverness. Does that mean you shouldn’t be clever? Not exactly. There are many ways of being clever. For instance, a clever rhyme. If your ad has a good cadence or rhyme, then anyone who comes across it might remember it simply for that. Even better if that rhyme is used as a call to action.

Messaging (Spread)

The messaging in your ad is completely different from your branding, however, they both feed upon each other. The best way to differentiate them is who they are for. The messaging is for the audience. It essentially boils down to the type of appeal used to reach them.

An ad with a great appeal will spread among the intended community like a wildfire, meanwhile, one with the wrong appeal will only grab a few eyes. Make sure your messaging is on target. That whoever sees it, knows or gets the feeling that it is for them.

Remember, the messaging is different from branding, it is the type of appeal used to reach your audience.

While…

Branding (Voice)

All boils down to voice. What is your voice? Each ad should embody your voice. If an ad stands in stark contrast to your voice, then it may not suit your brand image. This could lead that ad being considered a bad ad. Which can ruin your hard work in building and establishing a community.

And lastly the Big Idea.

BIG IDEA

This one… Is well, the big one.

Every good ad has a big idea. Now… When it comes to a big idea, a lot of people are lost in explaining it, but I’ll take a crack at it.

The big idea comes down to an overarching idea. A single frame of mind that is prevalent throughout every ad that runs in that campaign. Now big idea’s do have a lifespan, you can only rely on one big idea for so long before it loses the impact it originally had.

When it comes to creating a big idea, there is no surefire method. But, as I’ve been told, you’ll know when you have one. There is always an “ah-ha” moment.

Sit down and think about the brand and the messaging, and the big idea will come. You’ll have to work hard for it though. It may and will take hundreds of tries, after all, no one can create a good ad with the first try.