Shawn and I had the privilege of some education this week. Sarah Taylor with Metro Family asked if we would be interested in attending a workshop at the Oklahoma Science Museum focused on creating effective magazine ad content. The speaker David Fowler author of 'Newspaper Ads That Make Sales Jump' and 'Ultimate Moneymaking Newspaper Ads' gave a very insightful and yet common sense guide to creating effective print ads.

I have created a summary in the form of 7 tips of successful ad design.

1: Really think about your niche. Who is the ad aimed at and how does your product or service stand apart form your competition?

2: In our culture we read from left to right, top to bottom. Readers spend very little time on ads in a publication so you must capture their attention immediately. Include the most important content in the top 3rd of the ad.

3: Use professional visuals. Captivate your target with an opening visual.

4: Your headline should accompany your visual, use the top 3rd of the ad for the headline and visual.

5: The headline should make your target want to call or act now. You want to make a prospect act immediately. To get an immediate response create an offer, something free or extremely useful.

6: Don't use percentages in your advertising, 30% off an unknown value means nothing to your target.

7: Capture data. Create a coupon that can be redeemed for your offer, collect prospects name and email address to build your database. Alternatively direct to a landing page on your website to capture data. Your call to action or offer needs to be good enough to entice people to take the time to give you their details.

Good luck with the ads.

Sincerely,

Michael Hutchinson