Social media has permeated the very core of society. Various social media platforms, tools and apps are driven by ever increasing, widespread and addictive customer usage. Needless to say, social media marketing is an incredible opportunity to build customer relationships vis-à-vis your brand, and to build brand visibility. It gives your business immense exposure.
If ever there was a heaven for advertisers, you can surely find it in social media marketing. You have unlimited opportunity to build brand visibility, drive traffic to your website and promote all your products and services. This can all be achieved if your marketing and ad copy and creatives strike a chord with your target audience. Grab attention and then continue to keep the attention of your consumers with some brilliant ad copywriting techniques.
Two qualities that will convert your digital marketing spend into conversions attention-grabbing and attention-keeping. When your ads (on Facebook, Instagram, or even Twitter or Snapchat) succeed in grabbing the attention of your audience and keeping their attention, then your audience will naturally feel compelled to click through.
If you think about your favorite couple of ads you’ve ever seen, chances are they succeeded massively in at least one of these two aspects; that is, they were either absolutely mesmerizing from the very beginning, or they were intriguing enough, magical enough to keep you watching.
In particular, developing a super solid attention-grabber will pay for itself many times over. This observation comes from my experience both subjectively as a personal preference, as well as objectively having traversed the trenches of digital marketing and reporting (Google Ad Analytics, Facebook Ad Analytics, etc.) over a number of years.
I want to talk about an example of quality attention-grabbing by using a Nike ad that is positively astounding.
In a world of sensory overload and on an app (Instagram) that deploys a coordinated onslaught of beaches, homes, concerts, sports, and all-around good-looking people, this Nike ad is incredible.
Why? Because it takes all of that sensory goodness, says “Yep, me too,” and blasts you into the here-and-now with so much color and vividness that you just know that it’s going to be worth your time to stop scrolling and watch until the end.
The quirky shots, the flashes and speed, the pictures, all of it has so much shock value that as a digital marketer it brings a giant smile to my face. That is exactly how an attention-grabber ought to be executed — with unabashed relentlessness. Something as spellbinding as the first two seconds of this Nike ad is sure to pay dividends in conversion and ultimately, sales.
The average person has an attention span of 3 seconds. That said, your ad must have a punch right out of the gate. You have to hook them right away otherwise, they’re outta there.
This Nike Ad is incredible and I would stop scrolling every time when I see it on Instagram or Facebook. When you’re creating or paying for creatives that utilize an attention-grabber that surprises, delights, and retains your audience to stay and watch until the end, the numbers speak for themselves.
Think about it the last ad you can remember. Did they slowly show stock video of fluffy clouds and with a slow Helvetica overlay? Unlikely.
Memorable ads use punchy graphics and fast music. Fast titles and bright lettering!
Look at sports highlight shows for instance. Blaring music, 3D lettering, big hits, slap shots from the centerline, mega dunks. If you don’t have the attention of the viewer or potential customer in 1 or 2 seconds, almost immediately followed by a call to action or some intriguing information, that person will quickly scroll past you without a second thought.
In direct response marketing and especially with Facebook ads and Pinterest Ads, you need to make a big presence. Facebook ads are designed to direct you to what you’re actually interested in. Even if you don’t always know it.
Good advertising and presentation can get them on your landing page and lead them “down the rabbit hole”, but first you must stop the scroll.
Did you ever have a teacher in school that would bang on the blackboard to get everyone's attention?
Effective, sure. But, roll a TV on a cart into a classroom and boom, instantly everyone perked up.
It’s no different in paid advertising. Instead of students, we compete for the attention of consumers. And when ignoring your message is as easy as swiping up, you’ve got mere seconds to get their attention.
So how do you do it?
A great ad that demands attention and has a few vital components. Let’s review this ad by Justworks I came across while doing what consumers do... scrolling in bed.
But first, watch the ad for yourself below:
Dynamite ad, isn’t it? I thought so too after I watched it with sound.
You might be surprised to learn that only about 50% of people scroll through Facebook (or their phone in general) with their sound on. I’m not saying you should run mute-ads; in fact, audio can give you a big advantage.
Even without sound, the Justworks ad could have performed a lot better by simply adding captions, which I consider best practice either way.
Otherwise, tell me what’s stopping people from thinking this was a fancy ad for a coffee mug if they only watched a couple seconds?
Fast cuts keep view times up. As far as I know, there is no quicker way to grab (and keep) a viewer's attention than using fast cuts. You accomplish this by using multiple angles of the same shot, or different shots following each other in quick succession.
The Justworks ad does that pretty well I’d say.
You see the coffee maker, then quickly after, the guy comes on the screen and instead of seeing him just from one perspective, the camera seems to “jump” further back, then closer, then further again.
Great tactic. And it works.
Be mindful of who you’re targeting
Watching this ad late at night from bed, I wondered, “Who is this guy?”
To me he was just some dude standing there in the middle of a room.
Sure, about 6 seconds in you learn it’s the Justworks founder, Isaac.
But when it comes to keeping the attention of cold audiences, 6 seconds in the words of Larry David, is pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty good.
Pretty good, and pretty hard. Which brings me to this: when targeting, keep your audience in mind always.
If I had been retargeted with this ad and if I had seen Isaac multiple times before, I would have had an established connection and been more likely to sit through it. The no sound thing might not even have bothered me.
Always think of how you can establish pre-framing early on. In other words, how can you get in front of your target audience, before placing your ad in front of them?
Perhaps you’ll use influencers, perhaps you’ll go on podcasts. Whatever you do, remember that once someone has come to a conclusion about you or your brand, it’s very hard to change their mind.
This is a universal truth too.
It is said that the reputation you build as an employee in your first year will be what people think of you for the next 10 years.
First impressions matter and in direct response marketing you have just a few seconds to grab the attention with video and one line of copy in the Headlines. It better stand out, be witty, memorable, or shocking.
“Well crafted ads tell your value prop & create a reason to be interested beyond product features.”
Use fascinating words “Secret” “Tip” “Tool” “The ______ That ______ Don’t Want You To Know About.” If you have a big brand name that you can use to leverage credibility, do it. And by all means, arrange them creatively throughout the customer journey.
“Well crafted ads tell your value prop & create a reason to be interested beyond product features.”
This Vuori ad has a nice opening image and it keeps my attention by scrolling for me. But the copy is lacking. The word Awesome does not really give me a feature or a benefit. It’s not memorable and creates no interest or mystery.
Hook the consumers interest.
Context and content will reel the consumer in.
Build trust and explain the features and benefits.
Promise solution to their need or problem.
Use catchy and short slogans and taglines to enable recall value.
Performance marketing puts you, the advertiser, in control. You can optimize your advertising campaign and decrease cost. You can split test your way into profitable ad buys.
At any given time, not less than 10% of traffic needs to be send to A/B variations
Let’s take a look at this ad for MOO business cards. A company known for abnormal biz cards. Including the sizes.
The tag is perfect: These are not your average business cards…
We don’t need overly elaborate ad copy here because the creative is so over the top. And I mean that in a good way.
If you’re making little videos for Facebook ads or Instagram ads, this is textbook right here. The ad starts and the images flash every one second. Excellent.
The colors are very different in each frame and very bright. Excellent. Between the colors and fast cuts I can’t look away.
Now that they’ve hooked me, the start the confetti and other materials falling. This again is different. Keeps it moving. Keeps me watching. It’s this second half of the ad that is so impressive to me. It would have been so easy to just let the same 4 frames keep rotating. But they decided to go above and beyond to delight their viewers and give a little pop of confetti.
Now that I’ve been watching the ad for 8 seconds (because the ad is not boring), one looks to read the Headline and everything comes together perfectly.
The creative has a nice Call To Action (CTA) at the end. Clean branding too. It’s really a great ad.
But not every single ad needs to have over the top attention grabbing creative to do well. Look at this ad from Vimeo:
Sometimes a very direct Headline or Overlay text on an ad can be very attention grabbing. It’s one of the main benefits to niche down marketing is the ability to tightly target prospects in advertising campaigns and speak directly to them. I bet this ad has low reach and high click throughs.
For this interested in Over The Top (OTT) this text overlay speaks right to them.
Pro Tip: I would definitely capitalize the first letter in every word of that text overlay and the headline. It will be way more eye catching.
How to launch a streaming video service
Becomes:
How To Launch A Streaming Video Service
“How to…” speaks to the want.
“Learn how…” speaks to the benefit.
This is great advertising. Yes it isn’t beautiful and not very special. But it will work because it is well crafted to a specific audience and WILL get that audiences' attention.
Here is another example where simple straight forward copy can work. With very clear and specific creative, the copy can get right to the point.
In this case it mentions the benefit “wasting time”.
Watch as very quickly the ad shows code. That speaks to a specific audience.
The cuts and frame changes are not very fast. Constant action is needed in this video, which is what it takes in instagram ads to get people to stop scrolling.
PLUS, if people do decide to stop scrolling and continue watching past the first 4 seconds they are likely interested and open to hearing more features. That is the time to share more detailed information in a video ad IF you have to do it. Really you just want to save all that kind of information for the landing page.
Remember the ad is just a place to get attention, create interest, and get a clickthrough.
The words “Before Segment” are the best part of the ad by far. They create mystery and curiosity. Now Before/Afters have been the hallmark of advertising since the dawn of time yes, but they are not dead. If you have an opportunity to use Before/Afters in your ads for any reason do it. It is proven to get and keep attention.
Here is one of the best Facebook stories ads I have seen. Period. It is lively, colorful, provides information in an immediately understandable way. But there are layers to the creative as well. The longer you stare at it the come information and detail you notice. That is the way we want people to describe our efforts in direct response advertising.
This is not a polished and perfect creative. There are no 4k videos or images here. But if this was a still image it would fall flat. The fire in the background and GIF of old man dancing give it life. Make it stand out.
Try to imagine the ad without the red stripe and old man dancing. It would be plain text overlays. Boring.
That silly little element makes the world of difference. He’s happy. Aged up. It’s such a great addition to this creative.
It’s the amalgamation of all these elements together that look like nothing I’ve seen before.
Something I Haven’t Seen Before = Attention Grabbing
This is an experienced advertiser. It’s no mistake that the dollar amount shown in this stories ad is $679,650. That amount stands out so much better than $650,000. It makes it seem more real and mysterious.
You might be saying: “But this ad copy is so literal?!” It’s ok.
The copy can be direct and literal if the creative is clear, direct, and interesting. It’s a balance. We’re just trying to create interest and get a click through.
This ad from VidMob is an excellent example. It makes you say: That’s interesting, tell me more.” I can’t take credit for that quote though. It belongs to my friend Jeremy Miller from his book Sticky Branding. Which I highly recommend reading if you’re a business owner or marketing professional. I’ve actually done a book review of it as well and you can find it here.
The first line of text in the creative is perfect: “Get Your Brand Moving”
It could mean many things. It’s relatable. It’s interesting. Makes me want to see what is said next, or at least, read the headline.
When you the next line of ad copy in the video ad you notice that the mystery is solved and the ad is basically over: “Get Social Ads Right. Now.” Yes it says to things and is very creative, but more importantly, it tells you what the OFFER is. And has a clear Call To Action (CTA).
I haven’t even mentioned the colors. Man this stands out from everything else you’re seeing in your feed. Fast cuts, bright colors, moving words. It’s excellent.
The headline builds on the creative very well too. It speaks to a prospect’s interest or need WITH unique language. Look at the difference in ad copy here:
“Creating video ads can be stressful, but it doesn’t have to be.”
VS
“Creating thumbstopping video ads can be stressful, but it doesn’t have to be.”
The word ‘Thumbstopping’ has layers of assigned stereotypical deep meaning. In a good way. It immediately references exciting and engaging content. Without spelling it out and spoon feeding it to people. That would be boring. And boring means scroll.
Without that word the copy falls flat. It has no flavor. It’s too literal. Try to bring a bit unique excitement to your ad copy when you write it. Unique words like that always help with CTR in facebook ads, google ads, and every other platform you can think of.
Also without this headline providing a bit more detail than the creative the advertisement would be too broad and not work. It’s the way they build on each other that works so well.
This Instagram ad by Salesforce is a great example of what not to do. Take a look and let’s breakdown what they could have done differently:
The creative references new tech, but the headline offers new metrics. They might be the same thing and they probably are, but it’s not immediately obvious and it kinds needs to be. Here’s why:
Most people are not giving social media platforms their full attention. Think about the last time you watched a movie. Did you have your phone out too? Likely. That’s just it. People are looking at their phone halfway. If your ad isn’t immediately clear or witty or if it doesn’t create some sort of curiosity there is not way your message is going to get through. You don’t have their full attention and they don’t care. Our job as digital marketers is to MAKE THEM CARE.
That isn’t done by talking about the metrics they will get or the zipper being made out of steel or the jacket having horween leather. It’s done by selling them hopes and dreams. Happiness.
Why would a company actually buy this salesforce software? It's not because of unique metrics I can tell you that for sure. My guess is they want to have data that can make them win more or be the best, make more money, sign more clients, stuff like that.
“The metrics your competitors don’t want you to know about.” I’m not saying that’s award winning copy, but it sends a clear message.