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Oglivy on (Toronto Internet Website)
Advertising
David Ogilvy was
one of the most sought after executives in the advertising
industry. He did not believe that advertising should be
total guesswork. His
firm, Ogilvy and Mather, conducted extensive research on
what really works, and then shared their findings with the
world. He was a college dropout and former door to door
salesperson who eventually founded the largest advertising
firm in the world. So, when Ogilvy writes about advertising
it is worth listening to.
I will be summarizing the most important parts of the print
advertising section from his book. I always try to stress to
clients that a website is not advertising per say, but a
well designed website should share the principles that would
be incorporated in a successful Toronto or Mississauga print advertising campaign.
Headlines
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5 times more people read the headline
than the body copy
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Include a promise
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Should include news
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Headlines with 10 words or more sell
more merchandise than short headlines
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Include the city name if possible
Illustrations
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You want to arouse curiosity
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Show the product as it would be
purchased
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Show how the product would be used
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Photo quality and overall presentation
is key to the viewer
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Include city name if possible
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Simple illustrations work best
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Historical figures bore people
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Full colour advertisements cost 50% more
than black and white, but are twice as memorable
Copy
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Average readership of advertisement copy
is 5%
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You cannot bore people into buying your
product
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Use short sentences
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Use short paragraphs
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Use testimonials
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Avoid celebrities
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Include the price
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Use long copy to make it look like you
have something important to say
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Look at any magazine:
- Copy has priority over illustrations
- Copy is set in Serif type
- 3-4 thin columns
- Every photo has a caption
- Copy with a drop initial
- Black print on white paper
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Avoid all capitals in headlines
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Avoid super-imposed headlines on a photo
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Use Times Roman or a similar font
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Don’t use reverse print
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Use sub-headings if you have a lot of
copy
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Avoid shaped text blocks
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Use 12 point font
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