How to Create a Sense of Urgency in Marketing Messages

I write about the topic of creating a sense of urgency and motivating consumers to action through your copywriting extensively in my book for small business owners and beginner copywriters, Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps, where I explain that crafting effective calls to action is a talent that you can learn.

My newest article on Entrepreneur.com gives 3 useful tips to help you create a sense of urgency in your marketing messages.  You can follow the link to get all the details: 3 Ways to Move Customers to Action.

When the World is Unstable, Brands Have Success Returning to the Past

The past always brings people a feeling of security and peace of mind.  Earlier this week, I wrote a post on the Corporate Eye blog about brands needing to focus on messages related to longevity these days when economies are weak and the future is uncertain for so many consumers (you can read that post here if you’d like).  While messages about longevity and security in the future are very important, there is also something to be said for looking at the lessons and success from the past and repeating them to leverage the commonly held perception that the past connotes feelings of security.

The Philadelphia 76ers have done exactly that by replacing the modern logo the team launched just over 10 years ago with a new version, which is almost exactly identical to the team’s original logo before the change in the late 1990s.   Check out the logo launched in 1997/98 on the left below vs. the new logo launched in 2009 on the right.

And now, take a look at the pre-1997/98 logo below.  Can you spot the differences between the original logo and the newest version?

Whether or not using the past as a security blanket message was the reasoning behind the Philadelphia 76ers’ logo change, I don’t know, but the timing is certainly great to take advantage of those messages of security and longing for better days when the team performed better and consumers’ lives were better.

Take a look at your brand.  Can you incorporate messages of longevity and security for the future into your marketing?  Or can you incorporate messages that refer to the nostalgia of the past?  Either is a good brand message choice in 2009.

Your thoughts?

By the way, The Brand New has a great overlay graphic of the new logo on top of the old one where you can see just how minimal the changes between the pre 1997/98 logo and the 2009 logo are.

I’m Not a Doctor but I Play One On TV

Remember that phrase from the mid-1980s Vicks 44 commercials — “I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV.”

There were two versions of that commmercial that I recall – both with soap opera actors (a quick web search reminded me the actors were Peter Bergman of All My Children and Chris Robinson of General Hospital). Both actors said that famous line, “I’m not a doctor, but I play one on TV,” and consumers everywhere were expected to think that acting like a doctor on a soap opera gave them some kind of special authority to recommend an over the counter cough medicine. Looking back, the only surprising thing was that it worked.

Do you think a similar direct claim like that would work with today’s more jaded and less gullible consumer audience?  If an actor from a soap opera used that famous line today, would consumers listen or would they laugh? 

Marketing messages have had to change a lot over the past 20 years to keep up with changing consumers.  Take a look at your current marketing and ad campaigns.  Are you speaking to consumers like it’s 1986 or 2009?

Susan Gunelius Interviewed on Business Profits Radio

Business Profits Radio is a satellite radio show hosted by business expert, Robert Skrob. 

This week, Robert interviewed Susan Gunelius, author of Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps, to learn more about how to build your business and the buzz around it using simple techniques for creating compelling marketing messages.

Some of what Robert and Susan discussed included:

• How to identify what advertising is working.
• The first thing to do whenever you’re creating a new advertising piece.
• Seeing your ad in the eyes of your customer, so you can predict what will move them to action.
• Easy ways to create advertising that doesn’t take a lot of time or money.
• Making sure you clearly outline exactly the action you want your prospect to take as a result of reading your ad.

To listen to Susan’s interview with Robert on Business Profits Radio visit www.robertskrob.com/BPR and select the “Selling Your Way Out of a Recession” headline.