Keep It Simple, Conversational, And Authentic… And You’ll Be Surprised At How Well Listeners Respond.

Written by Rich Harshaw.

Okay, so you’ve decided part of your contractor marketing to advertising on the radio. You’ve picked and negotiated your stations, and you’ve committed to at least 6 or 12 months to give your ads some time to speak to your target market and nurture them along. Now comes the hard part—writing great ads that will move the needle.

But how do you write an effective advertisement? What elements need to be present—and what should you avoid? Glad you asked! Here are my top pieces of advice for writing great radio ads:

POINT 1: Start With Identity: A common mistake is to make your radio ad a “menu board” style ad. Think about a menu—it shows what’s for sale and how much it costs. This leads to ads that say things like “We’re a locally owned company that can help you with whatever remodeling projects you have… from energy-saving windows to durable siding to award winning roofing.”

Instead, focus on your core selling points—your identity. What makes you different and better than the competitors? Why should somebody choose you? What can they expect if they do go with you? Each company’s identity is unique, so I can’t tell you what, specifically, to focus on.

Your identity can be thought of like a court case: If your business were on trial—and your prospects were the jury—what would you say to convince them you are the best choice? Your “case” will probably be built on one or two MAJOR points, and few SECONDARY points, and a handful of TERTIARY points. That brings us to point #2…

POINT 2: One Main Theme Per Ad: Remember, with radio advertising, your main objective is to build an ongoing relationship with the listener… starting NOW, and extending to many YEARS in the future. There is absolutely NO NEED to try to pile every last ounce of information about your company (or you Identity, for that matter) into a single radio ad.

Instead, focus each ad on one single selling point. Look at the “case” you’ve outlined (per above) and decide how much weight you want to give to each selling point, then create a schedule that assigns the proper weight to a given topic over the course of a year.

For instance, let’s say your main case points are as follows (point, weight):

• Fanatical Attention To Detail—material choices; installations, etc. (40%)
• Respect For Customers—No sales pressure, no pricing games, appearance, etc. (30%)
• Strength of Warranty (15%)
• Other Elements (15%)

If you cut 5 new ads every two months (my recommendation), then you would cut 30 ads in a year. Multiply 30 by the percentages above and you’d get 12 ads about “Attention to Detail,” 9 ads about “Respect,” and 4 or 5 ads each for “Warranty” and “Other”.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t MENTION other things in a given ad; it means that you should FOCUS each ad on one major point.

POINT 3: Which Products? A lot of people ask me if they should focus on one product (i.e., windows) or is it okay to cover multiple products (windows, siding, and roofing, etc.). The answer is—it depends.

If ONE product is 90% or more of your sales (and you intend to keep it that way), then your Identity should focus on that product, and your ads should focus on why your product is better than other competing products.

If, however, you sell MULTIPLE products, it’s probably a good idea to focus your case (and ads) on what I call “bedside manner” types of topics. The way you treat customers. Warranty issues. Customer service issues. Things that apply to all the different products you sell. Then you can MENTION in your ads that you sell windows, siding, and roofing… but the prospect will hear and know that you do all these wonderful “bedside manner” things.

So is it okay, if you sell multiple products, to create an ad that just focuses on, say, windows? Of course it is. But I still would like you to think in terms of “campaigning,” or in other words, think of how that one single ad fits into an entire year’s worth of advertising. Maybe there’s a special promotion. Maybe you need to sell a lot of windows for some reason. Maybe it’s seasonal. Just think through all these issues before writing.

POINT 4: Power, Precision, Passion: This is where the rubber meets the road—and it’s the hardest thing to teach others. Your ads MUST communicate with a high level of power, precision, and passion to really have the impact you want. Most ads, unfortunately, are filled with PLATITUDES… words and phrases that are drearily commonplace and predictable, that lack power to evoke interest through overuse and repetition.

The problem with platitudes is that prospects EXPECT advertisers to use them. Do you really believe, literally, that Papa John’s Pizza has “Better Ingredients?” or “Better Pizza?” Of course not. It’s just puffery; the kind of stuff that we’ve all heard a zillion times, and therefore lacks power. We can do better.

Here are a couple of examples:

Platitude: Our sales meetings are short, pleasant, and informative!

PPP: If you’re a real glutton for punishment… or if you just don’t like yourself very much, here’s a fun activity to try: Call a bunch of replacement window companies and have them come over for an “in-home demonstration.” Trust me—you’ll get crushed.

Platitude: Vinyl windows are a poor investment because they will warp and bend with the weather, and fail prematurely.

PPP:Listen up; I want to keep you from making a HUGE mistake… which is buying and installing flimsy VINYL windows. Yea, they’re super cheap… but come on! You’re going to get exactly what you pay for. Vinyl windows will warp and bend with the weather, and fail before they’re supposed to. They’re a terrible investment.

Don’t get hung up on these examples debating me how long a sales presentation should be, or if vinyl of fiberglass windows are better—that’s completely beside the point. The point is to use powerful, precise, and passionate language to engage and compel the listener.

POINT 5: It’s Okay To Be Negative: Many business owners I deal with HATE the idea of bringing up negative points on radio ads. They say they’d rather remain positive, focus on the good things their company does, and avoid the appearance of disparaging the competition.

That’s understandable, but only if you don’t know how to use negativity the RIGHT WAY.

The underlying problem is that many prospects can’t appreciate the GOOD YOU DO because they don’t recognize/realize how bad they might get it elsewhere. If you say you offer a “lifetime warranty” without explaining that other companies SAY they have a lifetime warranty, but they are frequently filled with loopholes, exceptions, and exclusions, the customer can’t appreciate it. How would they? How could they possible know that? Answer: you have to tell them.

This isn’t about calling out specific competitors. It’s not about bad-mouthing anyone. It’s about giving prospects enough information to really UNDERSTAND and APPRECIATE how good you really are.

Here’s an example: If you’ve been needing to remodel your bathroom, but you’ve been putting it off because you’re concerned about the mess it will cause, the hassle it will be, how much it will cost, and how long it will take… then I’d like to talk to you… We’ve all heard the horror stories of remodeling jobs that take way too long and go way over budget. I know your name isn’t Trump and you don’t want to be living with a sawdust infested remodeling crew for three solid months. That’s why REBATH has innovated a process that streamlines everything and ensures that the job finishes WITHIN THREE DAYS, with a minimal amount of mess and inconvenience, and always with a fixed price that’s guaranteed in writing before we start.

POINT 6: Tell A Story: I recommend that a good portion of your ads use stories, anecdotes, and metaphors to make the points come alive and easy to understand. Not ALL of your ads, mind you… but a good portion of them. Stories engage listeners and make them want to hear the entire ad. Metaphors take something unfamiliar and compare it to something familiar so it’s easier to understand.

Example 1: What’s the best word to describe your bathroom? Outdated? Let’s try a little harder. How about “archaic, ancient, extremely experienced… or maybe just plain OLD. Let’s put it this way… when Noah got off the arc and was looking for a nice, hot shower, he took it in YOUR bathroom. It’s THAT OLD!

Example 2: The other day my wife and I were looking at pictures of our 19 year old son from when he was a little kid. There’s this one particular picture—you know what I’m talking about—where he was 7 years old and he just looked so small and cute and innocent. Now he’s moved out of the house, he’s bigger than I am, and can grow a full beard in a week. It seems like FOREVER ago that he was that sweet little boy in the picture. Think about it—12 years. That’s a long time.

Example 3: I was a boy scout when I was a kid; we’d go camping a lot, and when we’d pack up to leave, our scoutmaster would always remind us: “Leave it cleaner than you found it.” We’d hunt for bottle caps, and pull tabs and bread ties—stuff we hadn’t put there—but stuff we were willing to find and haul out so we could fulfill our duty to “leave it cleaner than we found it.” And you know what? That philosophy has stuck with me.

Example 4: Let’s say you needed heart surgery, and the doctor walked in with a sharp knife, some gauze, and a copy of “Heart Surgery for Dummies.” Would you care? Of course you would! Installing siding on your home may not be life or death, but trust me: the last thing you want is a guy who just got hired 4 days ago and has no idea what he is doing. 75% of the efficiency and durability of your siding comes from proper installation

POINT 7: Think Authenticity: Nothing is worse in a radio commercial than “announcer voice.” It’s that voice that sounds like, well, an announcer is making it. What you want is a REAL voice. One with good inflection, emphasis, and tone. It should be conversational. Like you’re talking to a friend. You want the listener to believe that the person voicing the ad really cares. The word you’re looking for is AUTHENTIC. Like everything else, there are exceptions. Listen to the spots below and you’ll find several conversational spots and one that is decidedly NOT.

POINT 8: Different Kinds of Offers: Since our goal is nurturing large quantities of prospects over long periods of time, there’s no need to go crazy with offers in your ads. There are two kinds of offers you can make—information offers and incentive offers—and both have their place. Let’s discuss:

Incentive Offers: This is the most common kind of offer; one where you offer a discount (dollars or percent) or any other incentive for calling now. Incentive offers are the calling card of the direct response ad, so I don’t really like to feature them prominently in radio ads. By “not prominently,” I mean I don’t like an entire ad to be dedicated to incentive offers. If you DO constantly promote various incentive offers as the main thrust of your message, it changes the relationship between you and the listener from “friendly voice” to “salesman.” You become that annoying friend who only likes you because you might buy Amway from him. Of course the listener knows that you are selling something anyway, but if you spend TIME and ENERGY helping them understand your identity… and you do it with power, passion, and precision… and you tell stories and use metaphors… after a while you’ll develop a bond with them. Not so with the constant 30% off sale that’s so common. Instead, tuck your monthly incentive offer at the end of the spot so it’s more of an afterthought than a main focus. Those who are ready to buy will appreciate it; those who aren’t won’t be turned off by it. It is appropriate to feature incentive offers periodically—just don’t overdo it.

Information Offers: This is when you give the listener an offer to get additional information that can help facilitate his decision-making process when it comes to the products you sell. Maybe you provide an “energy efficiency comparison guide” for windows. Or a report called “12 Major Gutter Protection Systems Compared.” Or a “Kitchen Design Portfolio with pictures of 44 of the coolest jobs we’ve ever done.” These kinds of offers nudge prospects who are close—BUT NOT YET READY—to action, which allows you to capture their contact info and proactively market to them in the future. You can make information offers that push people to your home improvement website, or to simply call you on the phone.

Okay, so there you have it—my top 8 points for writing radio ads. Now here are several ads for you to listen to as you watch these principles in action!

If you have any comments or questions, please don’t hesitate to email me at rharshaw@mymonline.com.

Nordine: Rumor

Bail: Surprise

Bail: Reference

Thermal King: Sales Pressure

Kemp: Satisfaction Pledge

Closet: Movie Trailer

Horizon: Looking at Pictures

Horizon: Adults Wearing Booties

© 2014 – 2016, Rich Harshaw. All rights reserved.