Article | 4 minute read
Techniques for scroll stopping ad copy
Article | 4 minute read
Techniques for scroll stopping ad copy
Published: September 29 2023
In this article:
If you're advertising a lot but getting no results, it's time to get more creative and increase your engagement. We know, that's way easier said than done! Increasing engagement is one of the biggest challenges marketers face.
In this article, we'll look at how you can produce copy that gets recipients to take action.
It goes without saying
It's no news that first impressions matter. Whether it's a new contact, service or advertisement, you need to create the best first impression possible. That's why the production of ad copy has a big impact both on the click through rate and conversion rate.
We've listed a few strategies that will help you achieve your goal. Let's get to it!
Tailor your message to each phase
Where are the potential customers in the buying journey and what information is relevant to communicate for each ad?
You can break the process into three stages, brand building, consideration and conversion. Depending on where your recipients are in the buying journey, you should be delivering different messages. Let's look at how messaging can differ in the different phases:
- Brand-building stage: assume this is the first time the recipient is exposed to your brand. This is about creating interest, curiosity and making the customer want to read more about your product or service.
- Convincing stage: what problem or need does your product solve? This is about convincing people that your product is the right choice. Here, you want to focus on the value you bring to the table and not entirely the product or service.
- Converting stage: the final step, time to get recipients to take action. Give them an extra push through compelling CTAs.
Brainstorm, then refine
It's easy to get writer's block when it counts. Especially when it comes to creating to-the-point ads. We recommend writing a list of everything you want to convey. Don't focus on wording at first, but focus on what's important for getting your message across.
Once you've written down x number of points, it's time to expand on the messages and refine them. Replace the dull wording with exciting messages that will capture the recipients' attention. Avoid phrases like biggest, best and cheapest. They often lack evidence and rarely generate any impact.
Find your hook
When producing your copy, it's important to start with a hook. What's a good hook then? It's an opening phrase that captures the interest of the target audience. Be unique, inspiring or surprising. Here's a few tips to how you can find your hook.
- Use statistics to demonstrate a problem or need that your product addresses.
- Ask a question that your target audience is interested in knowing the answer to. The answer relates to your service or product, of course.
- Use humour and entertain the recipients.
- Be unpredictable and shock readers.
Tailor your content and hook to your tone of voice, brand image and offering. The most important thing is that you stand out from the crowd, which you do best by being true to your brand and to what your expertise is.
Focus on their needs - not your product
Your copy should be solution-oriented rather than product-focused. Highlight relevant challenges and create recognition among potential customers.
What scenarios can they relate to and what motivates them? Feel free to work with storytelling and paint a scenario. Use the following questions to inspire your copy:
- Who are our customers? What is their situation?
- What needs does the product solve?
- Why do they buy the product?
- Why should they choose your product and not your competitors'?
- Do they prefer a casual or a more professional way of communicating?
Go for the CTA
Call-To-Actions are placed at the end of your ad and are used to push readers to take a specific action. Examples include "contact us", "learn more" or "buy now".
What are the objectives of your ads? To increase sales, to generate more leads or to connect directly with customers? Tailor your CTAs to what you want to achieve.
[ Want 50 CTAs you can use in your marketing? Here you go ]
A/B testing and evaluation
When you A/B test your ads, you'll see specifically which copy engages your recipients and which doesn't. This could be wording in your headline, description or CTA. By creating multiple variations of the same ad, you'll be able to evaluate the results afterwards. This usually gives a clear indication as to how your target audience interacts with the content.
We recommend testing one element at a time, starting for example with the headline, to get as clear a picture as possible of which hook is working and which is not. Next, test your description, CTA, and visuals.
It's a big challenge to create ads that convert. The right message has to be formulated and reach the right recipients at the right stage. With sharp, targeted and engaging copy, you're well on your way. If you want to dig deeper into social media advertising, read our guide here.
Published: September 29 2023
In this article:
If you're advertising a lot but getting no results, it's time to get more creative and increase your engagement. We know, that's way easier said than done! Increasing engagement is one of the biggest challenges marketers face.
In this article, we'll look at how you can produce copy that gets recipients to take action.
It goes without saying
It's no news that first impressions matter. Whether it's a new contact, service or advertisement, you need to create the best first impression possible. That's why the production of ad copy has a big impact both on the click through rate and conversion rate.
We've listed a few strategies that will help you achieve your goal. Let's get to it!
Tailor your message to each phase
Where are the potential customers in the buying journey and what information is relevant to communicate for each ad?
You can break the process into three stages, brand building, consideration and conversion. Depending on where your recipients are in the buying journey, you should be delivering different messages. Let's look at how messaging can differ in the different phases:
Brand-building stage: assume this is the first time the recipient is exposed to your brand. This is about creating interest, curiosity and making the customer want to read more about your product or service.
Convincing stage: what problem or need does your product solve? This is about convincing people that your product is the right choice. Here, you want to focus on the value you bring to the table and not entirely the product or service.
Converting stage: the final step, time to get recipients to take action. Give them an extra push through compelling CTAs.
Brainstorm, then refine
It's easy to get writer's block when it counts. Especially when it comes to creating to-the-point ads. We recommend writing a list of everything you want to convey. Don't focus on wording at first, but focus on what's important for getting your message across.
Once you've written down x number of points, it's time to expand on the messages and refine them. Replace the dull wording with exciting messages that will capture the recipients' attention. Avoid phrases like biggest, best and cheapest. They often lack evidence and rarely generate any impact.
Find your hook
When producing your copy, it's important to start with a hook. What's a good hook then? It's an opening phrase that captures the interest of the target audience. Be unique, inspiring or surprising. Here's a few tips to how you can find your hook.
- Use statistics to demonstrate a problem or need that your product addresses.
- Ask a question that your target audience is interested in knowing the answer to. The answer relates to your service or product, of course.
- Use humour and entertain the recipients.
- Be unpredictable and shock readers.
Tailor your content and hook to your tone of voice, brand image and offering. The most important thing is that you stand out from the crowd, which you do best by being true to your brand and to what your expertise is.
Focus on their needs - not your product
Your copy should be solution-oriented rather than product-focused. Highlight relevant challenges and create recognition among potential customers.
What scenarios can they relate to and what motivates them? Feel free to work with storytelling and paint a scenario. Use the following questions to inspire your copy:
- Who are our customers? What is their situation?
- What needs does the product solve?
- Why do they buy the product?
- Why should they choose your product and not your competitors'?
- Do they prefer a casual or a more professional way of communicating?
Go for the CTA
Call-To-Actions are placed at the end of your ad and are used to push readers to take a specific action. Examples include "contact us", "learn more" or "buy now".
What are the objectives of your ads? To increase sales, to generate more leads or to connect directly with customers? Tailor your CTAs to what you want to achieve.
[ Want 50 CTAs you can use in your marketing? Here you go ]
A/B testing and evaluation
When you A/B test your ads, you'll see specifically which copy engages your recipients and which doesn't. This could be wording in your headline, description or CTA. By creating multiple variations of the same ad, you'll be able to evaluate the results afterwards. This usually gives a clear indication as to how your target audience interacts with the content.
We recommend testing one element at a time, starting for example with the headline, to get as clear a picture as possible of which hook is working and which is not. Next, test your description, CTA, and visuals.
It's a big challenge to create ads that convert. The right message has to be formulated and reach the right recipients at the right stage. With sharp, targeted and engaging copy, you're well on your way. If you want to dig deeper into social media advertising, read our guide here.