“When I write an advertisement, I don’t want you to tell me that you find it ‘creative.’ I want you to find it so interesting that you buy the product.”
– David Ogilvy
The only ones who truly appreciate the tangled linguistics we get all wrapped up in in this business are the interns who (wonderfully naively) cock their heads to the side at wild acronyms like USP, UVP, RTB, CTA.
Aiding & abetting.
With this troubling consideration, the only appropriate and responsible measure to be taken at this point of no return is to pile on to the insanity with yet another one. That’s right. I’m D’ing D on acronym mania. But I think you’re RGTLTO. But realize I have no real intention of forcing this into the vernacular. I just had to write something catchy to keep you here. And by george, I’ve done it.
What is it, already?
RTB is one of the most rightfully used and referenced pieces of ad lingo. It is (I’ll clarify for the interns) your reason to believe in the product. And while I do have strong opinions on RTBs being mis-used at times…
(welcome to my brief tangent – RTBs are not catch-all product attributes, they are reasons to believe in the product or brand’s promise and should be selected with such a filter to ensure they drive action and not simply check the box. – you are now leaving my brief tangent)
…there is one thing often overlooked when we get in heavy process mode and lose sight of the brand’s objectives and the consumer’s experience on either end of the advertising journey. We’re all guilty of it. Jumping from one project to the next, you must deliberately recenter yourself to maintain a precise eye on the best execution that connects the two (brand objectives > consumer journey). The collateral damage in these instances is often a reason to even pay attention in the first place.
Your headline communicates the right message. Your RTBs appropriately support the promise. The visuals are stunning. And yet, something’s missing.
Squirrel.
Even the best ads are only really interesting in presentation rooms. No really, look, it’s a squirrel. Sure, if you’re Coca-Cola or [Insert Celebrity-Budget Brand Here] you’ve got me there. But generally speaking, we are 100% at risk of talking to ourselves 100% of the time if we’re not careful and spitting out something your brand manager loved but the customer couldn’t care less about. Enter my theory. Okay, there was no squirrel.
Reason to Look (RTL)
We are skippable. We are scroll-past-able. We are ignorable and most often annoying as hell. SO. If we have any hope at all that someone will look between Instagram reels and baby announcements for even a moment…we had better try and give them an instant reason to linger and take a look. Here are a couple things we like to keep in mind when trying to break through and stop that thumb:
Competition: It’s a no-brainer for some. But for others, there are just so many factors in the mix that you can all too quickly lose sight of it. But not only does competitive analysis help you be more…well, competitive…it can be creatively inspiring, too (i.e., what is something so wildly different—yet on brand—that nobody would confuse for the competition.
Essential Message: What is an instant read on your essential message? We have a new name and need to improve awareness and recall. How can the name itself inspire a visual that feels out of place *and* is an instant “click.” Every campaign should blast your essential message. The idea here is that you unabashedly go all in on the clearest articulation of your essential message and shout it.
Connect Weird Dots: For our Vet’s Best client, it was a matter of connecting “nature” with “science.” Both were important. And so we took equities from both and mashed them together into a fun, surprising environment and concept: Nature Academy. Every execution has nature in the background but also our quick-witted academic center stage.
The only real rule?
Never compromise the brand. But you know that already. You’ve got guidelines for that. So be dangerous. Be interesting. And just maybe you’ll be seen.
