The Tribune

By D’Arcy Rahming

I used to read comic books as a child. Everything from Batman to Archie. I even read the newspaper comic strips. Whatever I could get my hands on. Some people call them funny books, but that is really inaccurate. Of course, some of them were funny. But they often addressed serious matters such as prejudice, moral temptation and good versus evil.

I remember getting really angry at one of my aunts, who I love dearly, but she just threw my comic books down off the table. She thought they were just garbage reading when, in fact, there were a few collectors’ items among them. In those days, unless you wanted to end up with a slap, you bit your tongue, kept quiet and kept your feelings to yourself. Like a tea kettle about to blow its top, I kept my fuming to myself.

What I find really funny is that these same stories I read as a child were finally bought to life on the big screen, and made millions upon millions of dollars. They are enjoyed by the same people that thought they were beneath them in book form. The truth is, my ability to write copy that sells products for others was developed, in part, by my ability to think in pictures. Whether writing for print media, radio or video, they all share this same characteristic. The best ads are the ones where the words paint pictures in your mind.

Most writing for business is dull and boring. That is because too many advertising people write without any personality at all. They try to write “professionally” or slick. That’s why these ads often do not work. People do not like salesmen, and if they feel you are not being genuine they are not going to buy what you are selling. So one of the secrets to a good video ad is, again, that you should be able to close your eyes, listen to the words being spoken. It should paint a picture in your mind close to the one that you shot in the video.

People try to get really clever with video. So they do really outrageous things in the hopes of capturing and keeping your attention. The Super Bowl ads are a prime example of that. Unfortunately, many small businesses will lose their shirts trying to copy these types of ads. Whereas an ad with well written copy, and which paints pictures in the prospect’s mind, will be far more effective in the long run. If you want to see an example of what I am writing about, check out some of the video samples at http://optintoons.com.

NB: D’Arcy Rahming holds a Masters of Management from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. A lecturer at the College of the Bahamas, Mr Rahming has clients in general insurance, retail, the health and medical fields, sports federations and financial services. To receive his marketing newsletter FREE go to http://darcyrahming.com