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The 9 golden rules of B2B ads
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Hey! IBM’s old ads are a masterclass in B2B advertising. Here are 9 principles I've learned from them: 1. Features FirstBenefits are great, but when comparing their options, clients will list features side by side. Make sure you come out on top. 2. Show Use Cases, Not UIMost software looks the same. So, in your ads, show how the product actually helps your users. Save the product screenshots for the landing page or demo. 3. Leave Room for CuriosityDon’t spell everything out. Let them connect the dots.
4. Address the ElephantDon’t ignore the critics. Turn that tension into a story, and get people on your side. 5. Visualize NumbersStats and figures can be confusing. But when you turn them into visuals, you don’t just make the feature clearer—you grab attention, too. 6. Use AnalogiesExplain the unfamiliar through the familiar. 7. Make It RelatableStep into your customer’s shoes (or office) and see things from their POV. 8. Keep It RealToo many companies overpromise. Say what you can do—and what you can’t. Users will trust you more. 9. Write Like a HumanListen to demo recordings or grab lunch with one of your prospects. They’ll never say “cutting-edge synergy” in a real conversation. You made it! 🕺Talk soon, P.S. Check out my course: Boring Products, Fun Ads. 3.5 hours – and you'll never make a boring B2B ad again. Here's what Donovan, a copywriter at Apple, says:
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The Creative Marketer
Learn how to brainstorm brilliant ads and copy | You’ll get one practical recipe every two weeks | Free bonus: get 25 creative marketing cheatsheets when you sign up.
Read in your browser ↗ Hey! If Frontify hired me to create an ad, I'd send them this: Now, I wanna show you my process, step-by-step, including the prompts I used. Step 1: Understand the Product Frontify allows you to create a library with your brand guidelines, assets, and design templates. By the way, this post isn't sponsored, I swear 😅 Step 2: Find Pain Points Let's try ChatGPT's smartest model: Deep Research. I base my prompt on Dan Kennedy’s 10 profiling questions: 🤖 PERSONA RESEARCH...
Read in your browser ↗ Hey! Every new idea is just a mix of old ideas. Here are my three rules for “stealing” ads ethically: Rule #1: Never steal from your neighbor Instead of copying my competitors, I draw inspiration from other industries. For example, if I need a B2B idea, I’ll try to find it in a B2C ad library, like Lurzer’s Archive Well, Dovetail's version is a bit too close.But it’s a nice ad nonetheless. Rule #2: Limit yourself to 30 minutes Ad inspiration quickly turns into...
Read in your browser ↗ Hey! Remember this quote? It's based on a simple formula that copywriters love: "[cliché], but [twist]." For example... So let’s use it to write a DoorDash ad: Step I: Find a cliché I start by asking Perplexity: "List 200 food-related idioms, proverbs, clichés, and phrases." Step II: Twist it Perplexity isn’t very creative, so I paste my phrases into ChatGPT with this prompt: PROMPTTASK: Add "but [twist]" to each phrase to create a clever ad headline for DoorDash....