3 Things Effective Commercials Have in Common

by Adam Krell

Commercials that shout “buy, buy, buy” usually come across as “spam, spam, spam.” However, commercials that are so clever and engrossing you totally forget what they’re advertising don’t accomplish the aim either, no matter how memorable they are otherwise. The most effective commercials have at least three things in common.

The Emotional Tug

Like any good book or film, the audience needs to feel connected to the characters of the story or they won’t care about the themes and messages. A commercial is no different, even if it only has 30 or even just 10 seconds to tell its story. Effective commercials don’t always tell a complex, detailed story — there isn’t time for that — but there needs to be something the audience can relate to, such as a sick pet, a parent-child bonding moment or a broken heart.

The more emotionally invested the audience is in the commercial, the more likely they are to pay attention. The one caveat is not to lose the message under the push for an emotional connection. Effective commercial makers know to prominently display the product or service they’re selling so the audience remembers the emotional tug as well as the product.

Subtlety

People are bombarded with advertisements all day, every day. Without even thinking about it, their brains filter out all but the most impactful messages. “Keywords” that will get your message filtered out are phrases like “act now!” or “buy now!” Your audience doesn’t sit down to watch TV or go online in order to be told to go shopping. Effective commercials reel in the audience by being emotional and entertaining, and they sell through subtlety.

For example, if your commercial features a woman upset because her boyfriend left her, a friend or sibling could show up with your product in hand. Then the commercial could flash back to all of the times growing up these two friends shared your product — a food item, for example, or anything two people would have fun enjoying together — and how it made them feel. The commercial doesn’t say “buy this item!” It says, “Two people have made this item an important, positive part of their lives, and you can feel happy with it, too.”

Focus

One of the reasons people don’t always remember what ads are selling is because the ads are too chaotic. In an effort to tell a story, ads tend to show many items and take too long to get their message across. Effective advertisements hit the product, service or message they’re selling again and again in subtle but effective ways. Don’t let your imagination run wild. Find the shortest, most concise way to bring the positive emotional focus back to your product.

What applies to TV commercials applies to online ads, too. Tech Crunch reports on a study that found 68 percent of people online find ads “annoying.” Putting out the wrong type of commercial will have a negative impact on your business. If you’re having difficulty getting your video to reflect the characteristics of an effective commercial, rely on the professionals at Aurora Coast just like McDonald’s and Interactive Brokers and countless others have.  They will work with you to achieve amazing result too.