Why Bad Ads Happen to Good Causes?
While reading this article, I found the scores developed to judge an ad's effectiveness a bit one sided. I think the scales that were developed were all derived from personal opinion. How can you judge or score an ad because most ads are based on creativity, and creativity is not measurable. As the cliche goes, one person's junk is another person's treasure, so maybe the ad might not score well but is received well from the general public. Or how to you explain an add that scores well but is still ineffective? Possibly the answer lies deeper than the ad, maybe its in the cause or non-profit itself.
I think that even if an ad follows all the 7 requirements that the article sets up to create an effective ad that even if the ad is not received well that the non-profit still has a chance to do well. I think the marketing is just one aspect for non-profits and if the reputation and relationships of the non-profits are still in tact that a good cause can still be successful even if the ad bombs. I don't think that every ad can trigger everyone interests equally, its a give and take game, but I think the majority of the weight should be placed on the reputation of the non-profit instead of the ad itself.
I think that even if an ad follows all the 7 requirements that the article sets up to create an effective ad that even if the ad is not received well that the non-profit still has a chance to do well. I think the marketing is just one aspect for non-profits and if the reputation and relationships of the non-profits are still in tact that a good cause can still be successful even if the ad bombs. I don't think that every ad can trigger everyone interests equally, its a give and take game, but I think the majority of the weight should be placed on the reputation of the non-profit instead of the ad itself.
posted by Anonymous @ 3:02 PM
3 Comments:
At 2:10 PM, January 28, 2008,
abwilli3 said…
I agree that an advertisement is not going to satisfy everyone. Yet, before publishing/ broadcasting an ad, that company should be aware of its audience. An ad does represent that organization and that is what comes to people's minds. It is very competitive to have a creative ad. It seems like almost everything is "plugged" so it takes a lot to get our attention.
At 5:41 PM, January 28, 2008,
Jon Weiner said…
I definitely agree with the assertion that many things are 'plugged' and that it takes a lot to get out attention. In reading through the Bad Ads Good Causes article I think the most helpful piece of advice as far as ad creation, grabbing people's attention came in the section about Print Ad Principle #2 - making an emotional appeal.
The text said, "Facts fly by. Stories stick," and I think that this is an increasingly true and helpful sentiment to keep in mind when thinking about advertising for nonprofits and advertising in general.
A lot of the things we have read talk about the increasingly fragmented world of media, and the appearance of more and more messages vying for people's attentions. Crafting a good story for a set of advertising messages is going to make more of a lasting impression than the presentation of facts will on their own.
Like a lot of things that have to do with sales, nonprofits have to sell their cause through memorable communications, and facts alone are not going to do the job in such a competitive world.
This article stressed the creative element in ad design and while the scales for judging the effectiveness of ads was definitely a little subjective, I think the general idea that more and more creativity is essential to get the message across in a competitive marketplace is one to keep in mind - especially for nonprofits who can't afford to flood their audiences with a lot of the same message.
At 9:52 PM, January 28, 2008,
Jon Pharr said…
"Facts fly by. Stories stick." As I look through and think about print advertisements I could not agree more with this quote. What catches the reader’s eye and draws attention to ad? What are the characteristics of a successful add? What will the reader remember when they finish with the magazine? These are just some of the questions that should be answered while analyzing the successfulness of a print advertisement.
I believe the article, “Why bad ads happened to good causes” does a good job of analyzing the examples they selected. It is important to critically analyze these ads to find out how advertisers can better reach their target audiences, especially nonprofit agencies who are trying to raise money and awareness for their specific cause or issue.
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