What Makes A Good Ad?

As an advertising agency, we look at, review, and develop new ads every day. We create a connection with the consumer and intrigue them to learn more by coming into a store and/or visiting a website. But we often find ourselves asking, what makes a good advertisement? Whether it's a banner for a website, a :30 radio spot, or a TV commercial, we have to find a way to grab the attention of the viewers, specifically the target market or the client’s audience. I have been looking through a few different ads, and many of them have caught my attention by creating an emotional connection. Emotional connections turn good ads into great ones. If an ad makes you sad, makes you mad, or makes you happy or excited, it did its job. It made a connection, one strong enough to intrigue you and maybe even compel you to look into that company or product further. I have listed a few national ads that really caught my eye and created an emotional connection. Though I may not be the target audience for the company or need their product now, their ad will keep their company top of mind if the need comes my way. This link is from AdWeek with a story that inspired this article – it includes the commercial, and I suggest you take a look. The ad is from Acura. Their safety team is running crash tests on their cars, and the employee envisions his own family in the car during the test. This really grabbed my attention. It tells me they take their jobs seriously, and that they’ll only sell vehicles which are safe enough for their loved ones. The next ad is from Nike. It features many famous athletes from all sports and all are donning the Nike winter gear. For me, this commercial took me back to my school days, getting excited for a snow day when I would bundle up and go out with friends and play in the snow instead of heading off to school. These ads are just two examples of how you can create a connection with your customer no matter the emotion. If you can do this in your ads, it will keep your business top-of-mind with customers old and new.