Articles: advertising

Two questions run through this collection: what to say, and in what form to say it. The texts usually start with the person receiving the message rather than the company sending it, and they test whether the idea can be understood in a few seconds - roughly how long anyone spends with a leaflet or a poster.

One message instead of everything at once

The most common mistake is trying to describe a whole offer on a single sheet. One thought people remember works better, written in a sentence that can be read from a distance. Good advertising begins with the customer's problem and only then names who solves it. Before and after comparisons work as long as they look believable, and humour helps when it suits the trade.

Format and place

The second group of articles is about where the message lands. What works on a poster in a shop window will not necessarily work on a leaflet handed out in the street.

• poster - one line, large letters, an image readable from several steps away
• leaflet - something specific and one reason to keep it
• unusual shape - it draws the eye, but it needs a reason
• the inside of a box - a surface almost everyone forgets
• a branded gift or disc - advertising that stays on the desk

Ideas, tools and common sense

A few pieces show how to put a simple design together without a designer, how to use artificial intelligence to look for headlines and layouts, and what to watch out for when using automatically generated images. There is also a text on materials without photographs - proof that layout and colour alone can stop the eye.

If you are preparing a new campaign, start by cutting the copy and choosing a single message, and only then decide whether it belongs on a poster, a leaflet or a small giveaway.