Not understanding the medium – All print media do not work the same way. An ad designed for a local paper will not work as well for a regional paper, will not work at all in a general magazine, and will be laughed at in a trade magazine. Each medium reaches readers with different needs. Your ads need to answer those needs.
From a purely technical side, whoever designs the ad needs to understand how the final result will be printed and how the ad needs to be prepared. We see far too many washed out, contrast-less newspaper ads that blend (i.e. “disappear”) into the background.
Squeezing in too much info – How much is too much? In a magazine ad, you’re trying to build general awareness. You can’t get into any great detail. In a newspaper ad, you build awareness as a secondary goal and should lead with a slogan and/or specific offer. On a billboard, you need to get your message across in only a few words. Sure, you need to control budgets. Advertising is an investment, if it’s done right. A $1000 ad that makes money is far superior to a $500 ad that doesn’t.
Poor results tracking – There’s an old advertising adage that says, “Half your ad budget is wasted, but which half?” You have to know which ads bring in the business and which don’t. Use promotion codes, try coupons, use different phone numbers on different ads, or just ask your customers.
Too much centered text – Fact: You have a limited number of words to get a message across. Fact: Those words need to be read in order to get your message across. Fact: Centered text is more difficult to read. So, why use it? Readers of your ad have choices. If you make it tough to read your ad, they won’t.
Too many, wrong, too big, or too small fonts – I have over 400 fonts at my disposal. That does not mean I should use them all on every ad! Font selection and size is an important consideration in the overall design process. Stick to one or two fonts that make some sort of statement for you.
Size of font is another issue. Obviously, fonts that are too small are difficult to read, and, so, won’t be read. Fonts that are too big can overpower your message and require more white space which may lead to higher costs.
Wrong ad size – Whether too small or too big, using the wrong ad size is a waste of money. An overly small ad will not be read, so you’d be better off just pocketing the money instead of placing it. An ad that is too big is taking money away from other places will it will do some good. Admittedly, deciding on the optimal ad size is like walking a tightrope. You need to test, track, and re-test until you find the ideal size.
Inappropriate use of color – Sure, color is very eye-catching. So is size. Which one is better? That depends on you, your budget, and your competition. There is really no way to make a general rule here. If you would like a free, no-obligation critique of your current ads, just email us .
Not using a headline/slogan – This one should probably be ranked first. Every ad must have a headline or slogan. It’s what draws the reader in to read the message. Your logo or company name is not a headline or slogan, yet most ads we see are dominated by a logo and/or name. It is not uncommon that about half an ad gets devoted to logos and names. Try to limit your logo and name to 20% or less of your ad unless there is a darned good reason not to.
Inappropriate use of illustrations/photographs – The only illustrations that should make their way onto your ads are logos and maps. Dump the clipart, cartoons, drawings, etc. Clip art is a throw back to the days when photographs were difficult to work with and cost a fortune to run in ads. Today, photographs are actually easier to work with than illustrations and, thanks to hundreds of royalty-free, non-exclusive use image banks, they are pretty cheap too. There is simply no reason at all to use ineffective clip art or drawings over highly effective photographs.
Using the publisher’s “Free” design service – Many advertisers think that the cost of the ad is high enough that they should save a few bucks by using the publisher’s free design service. It seems to make sense. After all, why pay for something you can get for free?
The publisher is in the business of selling ads. No matter how much you are spending, according to him, it’s not enough. Sure, he’ll put an ad together, but will they do it the way you need it done, even if what you need is directly opposed to what they want? Sure, the initial ad design costs money, but only the first time. You can run the same ad repeatedly without paying more, or run the ad with minor modification for not very much more money. Spread the cost over the life of the ad and the service is dirt cheap.
