Veteran subscribers to Jerry's A&M eLetter are familiar with storytelling in advertising.
It is a powerful way to engage readers, build interest in products and services and reap great ROI.
If you have been with me long on this journey, you will remember the story of the great Royal Grapefruit.
The lessons of that story in their advertising came home the other day in the—get this—Wall Street Journal.
The full page ad shown above uses a similar strategy to sell something quite similar.
At the top of the ad you will see a blow up of a bell-shaped orange.
Around it is a generous field of white space, which we will talk about later.
The headline and subheadline read:
Then Ed bit into one and the plot thickened . . .
Maybe it's not Raymond Chandler or Robert B. Parker, but it caught my attention.
And you can bet it caught the attention of many Wall Street Journal readers on Page B6.
That's a left hand position and not the first section of the paper.
Talk about creating a challenge for the copywriter to attract attention.
We know the research shows left pages garner as much attention as right pages.
Then the spellbinding story begins:
One evening in 1945, Ed Cushman and his family were waiting for a truckload of grapefruit. When it finally arrived, there on the back of the truck—with the grapefruit—were 20 bushels of the strangest looking, fiery-orange, bell-shaped oranges anyone had ever seen.
When everyone had peeled and tried one, the consensus was that these were the sweetest oranges in the world. "Sweet as honey," someone said. And Cushman Honeybells were born."
The copy goes on to advance the story and lead to the offer with such phrases as:
Honeybells are available once—and only once—for a few short weeks in January
Indulge yourself with this healthy, post-holiday treat.
And before the price is ever mentioned, the ad piles on five specific items leading up to the offer:
Every shipment includes:
• 24 Honeybells (approx. 10 lbs.)
• Free Honeybell bibs (you'll need 'em)
• Your own stick-on Honeybell tattoos
• The Honeybell story
• Honeybell feasting instructions
Then comes the price—only $29.99.
All that other stuff increases value and makes the price seem inexpensive and affordable.
Then the guarantee: Satisfaction 100% guaranteed.
And a code to include with your order to get this special low price and—free shipping.
Finally in fine print is another small story.
The copywriter reveals that the "good folks" at the U.S. Agriculture Dept. won't let them ship their Florida fruit to other fruit-growing states, Arizona, California, Louisiana and Texas.
That's our government at work again, restraining free trade.
But the copywriter and the Cushmans have an ace up their sleeves:
"We have arranged with grower friends
outside Florida to send our gifts."
Feel for our government regulators and other bureaucrats.
No matter how hard they work, some crafty entrepreneur will figure a way to outwit them.
Now think about how you could tell your story, create suspense, entice desire and get great ROI from your ads.
And what add-ons might you offer to increase value and make your price seem easily affordable?
What guarantee would you offer—100%? Just return the merchandise with no questions asked?
