In today’s post however, I’ll be answering a question posed by a delegate from the ESCRS 2014 conference this September in London. He asks:

Today’s question is:

Here’s the imagery, text and emotions you need to include in your health and medical advertising:

First of all, design and copywriting are crucial to the success of your advertising, but remember that repetition is the key. For every three advertisements viewed, the average consumer will ignore two. Evidence suggests that people need 9 exposures of the same advertisement before it is finally remembered! Thus, a specific ad should be run at least 27 times in media directed toward a specific consumer niche before the ad is changed.

Next, there is a lot more to an ad than the image being used. Here are my top 7 tips to consider when designing any advertisement, and specifically for elective medical services.

1. Have a strong, emotionally-oriented headline that grabs the reader. If the headline doesn’t compel or intrigue the reader, the rest of the ad will be invisible to them. The headline should instruct (starting with “how to”, “Why”, “Which”, “Who”, “You”, or “This”, and should answer the question the prospect is asking when they’re looking at  your ad… see below for what that question is.
2. Show a picture relating to what’s emotionally important to buyers of the product or service. Consider the stage of the buying process that readers of this magazine are in. It’s unlikely, for example, that someone who is not already considering a lens or cataract operation will pay much attention to your advertisement. Unless you are huge, you cannot afford to educate the market about why they should have this procedure. Don’t focus your advertising on: “why should I have this procedure?” Instead, answer the question “Why should I have it with you?”  Assume that anyone that is flagged by your ad is already considering this procedure, and the main question in their mind now is, “who should I choose to do it for me?” So should you include an image of your doctors? Yes, ideally blended with an image of people enjoying the benefits of the procedure – whether that is enjoying sports, or reading, or anything else that is obviously sight dependent, that can be done better without glasses or contact lenses.
3. Include testimonials. This helps to answer the above question in a way that is better than trying to answer it yourself.
4. Make an offer. You need to ask the reader to act in some manner. Add a sense of urgency to your offer by making it valid for a limited time or limited quantity. For example, “free consultations to the first 100 callers in November”.
5. If it’s a small ad, put a border around it. If it’s a full page, prepare a full-bleed advertisement.
6. Place your ad near the front. Do everything you can to have your ad placed near the front of the magazine on the right hand page, and if it’s a newspaper, above the fold. Don’t ask, insist.
7. Long copy sells. I think we often think marketing copy is too wordy because we are surrounded by our product, and already know so much about what is being offered. The truth is however that well-written, compelling copy will perform better that short copy, even if it’s longer than what you see in most advertisements today. This is a high investment product, and people’s information needs are greater than what you might expect. Of course, don’t use 10 words when 3 will do, but don’t be afraid to tell your story enough to sell the next stage – which is usually picking up the phone to request more information, or book an appointment with you.

Leave your questions and comments below about medical advertising and what has and hasn’t worked for you. I am happy to answer your specific questions and provide you with some feedback that will help the medical community.