When launching an advertising campaign, we often just say what we hope potential customers will do or think or feel. We forget to take the time to show them. We must both show and tell what the consumer will experience when they use our product.

4 ways to show and tell your advertising message:

1. Persuade; don’t just inform.

If you put yourself in the shoes of the consumer who is being exposed to any advertising campaign, how many times have you taken a brief statement as the absolute truth without the endorsement of an announcer or spokesperson?

2. Be confident.

Be patient and have confidence in your ability. And have confidence in those who develop your advertising to construct a highly credible reality in the consumer’s mind. Likewise, have confidence in your audience. Trust that they will find your communication strategy both refreshing and intriguing and that eventually they will respond to it the way you want.

This technique works when you direct your message both to the mind and emotion of the prospective customer.

3. Speak to the mind as well as the heart.

An intellectual advertisement says or states things and makes unsubstantiated claims. This type of ad does not sound as credible to the consumer. Similarly, an emotional announcement says or states things and neither shows nor construes a credible reality in the minds of consumers.

For example, a mediocre intellectual ad says: “Currently, the Ferrari F430 Spider sports car is the fastest car on the market.” But this does not present any kind of support that encourages consumers to take some sort of action.

However, there is more substance if we say: “Currently, the Ferrari F430 Spider flies from 0-60 miles per hour in 3.6 seconds, much faster than the Porsche 911 GT3, and its V8 engine produces 490 horsepower at 8,500 revolutions per minute.”

Which of these two descriptions is more likely to convince you to buy a Ferrari?

4. Get specific.

Notice how specific information was used. Not only have we shown that the Ferrari is the fastest sports car on the market; we have also used words and phrases that paint a compelling mental picture in the mind of the potential customer. The reader actually gets a feel of what it is like to drive this vehicle.

Because of the different communication channels that are out there, now it is more important than ever to make your marketing message stand out above all others.

Now is the moment for taking the time to show, and not just tell, the prospective consumer what makes your product the best.