How to Fish in Advertising

I was speaking with a colleague the other day trying to explain my thoughts on a print ad when I came up with an analogy that seemed to work. At issue were the competing ideas of including all the available information into a print ad in order to inform the reader about all of her choices, versus leaving the print ad intentionally vague so as to entice the prospect further into your net (i.e. website) where you could provide a more immerse and information rich experience to her.

So the scene is set, and no this really isn't the forum to debate the merits of print ads, suffice it to say that our audience is both tactile and largely traditional engineering,.. although even that is changing. Where was I,.. oh yeah the analogy,... fishing.

I said to my colleague, "you would never show the frying pan to the fish, would you? You show the fish the worm, and keep the frying pan to yourself for the time-being".

Now I am not advocating frying your prospects, or even clubbing them with a frying pan, and to be honest the end result for the fish isn't in his best interest. What I am advocating within the narrow bounds of a print ad is that it is a bit of a risk-reward game. You want to provide enough information for the prospect to take the next step down the path, or to say "Yes!". What you do not want is to provide so much information that they are able to make a snap decision in the "No" direction. Or loose their interest, a truly cardinal sin!

The great thing about my work is that it involves no absolutes. We are all beings with unpredictable emotions, despite what pollsters and economists tell you!