Small Business Marketing Kit For Dummies, 3rd Edition

Broadcast Ad Guidelines

Whether you’re producing a TV or radio ad, some general broadcast advertising guidelines apply. Later in this chapter, I outline best practices and advice for producing radio and TV ads specifically.

Establishing your own broadcast identity

Over time, you want listeners or viewers to recognize your business before they even hear your name. Consider the following identity-building techniques:

Voice-over: Have one announcer voice all your ads.

Style: Establish a broadcast ad style — for example, an ongoing dialogue between two people or ads that always advance a certain kind of message. (Want an example? Think of the E*TRADE babies.)

Music/jingles: If you use music or sound effects, use the same notable background in all your ads. As for jingles, some people love them, some hate them, and sooner or later, almost everyone tires of them. Before investing in a jingle, first be sure that you’ll air enough ads to achieve an association between the jingle and your name. Second, the jingle must be appropriate to your brand image. Any station or studio can direct you to jingle producers.

Writing your ad

Don’t write your own ad. Instead, put into words what you want your ...