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/* 09 Apr 2020, 17:56:39 */

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What’s in it for me? Create pitches, titles and taglines your audience can’t
forget.
People nowadays are overwhelmed with all kinds of advertising pitches that compete
for their time and attention. In this information-saturated age, if an ad isn’t
presented in a unique and instantly appealing way, it’ll remain lost in the noise.

There is a way, however, to pierce through the chaos and get your message heard.
POP! shows you how to make your messages so compelling that your audience simply
can’t resist.

You’ll learn the secret ways of wrapping your brand, idea or product in memorable
pitches, titles or taglines that’ll get people’s attention – and won’t let go.

In the following blinks, you’ll discover:

how to get anybody’s attention with your message – and keep it,
how to be HUMORiginal,
how to learn to paint your own word pictures, and
how to develop systematic methods to boost your creativity.
Next blink
The key to a sticky message is to make it POP!: Purposeful, Original and Pithy.
Every single day, from the moment we connect to the internet or walk out onto the
street, we are bombarded with ads that fight for our money and our attention. But
have you ever wondered why some ads are more successful than others?

The answer is simple: the ads that grab your attention are the ones that POP! – or
that are Purposeful, Original and Pithy.

Let’s examine these elements one by one.

First comes Purpose. Whether you’re trying to spread an idea or sell a product,
your message has to instantly communicate your purpose – and how it positively
affects your audience.

In fact, the best wordplay in the world won’t POP! unless it does two things: it
must precisely articulate the essence of your message and show your audience what’s
in it for them.

Then comes Originality. You’ve got to remember that no matter how brilliant your
product or message is, someone else is probably trying to do something similar.
Therefore you need to distinguish yourself by every means possible, and in
particular, by being original in what you do.

Keep in mind that people’s yearning for something fresh is so strong that even if
the essence of what you’re doing is not new, it still has a chance of taking off if
you can make it original.

Finally, there’s Pith. The word pith means the essence of something – a concept
that’s crucial, as the human brain can actually only hold about seven bits of
information in short-term memory! This means that you have to be pithy and
convincing in a second, or your idea will soon be forgotten.

It’s no coincidence that the top slogans of the twentieth century, as selected by
Advertising Age magazine, are all less than seven words: De Beers’ “Diamonds are
forever,” Nike’s “Just do it,” and Avis’ “We try harder.”
By answering the big W’s, you create a foundation of core words that form your
purpose.
When you think about it, it seems obvious: the first step to good communication is
always to find out exactly what you’re trying to say.

This means that if you want to make a message POP!, you’ll need to have precise
answers for the big W’s: what you are offering, who you’re aiming at and what you
want to achieve. You also need to consider what value you’re offering your customer
and who your competitors are.

When you’re answering these questions, keep one guiding principle in mind: you need
to examine the essence of your offering from every possible angle, to create a
detailed bank of core words. Core words are the key descriptive phrases that
articulate the essence of your product or idea.

And although it could take ten minutes to two hours to answer these questions to
your satisfaction, it’s time well spent. Remember that core words are the
foundation from which all POP! messages are built. You’ll be using them regularly
to create powerful messages in future exercises.

As your product and business evolve, you should repeatedly evaluate your answers to
the big W’s and your core words to make sure your branding is as fresh as your
latest creations.

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Play with your core words and put yourself in your customer’s position.
As they say, there is nothing new under the sun – which means being original is
close to impossible. And yet people still demand originality if they are going to
give you their attention.

So what can you do?

You have to do your best with the most powerful tool you have – the core words that
embody your idea – and catch people’s attention with an original phrase. This means
you need to push your creative potential and create a one-of-a-kind name.

And if you’re successful, the media will help you out for free.

Why?

Because the media is always on the hunt for the next big thing to report. This
means that if you can come up with a catchy word or phrase, you not only get the
attention of your customers but also get free advertising through media coverage.

So, how can we create an original phrase?

One way is to use “Spell Chuck,” and discard the normal way of spelling things. For
some reason, beauty salons seem to be very good at this: Consider Shear Genius,
Curl up and Dye and Cut and Dried.

Another way of creating an original phrase is to run your core words through the
alphabet, from A to Z, and keep modifying the first syllable until you find
something that corresponds with your idea or product.

For example, the word entrepreneur can be transformed into a variety of

trademarkable terms – a spiritual business owner could be a “Zenpreneur,” for
example.
You can extend this wordplay approach and
add a prefix (e.g., re-, multi-, pre-) or
core words. For example, consider the new
who have renewed their wedding vows later
more.
try playing with the last syllable, or
suffix (e.g., –ly, -ology, -ish) to your
word re-newlyweds that describes couples
in their marriage and are “wed” once

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Tap into your audience’s love of music.
We all love music: it fills us with energy, it takes us to the highest highs, the
lowest lows and back again. But did you know that you can use musicality to
increase the memorability of your messages?

One great way of using musicality to increase memorability is by using

alliteration: words that start with the same sound can have a pleasant ring to
people’s ears.

For example, what do you feel when you say these words: Bed, Bath and Beyond;
Dunkin´ Donuts; or Rolls Royce? Isn’t it pleasant to say and hear them? Aren’t they
intriguing and memorable?

This is the magic of alliteration.

Review your core words and try to find new words that form a series of
alliterations. You can also run the first syllables of each word through the
alphabet to potentially create an interesting neologism while you’re at it.

Another way of increasing memorability is summed up in a Duke Ellington song title:

“It Don’t Mean a Thing If It Ain’t Got That Swing.”

Indeed, rhythm and rhyme are powerful tools of easing comprehension, and can make
even longer strings of information memorable. Take the alphabet song, for example:
A, B, C, D, E, F, G – pause – H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P. Many of us still use the
song to remind ourselves which letter fits where!
Relate to your customer’s world through celebrities and popular media.
As we saw in a previous blink, to ensure your message sticks, you have to make it
personal. So if you want your message to POP!, you need to relate your message to
your customer’s world, thoughts and everyday life.

How?

Start by asking yourself: what do your current or future customers say or think
when they experience the need your idea fills? What could a possible “Eureka!” or
“At last!” moment feel like, when the customer’s problem is finally properly
addressed? By placing yourself in your customer’s shoes, you’ll realize exactly
what they need – and how to tell them that you’ve got it.

Another powerful method of making your message personal is to relate it to a

celebrity or popular piece of media.

For example, consider the questions: who is also doing what I do, or what also
represents certain core aspects of my idea that everyone knows about?

Amy Rosenthal did this brilliantly when she wanted to spread ideas about being a
loving mother and juggling many responsibilities at the same time. She understood
that young babies react very strongly to our temperament, which makes it very
important to maintain calm. So, she asked herself, who is internationally known for
being calm, peaceful and tranquil?
The Dalai Lama!

She then ran the name through the alphabet and voila, there it was, Dalai Mama, two
words that instantly communicated what Amy wanted to say.

Another more systematic approach to making your message personal is to relate it to

a popular piece of media. Review your core words once more and use your favourite
movie, song and book search engine to find a match with a popular piece of media.

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Be HUMORiginal – but avoid clichés like the plague.
Everyone loves a good laugh, and most of us would love to be funnier – especially
when we’re trying to create memorable messages. But can humor really be taught?

Probably not – but there are some methods you can use.

First, pay close attention and learn from the humorous moments around you. Family
celebrations are often an excellent source of humor, as are TV shows and movies.
Remember, inspiration is better than information, but if you do borrow a joke,
remember to credit the original or it will be perceived as a rip-off.

You can also raise your sensitivity to the
is just as important as the content. Watch
lines, and try to be surprising and out of
comes to creating your memorable messages,
purpose – don’t be funny for funny’s sake,
your core words to keep on message.
timing and context of your humor, which
carefully how comedians deliver their
the blue with your jokes. But when it
remember to pay attention to your
and always relate your jokes back to

The problem with jokes, however, is that they can easily lose their novelty factor.
And there’s nothing more deadly to your likeability than using clichés. However,
rearranging clichés to make them fresh is fair game – and can even be powerful.

Here’s a systematic approach to rearranging clichés. First, enter your core words
into a cliché search engine, like ClichéSite. Then write down everything you read
that makes you giggle or creates a quirky connection to your core words. Then,
substitute or rearrange the key elements of the original cliché with your core
words to turn an eye-roller into an eye-opener.

A good example is business writer Steven Pearlstein’s powerful title for an article
about a group of managers who were concerned about not having access to their
BlackBerries, due to pending litigation. The title?

“Big Firms Caught with Their Patents Down.”

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Visualize your message with pictures and metaphors.
As they say, an image is worth a thousand words – which means that if you can
create an image with only a few words, you’ve increased the power of those words a
thousandfold!

But before you start creating visualizations for your idea, you need to ask
yourself what attributes your product has, and how those attributes are embodied in
the real world.

Let’s clarify with an example: What are the attributes of superglue? Answer: It’s
really strong. And what is something real, that is really strong? The brand Gorilla
Glue answered this question with an 800-pound gorilla, which became a powerful
symbol in their ads.

You can use your answers to create meaningful metaphors that empower your message.
The best method for creating personalized and unique metaphors is to focus on the
three A’s: Avocation (e.g., a hobby), Achievement and Adversity.

To do this exercise, you need to take a fresh piece of paper and on it, draw three
vertical lines. Use one column for avocations you are passionate about, one for
your proudest achievements and one for all the adversities you have faced so far.

Now look for similarities and connections between the columns. Can you create
analogies and use past experiences to create stories that better explain what
you’re trying to say?

A good example of the power of this method is how a business executive used his
flying lessons as an example to curb micromanaging in his company. He told his
managers how his flying teacher never took the yoke out of his hands – not even in
critical situations – but instead gave general instructions and let him figure it
out. “Let them fly the plane” thus became an expression in the company for “stop
micromanaging.”

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Be counterintuitive and catch your audience by surprise.
“TV IS GOOD FOR YOUR KIDS!...no, it’s not.” Bet that message got your attention,
didn’t it?

The reason why is because it’s surprising and counterintuitive, which is often
enough to catch your audience’s attention and get your message across. Like author
John LeCarré once said, “’The cat sat on the mat,’ is not the beginning of a story.
‘The cat sat on the dog’s mat,’ is.”

To create your own message that surprises, start by looking at your core words and
the answers to your W’s from an earlier blink. Now ask yourself: Where do I dare
challenge common sense and suggest that people change their minds, instead of
offering blind allegiance? Where do I even dare to be politically incorrect? And
most importantly: How does my product address a topic no one wants to talk about?

Another surprising way of raising curiosity is the half-and-half technique.

This technique was used to great effect on the popular FOX TV show, The O.C., in
2004. One episode featured a Christian family and a Jewish family that blended the
holidays Christmas and Hanukkah together to celebrate a brand new feast:
Chrismukkah. The episode created a buzz that lasted for months, and the show itself
generated a record number of viewers.

If you want to produce a similar reaction to your idea, try this: Take out a piece
of paper and write one half of your core words on the left side and one half on the
right. Now try and blend each word from the left column with the right, and write
any combination that strikes you on a different piece of paper. Write as many as
possible, keep playing – you never know what’ll come up!

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Keep your audience’s attention with the power of stories.
We’ve now seen many powerful ways of creating memorable messages. But if you want
to make your message come alive, you’ll have to wrap it in a story.

Why?
Because when you give people a meaningful story to which they can personally
relate, they switch from simply processing information to emotionally relating to
your message.

One way of doing this is to create a powerful history behind your idea. Think back
to when you came up with your idea, product or brand. What did you feel, say or do?
Where did your ideas come to you, who inspired you? Interview everyone who worked
with you and create the authentic story behind your cause.

For example, when SpeakerNetNews co-founder Rebecca Morgan told the story of how
she came up with her new book, she quickly had everyone’s attention. She was
visiting a mall when she was approached by a salesperson with samples of orange-
spiced chicken. When she repeatedly refused, the salesperson became more and more
persistent, to the point that Rebecca decided never to buy anything there again.

But when she left the mall, she smelled the delicious flavor of chocolate-chip
cookies being sold on another counter. No one had to approach her – she couldn’t
resist the sweet smell and bought a whole batch of her own free will. That’s when
she came up with the title for her new book: “Chocolate-Chip Cookie Marketing: The
Anti-Hard-Sell Approach.”

Another powerful way of sustaining your audience’s attention is by tapping into the
stories that all of us know.

To do this, start thinking of famous phrases out of a story or movie. (Consider:

“I’ll be back” from Terminator, or “Here’s looking at you, kid” from Casablanca.)
Then review your core words and see if you can create your own derivation of this
kind of classic phrase. If you succeed, the memorability of your phrase will drive
word-of-mouth marketing for you.

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Final Summary
The key message in this book:

If you want your message to stick, you have to make it Purposeful, Original and
Pithy. Know your core words and use rhythm, rhyme and stories to communicate your
purpose directly to your audience. Remember to keep your message fresh, to the
point and surprising.

Actionable advice:

Learn more about pop culture to harness the collective unconscious.

The more you know about pop culture, the more you know about how people are
thinking. Stay up to date on the latest trends by checking out the most popular
memes, news stories and YouTube videos. Then you can combine your core words with
the freshest entertainment out there.

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