Advice Pool - Business

Do the first five seconds of your radio ads make anyone want to hear more? Probably not. The writing and voicing of 99 of 100 ads share this quality: they’re positively, truly boring. Why is this, and what can you do to make sure your ads get listened to?

You’re going to hate this: When

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

the vast majority of ads are aired, listeners' minds go someplace else. Hear the alarm bells going off in your head? You’re wondering if your ads really are that bad, because you’re spending a large number of dollars running them. If your business is doing well, you undoubtedly think a

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

lot of it is due to your ads. I’d bet more than even money that your ads don’t have much to do with your success, again, because most ads are terrible. If your ads were truly good, your business would be doing even better.

Your ads are getting tuned out because, first, they sound like ad

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

. People hate ads. They get in the way of music or talk. So why do you have radio ads that sound like ads? Next, they’re written by radio station people, or you’re writing them, and neither you nor they are trained in the psychology of persuasion. Don't take offense: I don’t mind if so

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

meone tells me I shouldn’t fly airplanes, because I’m not a trained pilot.

People think radio stations know about advertising. What they are not aware of is that the station copywriter, if there is one (many stations make their account reps write the ads), is not a trained copywriter. St

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

ations are sales-driven, not ad effectiveness-driven. This is not good news for you. Further, station ads are voiced by people who cultivate “radio” voices, which are necessary for everything to do with radio – except advertisements. No one talks like that in everyday conversation. Deejay

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

read dozens of pieces of copy about products and services with which they have no experience, and therefore no credibility. Whoever is reading your ad is reading copy for three or four of your competitors, too. To make things worse, most radio ads are announcements, not advertisements. A

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

n announcement is a list of facts--name of your business, what you sell, a list of sale items. Our minds are not wired to remember such lists.

Moreover, station copy is usually riddled with clich?s. “See the experts.” “Friendly staff.” “Competitive prices.” “The sale you’ve been wait

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

ing for.” “…and so much more.” They’ve been overused for so long they’ve become a drone. We no longer pay attention. Most ads are filled with them.

Click on Dan O'Day's Amazing Bad Commercial Generator for a hilarious (and ins

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

ructive) idea of what I mean.

In a true advertisement, an association is made between something the listener already likes and wants (love, happiness, attractiveness, security, trust) and the product or service advertised. For example: in a FedEX commercial a few Super Bowls ago, a bedrag

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

gled Tom Hanks character (as from Hanks’ movie Cast Away) appears on a woman's doorstep with a package under his arm, tells her he's been on a deserted island for five years, and says that he'd promised himself that if he ever got off the island he'd make sure he delivered the package to her

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

personally, because, he tells her, “…I work for Federal Express." This advertisement hammers home the idea that you can absolutely, positively depend on Federal Express to deliver your package ...no matter what happens.

Everyone looks forward to Super Bowl ads because they are entertaining

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

and filled with surprises. People want to be surprised and entertained. It is far easier to tell them what you can do for them if it's done in an entertaining way. Stan Freberg has written some of the most successful commercials of all time. Each one surprises and entertains. Stan’s ad

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

s have sold more consumer products than anyone can imagine.

Years ago, Kaiser Aluminum Foil was getting no shelf space in supermarkets. Stan created a cartoon character named Clark Smathers, Kaiser Aluminum Foil Salesman, who walked into grocery stores and hit the owners over the head with

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

a small hammer for not carrying Kaiser Foil. It was funny, it was entertaining, and tens of thousands of supermarkets began stocking Kaiser Foil in a matter of weeks. Read about it in “It Only Hurts When I Laugh,” Stan’s autobiography.

There was a restaurant located at the confluence of

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

everal roadways. It was the scene of a greater-than-average number of fender benders. Lousy place to put a business, don’t you think? The owner didn’t. His ads had cars crashing in the background. His slogan? “Food good enough to risk your life for.” People will listen to that.

None

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

of this means you can’t be serious in your advertising. What good writers are really good at is writing copy that gets and holds attention while putting your point across simply, intelligently, forcefully.

Are effective ads hard to write? World-famous advertising agency guru David Ogilvy

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

observed that good writing is slavery. Find an advertising agency whose clients say does effective work for them. Don’t write your own ads. Never allow radio stations to do them. Besides using good writers, serious agencies employ voice over actors, not announcers. Radio advertising

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

uthority Dan O’Day, who is very pro-radio announcer, nevertheless says that an announcer seeking voice over work with a voice talent agency should not tell the agency he or she is in radio because they will not get hired. Agencies know the importance of believability. You wouldn’t do your

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

own appendectomy, nor would you let a medical student with three weeks’ schooling do it. Get professionals to do your advertising. It costs too much not to.

Well-written, believably-voiced radio advertising is inexpensive because it brings you results you would not otherwise enjoy.

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

Tags

Links

Advice Pool - Know the Difference Between Radio Ads That Work - and the Other Ninety-nine Percent

Related Articles: