On April 22, we went to the Publishers Advertising and Marketing Association (PAMA) April Luncheon, which featured Henry Copeland, founder and president of BlogAds. Copeland talked about how publishers can better advertise on blogs—how they can, as he put it, “thrive in the kingdom of blog.” Here’s what Copeland says “smart ads” have in common:
- Multiple links. For book ads, even links to negative reviews interest people and and inspire thinking and conversation. “Sometimes the best friends you can have are dumb enemies,” says Copeland.
- Cool images that attract the eyes and pique curiosity
- Faux video
- Hand-made feel
- Puzzle or something else to invite a click and promote curiosity
Conversely, bad ads have:
- No links
- Dull, text-heavy images—that includes book covers!
- A “designed” feel. “Overdesigned ads are less effective,” says Copeland. “Blog readers are skeptical. These are fish that have seen a lot of hooks.”
- Nothing to promote a click—the ad’s the full story
If you’re looking to improve your own book ads, monitor your clickthru rate and be ready to change course fast if something’s not attracting enough clicks. And to see some examples of good and bad ads, click here.
