You don’t sell with slogans.
Advertising is seduction.
Not in a lurid or manipulative sense.
One of the definitions of “seduce” is “to attract.” Successful radio advertising attracts the targeted consumer to the sales message.
But just to illustrate a point, let’s fall back on the more common association to the word “seduction.”
In this example, “Bob” is a healthy, single adult male who perhaps is feeling a little bit lonely.
He finds himself at a loud, crowded cocktail party where he notices a healthy, single adult female whom he finds attractive.
She has a spirituality about her that he finds appealing.
He thinks, “Gee, if I had a chance to talk to that person in a quieter, more relaxed environment, I’ll bet we’d discover we have a lot in common.”
In short, he has a sales message that he hopes she will consider acting upon. And he’s trying to decide between two different verbalizations of that sales message.
One is:
“Boy, it sure is noisy here. I wish we could talk in a more peaceful environment. There’s a beautiful Japanese restaurant just up the hill with an incredible view of the city. Might you be interested in getting a bite to eat with me there and watching the sunset?”
Or he could say:
“You’ve tried the rest, now try the best.”
Of those two approaches, which do you think has the better chance of succeeding?
It’s not bad to have a Positioning Statement that forcefully reiterates your Unique Selling Proposition. Actually, that can be a very good thing.
But a good Positioning Statement — or slogan — can only reflect and reinforce your actual sales message. A slogan without a sales message to back it up is nothing more than Verbal Fast Food.
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