Creating Direct Response TV (DRTV) That Works

"Why is this man painting a ceiling in a tuxedo?

With these words, direct response TV as we know it today was born. The year was 1975, and Barry Becher and Ed Valenti introduced a two-minute spot to sell the Miracle Painter on TV. The product promised a clean and easy way to paint. And the tuxedo-clad painter demonstrated it beautifully... and very profitably.

Becher and Valenti brought the toll-free number and credit-card payments to television advertising. The success of their initial product launch led to DRTV spots for many other products. Many still remember one of their most famous: the legendary Ginsu Knives commercial written by Arthur Schiff: "In Japan the hand can be used like a knife... but this method doesn't work with a tomato."

When well conceived and well written, the direct response TV spot stays in your psyche-sometimes years after it leaves the airways. That's not by chance. There's a copywriting science to creating an effective spot. The goal is to make even the most complex product look easy. And that's a lot harder than it sounds.

Here are 10 tips to creating a DRTV spot that works:

1) Understand what you're selling. This is advertising 101. Take the features of the product or service you're selling and turn them into benefits. You're not selling a mop; you're selling the cleanest floor in the neighborhood. Present a problem and show your product as the solution.

2) Develop a concept. The most successful spots have a rationale for being. That's the concept. It's how you position your product and tell your story. A copywriter must determine the premise of the story and the voice that will deliver it. To be effective, there must be a credible rationale for both.

3) Create real characters. If you're using characters to tell your story, make them believable. They should look and sound like someone who would use your product. If you use an announcer to deliver the message, he or she should speak with authority.

4) Engage the viewer right away. There is no place for coyness in a direct response TV spot. Set up the problem right away, or make your presence known with a strong announcement.

5) State your offer-clearly and concisely. Each word in a TV spot is critical. Choose your words carefully, and always write in an active voice.

6) Don't rely on the spoken word alone. Don't assume the viewer is hanging onto every word you speak. Support your audio by showing key words on the screen at the same time.

7) Demonstrate the product. The beauty of TV is that it allows you to show your product in action. Take advantage of it. Slice, dice, and scrub to show the effectiveness of your product.

8) Ask for the order. Again and again. Ask for the order early and often. Give the viewer a good reason to order or inquire-now! If there is a limited time offer, use it. If not, imply it.

9) Make the end tag work for you. After you've told your story, it's time to push for the order one more time. The last frame of your spot should tell-and show-the viewer what you want him to do next. In a two-minute spot, you should repeat your 800-number or Web address no less than three times.

10) Look at what you wrote-and simplify it. Allow space between words. Give the actor or voiceover talent time to pause. This not only adds emphasis, it give the viewer time to absorb your message.

Direct response television is the advertising medium Americans love to hate. It's long been fodder for late-night comedy skits and, more recently, online video parodies. Yet it endures, for one simple reason: It works.

(by Nancy Bollinger, TPG Direct. Published 7.7.10 by directmag.com)