Writing an ad that makes people call
A good local ad is not “well written” in the school sense: it is precise. It names a situation your customer is living, answers it in one sentence, and tells them what to do. Everything else is decoration.
The first line does 80% of the work
On Facebook as on Google, only the first line is read by everyone; the rest is read only by those it stopped. So it must name a real situation, not your business:
- Weak: “Plumbing company at your service since 1998”.
- Strong: “Is your boiler more than fifteen years old? Replacing it is planned now, not in January.”
Readers never wonder who you are; they wonder whether you are talking about them. Start with them.
One angle, just one
Each ad must choose its ground and stick to it:
- The problem: name the painful situation, show the way out. The safest angle when you are starting.
- The proof: real figures, years, reviews. Essential when nobody knows you yet. Never invent a figure: a “98% satisfied customers” out of nowhere can be smelled a mile off, and it makes you liable.
- The reason to act now: a dated offer, a season, a slot that is filling up. Without a reason to act today, the reader puts it off until later, which means never.
- Simplicity: “1. You write to us. 2. We call you back. 3. You decide.” Many people do not act because they imagine a complicated process.
Make one ad per angle rather than one ad that mixes them: it is also the only way to find out which one makes your customers call.
Words that say nothing
“Quality”, “reliable”, “here for you”, “leader”, “tailor-made”, “No. 1 in the region”: these words are on every ad, so they no longer set anyone apart. Each time you write one, ask yourself what it hides and write that instead: “reliable” becomes “quote kept to the cent”, “responsive” becomes “call-back within the hour”. Precision is the only elegance that sells.
The call to action closes the loop
Say exactly what to do, and what will happen next: “Ask for your quote: answer within 24 h.” The button must match the real request: “Get a quote” for a project, “Call now” for an emergency, “Book” for a slot. And promise only what you deliver: announcing “answer within 1 h” and calling back two days later destroys in one call what the ad paid to build.
Before you publish: the three-question review
- Does the first line talk about the customer, or about me?
- Is there ONE idea, or three tripping over each other?
- Is every claim true and sustainable: price, deadline, figure?
If you want to see this method applied automatically to your business, the Leadsoon studio writes your texts by these rules: separate angles, precise words, no promise you would not keep.