The concept and advertising strategy of Breakthrough Advertising was developed by the ace copywriter Eugene Schwartz in the year of 1966. He was quite renowned for his copywriting skills and success that is eventually visible in his insights in the book Breakthrough Advertising.
It is to be noted that the book has been republished a couple of times since the time of its original publication owing to the insights provided by Schwartz. His valuable and strategic insights are still considered valid and high on acumen in various spheres and circles of advertising.
Breaking Down the valuable insights of Breakthrough Advertising
1. Listening
The overall concept and strategy of Breakthrough Advertising originates from the one particular thing that Schwartz did better than other people in his domain and industry as a whole and that is he learned to read and listen people around him in the most effective and efficient fashion.
It is the attempt of many advertisers in the market to bombard people with the messages and communication that they want them to hear. The endeavor is clear, they want them to persuade and convince. But the concept and strategy of Breakthrough Advertising is quite indifferent from the above mentioned as it starts with what the customer in the market actually wants.
He carefully understood that if he able to sense the pulse and heartbeat of the masses in the market, he will be in a better position to speak to them through his copywriting skills and efforts.
2. Message
The overall strategy and communication plan of Breakthrough Advertising is still about conveying the message in a crisp and clear manner but as per the insights gained about what the mass audience wants to hear.
To optimally utilize the fundamentals of Breakthrough Advertising, it is very crucial to know and understand that what your audience is waiting for you to tell them. And if you try and impose your message on them, you may have to face rejection and resistance.
3. Connection
As per Schwartz, you will have to understand what the masses want and wish to hear from your brand and then only you will be able to speak to them on a personal level as your main motive and intention of using breakthrough advertising is to reach to a large number of audiences in the market.
He refers the same as ‘one-to-one connection’ as it is based on your ability to know, read, and understand what your audience feel at any given point of time.
4. Process
Predominantly, the entire process and strategy of breakthrough advertising is to make you gain attention of your target audience and then selling your offerings of products and services to them again and again over a period of time.
The procedure starts with the headline that is planned and designed to capture the attention of the readers. And once that is accomplished, the advertiser then lays his emphasis on the most basic instincts of the target audience making them act of the basis of impulses that they already have and possess.
Vital takeaways from Breakthrough Advertising
The copy that is effective in nature can work one group at a time.
You have to determine the desire, awareness, and sophistication of the readers and sell it to that specific group.
Majority of the products in the market desire to attain a particular status or fit in than they are able to satisfy the actual problem of the buyer in the market
The headline of the ad should never sell and it has only one job and that is to keep the audience reading unless the customer is highly aware and only wishes to know the brand details and price of the product or service offering.
In order to overcome the objections, you will have to simplify the problems, escalate the value of the products, reduce the price, and invalidate the alternate solutions available at the marketplace.
The products that are preventive in nature are to be sold to someone that cares about the prospects rather than the prospect themselves. The best example of the same is Life Insurance.
What to expect from Breakthrough Advertising?
- Improve on the skills of copywriting
- Understand the elements of effective advertising
- Improve written communication
- Elevate the ability to sell through writing
- Develop an understanding of consumer psychology
- Develop rhetorical sales skills.
Criticisms of Breakthrough Advertising
The major value of the book lies in the sections of understanding of the markets, understanding the psychology of buying and selling and communicating effectively and convincingly to your target audience.
The majority of book highlights dissecting particular examples as Schwartz was a mail-order copywriter and most of the examples given are long-form advertisements in magazines and papers owing to which they are out of date in current times.
The book is majorly concerned on manipulating the behavior and desires of the people that can make one feel pretty icky in nature as the work and examples highlighted in the book focus on the shady verticals such as tobacco products, weight loss products, and correspondence courses amongst others.
Pinky is an MBA in Marketing from the University of Mumbai. She loves helping people out in learning Marketing and sharing latest ideas and tactics for growing businesses.