Editor's note:This video is the fifth in a series that lays out some best-practices not only for radio in a digital age but also for marketing and advertising generally.
You're driving. Through Iowa. Endless fields of corn. Row after row of stalks the same size, the same height, the same color.
Then it appears—a majestic live oak. Towering over all the corn, it commands your attention. Not because it's an oak (they're everywhere): It grabs your attention because it's different. A standout. An outlier. The elusive purple cow.
That, actually, is like a drive through radio advertising. Sameness everywhere. Spots with the same structure, the same voices, seemingly the same music. Being the standout among all this sameness is a key to success.
But you're writing a radio spot. How do you sound different?
Easy. Don't write a radio spot.
Rule 4 (a): Sound different. (For more, watch the brief video and listen to the sample radio spot, both below.)
Radio Rule 4 (a), Exemplified (click on the arrow, below, to hear the radio spot):
Videos in this series:
1. The Five Rules of Great Radio: Rule 1
2. The Five Rules of Great Radio: Rule 2
3. The Five Rules of Great Radio: Rule 3
4. The Five Rules of Great Radio: Rule 4 (a)
5. The Five Rules of Great Radio: Rule 4 (b)
6. The Five Rules of Great Radio: Rule 5
7. How to Get Your Creative Approved
8. Should You Appeal to Your Audience's Right Brain or Left Brain?
9. Dialogue Writing, Part 1: Chaos Is Good!
