Effective Ad Copy

4 Ways Jerks Help Advertising

Written by Ashwin Satyanarayana for Gaebler Ventures

No one likes jerks; but it's that attitude that fuels great advertising copy. Most of the copywriting masters have espoused that jerky behaviour and produced some of the most cherished and effective ad copies ever. See how that happens:

In the dating circuit, jerks are the ones women are after while nice guys always finish last. Of course, for clarity, nice guys are good to raise a family while women like to date the jerks, more often than not.

Did you think it is any different with copywriting and advertising? Being a jerk helps to bring out great ads - as in effective ads -compared to what nice guys can do in the creative department of an advertising agency. Here are four ways how being a jerk helps in good advertising:

Jerks are risk-takers

There are some people who are designed to be reckless, creative and are blessed with a high risk appetite. Jerks are perennial and incorrigible risk-takers. They thrive under pressure and constantly take bolder moves leading to risky situations that they just battle out of. Great advertising is bold advertising and that's why having this jerk attitude helps tremendously. The higher the risk you can take - much like jerks naturally do - the better the results will be from your advertisement.

Jerks bring character, boldness and a raw appeal to an ad

Nice guys at the helm of your marketing and advertising department or at the creative agency can only make matters worse by being politically correct or by making meek, character-less offers in advertisements. Most of the ads we see in conventional (and non-conventional) media are life-less and soul-less. It's almost as if these advertisements suck out whatever life is left in the rest of the newspaper or magazine. When you approach ad making with the attitude of a jerk, you play with words, tip the balance a little, create chaos, pour life and ring some really loud bells. Jerks have a sense of adventure, uniqueness, bravado and a raw appeal that can rub off on the ads they create.

Jerks are confident & invincible

When you approach ad making like a jerk, you exhibit raw confidence. This alone takes you much ahead of your competition because this fetches you brownie points your competition loses out while choosing to be meek and nice. Additionally, jerks have another habit of getting back after falling down; they get back with a vengeance when things don't work out for them. Can you image a jerk heading your sales and marketing department? They would never take no for an answer. They would keep fighting and they would bounce back even when they are nailed to the ground.

Jerks are fearless

I am a big proponent of bold advertising. Frankly, I am tired of the timid ones. Good thing about jerks is that they are completely fearless. They don't care much about how others might reach to something they say or do. When you bring someone like that to create your advertisements, you will obviously get messages that are effective and drive the point home. Meanwhile, some sections among public, government and media might like to criticize the ad. Jerks care less; while nice guys would have never released an ad like that in the first place.

Ash has an undergraduate degree in engineering and an MBA from Ohio University. Today he is a corporate trainer, business coach and a freelance writer.

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