Sweet Deals on new homes

A scoop of ice cream in the height of summer is bound to get everyone's attention. And the headline-- Sweet Deals-- begs the reader to discover more.

Copy is well written and clever.

You might think this ad should get high marks for effectiveness.

Problem is that serious home buyers, and the number grows each day as the market rebounds, might miss this display ad because it forgets a basic rule: newspaper ads have but 2 seconds to get the reader's attention. And the readers that count are the ones that are warm or hot prospects.

Make the ad larger, add a photo of a happy couple stepping across the threshold of their new home at Alamo Creek and the marketers at Shapell Homes are likely to see higher traffic counts this weekend at their model homes.

Tee It Up at Golf Town

Shopping for golf clubs? Impossible to miss this powerful ad that ran recently in The Calgary Herald.

First you can't help but notice the almost large as life over sized driver that seems to leap from the page. And the chance to save on Nike Golf-- particularly if you are a fan of the brand-- makes it tough to turn past this one.

The proof is in the ad copy with regular price, big sale prices and the savings calculated for you.

Golf town is likely to drive it long and straight with this one.