What looks like a news story but sells like an ad?

Answer: an advertorial

Challenge. An advertorial allows you to side step a consumer’s resistance to being sold. The strategy is to establish a selling proposition with high-interest editorial material, then plug the product while the reader is open and receptive.

Solution. For the Tilex advertorial, I did an Internet search and turned up eye-popping facts on mold. (Example: every house has mold, no exceptions.) Then I informed the reader on how to control mold, using products like Tilex. I know it worked because it motivated me to clean up my own home.

The advertorial for Armor All was focused on car care. Did you know that NASCAR races are often won by as little as 1/100th of a second, and that in close races, the quality of your car’s shine can spell the difference between winning and losing? To build the editorial story, I interviewed race car driver Jay Guy and quoted him extensively. Turns out (not surprisingly) that his racing team all use Armor All. The advertorial ended with car cleaning tips and details on how to enter Armor All’s car cleaning competition.

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