What is the best layout for your copy?
I know I may have mentioned this before but some copywriters get too hung up on being “creative” with fancy pictures and words. When really keeping it simple is what they should be doing. When it comes to your layout, Simple is Best.
Readers always look first at the illustration then at the headline and then at the body copy.
So give them these elements in that order. Illustration at the top followed by the headline then the body copy. This is the natural order of scanning from top to bottom. If you put the headline above the illustration you are not giving your reader what they are used to, (see my article…The Eye Is A Creature Of Habit).
Headlines below illustrations are read on average by 10% more people.
Which might not sound a lot but if you think there could be 10,000 readers, that’s an extra 1,000 reading your copy. Next time you’re flicking through a magazine just take note how many times the headline is put above the illustration. I think you’ll be surprised at how many are losing sales from this one simple thing. If you are using an illustration there are a few guidelines to follow, but that’s a whole different article. Always use a caption under your illustration. Four times as many people read the caption than read the body copy.
When is an advert not an advert?
When it is set out like an editorial page. Most people don’t like adverts. If you set your ad out like an editorial page you will attract more readers. Roughly six times as many people read the average article as read the average advertisement. If you have a look through some of the successful news magazines with high readership you will notice similarities in their editorial layout.
Every photograph will have a caption
The copy is set in Serif type
The columns of type, 35-45 characters wide
The copy starts with drop-initials
The type is set black on white
Now look at the adverts in the same magazines and see how many are like this:-
Few of the photographs have captions – four times as many people read the caption than read the body copy
The copy is set in Sans Serif – making it difficult to read
The copy is set in one column of 120 characters or more – too wide to be easily readable
There are very few drop-initials – drop initials increase readership
Sometimes the copy is set in reverse, white on black – very difficult to read
So always think about the layout of your advertisement to give yourself the biggest advantage. Selling is hard enough without turning away readers before they’ve even looked at your work.
No Comments Found