Commentary

Fine Print

A few well-chosen words, a striking image, and bam! You have a print ad. Why tinker with the magic formula?

Verizon did. It's been running ads for SuperPages.com entirely made up of text. The sociable "We know around here" campaign appears on subways, billboards, coffee cups, and bus shelters.

"It's like you're sitting down talking to a friend about your favorite business," says Alisa Brown, Verizon's marketing manager, consumer traffic. Club Med tried the approach, too, placing wordy ads in New York City subway cars and on large posters. "We just thought it was a real nice tone of voice," says Mark Wiser, vice president of marketing for Club Med.

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