Luke Sullivan's wise words - Lesson #1

I just felt the need to go again through "Hey Whipple, squeeze this". This great book makes few points that we tend to forget sometimes.
Hey, it feels good to have some real guidance once in a while, even if only theoretical.

I've copy-paste-ed some tips on creating great advertising Sullivan's sharing with us all:

• Restate the strategy and put some spin on it

So begin by taking the strategy and saying it some other way, any way. Say it faster. Say it in English. Then in slang. Shorten it. Punch it up.
Club Med’s tag line could have been “A great way to get away”. It could have been “More than just a beach”. Fortunately it became: “Club Med. The antidote for civilization”.
Be careful, too, not to let your strategy show. Many ads suffer from this transparence, and it happens when you fail to put enough creative spin on strategy.

• Get the visual cliches out of your system right away

Certain visuals are just old. Somewhere out there is a Home for Tired Old Visuals. Sitting there in rocking chairs on the porch are visuals like Uncle Sam, a devil with a pitchfork, and a proud lion, just rocking back and forth waiting for someone to use them in an ad once again.

• Show, don’t tell

Showing the benefit of your product allows readeres to reach their own conclusions. It’s more involving this way.

• Saying isn't the same as being

Nike never once said "Hey, we're cool". They just were.

• Simple is difficult to obtain. But it’s hard to miss, more believable, easier to remember and it breakes through “advertising clutter”.