Confusion
Ads and videos written to this emotion: 43. 33 make the Say move, 0 make the Avoid mistake.
The Emotion Map's entry, written for B2B buyers.
What it is
Not knowing what to make of something. Uncomfortable, but often the first step to learning.
Where it shows up
Comparing proposals that price different things in different units.
Sounds like
"I can't compare these three offers."
Say
A plain comparison frame the buyer can apply to every supplier, including you.
Avoid
Jargon that makes you look expert. A confused buyer picks the cheapest option or does nothing.
In consumer ads
Say: A plain comparison frame the shopper can apply to every option, this brand included: price per use, what is in it, how long it lasts.
Avoid: Jargon and invented ingredient names that make the brand sound expert. A confused shopper picks the cheapest option or buys nothing.
Doing it right
Ads that make the Say move.
ORWO Color photographic film ad, al-Kawakib 1965
It settles which film to buy with one rule the buyer can apply at the counter: NT 18 for daylight, NK 18 for lamps, both boxes printed, and filter 14 for the mixed case.
Consumer Reports first issue ad in New Masses, 1936
It opens on 'is there any difference between Grade A and Grade B milk besides the price?' and answers with brand-name ratings, from lead in toys to the best soap for the least money.
Bolnex knitting wool advertorial, Bint al-Nil 1954
Asks which wool the reader will choose, then gives criteria any yarn can be judged by: warm, pure, combed, keeps its sheen after washing, and warns against soft wool that felts, before naming Bolnex.
Eastman Kodak "There is no Kodak but the Eastman Kodak" ad
It settles what the word Kodak means, then lists checkable criteria any hand camera can be judged by: daylight loading, film weight against plates, stops, shutter modes, and $5.00 to $35.00.
Alinma Capital: unsure which fund? Ask the Nasih adviser
It names the reader's state, 'متردد؟', and answers with a plain route instead of jargon: answer a few questions about your needs and get one fund suggested.
Agency house ad: How to arrive at what to spend for advertising this year
A diagram sets advertising beside manufacturing cost and profit in the consumer's price, and audit questions let the reader score every cost item, including advertising, by the work it does.
Atwater Kent radio ad, al-Kawakib 1932
For a first-time buyer who cannot judge a radio, four numbered points, circuit, seven valves, speaker and cabinet, give a checklist to hold against any set, and a free plain-language radio book follows.
WPA poster warning cancer patients about fake physicians
Readers cannot judge a cancer cure on its merits, so the poster hands them three checks that apply to anyone offering treatment: a reputable physician does not promise a cure, demand advance payment or advertise.
Dettol antiseptic ad, al-Kawakib 1951
The woman's question to the doctor names the puzzle, strong yet gentle, and the copy answers with one plain contrast: older antiseptics were poisonous and left to specialists, Dettol is safe enough for a child.
The word NOT, set larger than the lines around it, turns an unanswerable medical question into a five-second social test, and the blank-eyed quack shows why looks alone cannot settle it.
Chevrolet car ad, al-Lataif al-Musawwarah 1928
It hands the buyer a checklist to hold against every cheap car, valve-in-head engine, air cleaner, oil filter, Duco paint, Fisher bodies, and dares him to find them together anywhere but Chevrolet.
"Your blood is bad means you have syphilis" poster
It translates the euphemism 'your blood is bad' into the plain word syphilis, then states what follows in plain terms: treatment for at least six months to one year, with a reputable physician.
بطاقة تمكين.. البطاقة الائتمانية الأكثر ابتكاراً
It hands the viewer a plain frame for judging any credit card, margin, late fees, exchange rate and cash withdrawal fees, and then answers each one for its own card.
It answers the buyer's confusion, 'لا تفكر ولا تحتار', with a plain frame: every cover named on its own tile with its own price, no jargon.
It names the visitor's confusion about which company to pick and offers a plain frame to apply to every option: customer ratings and prices in one place.
Doing it wrong
Ads that make the Avoid mistake.
No ad in the library does this yet.
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