Glossary

On every ad page

Pattern النمط

A named mechanism an ad runs on, such as a demonstration or a guarantee. The library has 64, each with a template.

Mechanism الآلية

Why a pattern works on a reader: the step in their thinking that it moves.

Verdict الحكم

Our call on when a pattern earns its place and when it does not.

Big idea الفكرة الكبرى

The ad in one sentence a colleague could repeat.

Offer العرض

What the reader gets, at what price, on what terms and where.

Proof الدليل

The evidence an ad gives for its claim: a demonstration, a number, a named user, a guarantee.

Lines from the ad سطور من الإعلان

The words that carry an ad, quoted in its own language.

Steal this when متى نأخذه

The situation in which the same move would work for you.

Emotion الشعور

The one feeling an ad is written to, from a list of 34, or none.

Say move ما يوصى به

The message the research supports for a feeling.

Avoid mistake الخطأ

The message that turns a feeling against the brand.

Neighbor الشعور المجاور

A feeling that looks like another from the outside and needs a different message, such as desire and envy.

The three tests الاختبارات الثلاثة

Fear comes with a step the reader can take; guilt is moderate and repairable; the problem sits on a situation, never on the reader.

Terms of the trade

Headline العنوان

The first words the reader meets. In most print ads it decides whether the rest is read.

Body copy النص

The text under the headline that carries the argument.

Call to action الدعوة إلى الإجراء

The step the ad asks for: buy, call, book, register, visit.

Direct response الاستجابة المباشرة

Advertising built to get a measurable action now, such as an order, a coupon or a call.

Brand advertising إعلانات بناء العلامة

Advertising built to be remembered and preferred over years, with no immediate ask.

Reason-why إعلان الأسباب

Copy that gives the reader reasons in plain sentences rather than a mood.

Testimonial الشهادة

A named user saying what the product did for them.

Endorsement التزكية

A known person lending their name or face to a product.

Demonstration العرض الحي

The product shown doing its job, so the claim is seen rather than stated.

Guarantee الضمان

A promise that lowers the cost of being wrong: money back, a free repair, a trial.

Coupon القسيمة

A cut-out the reader sends back, or a code they quote, which made print ads measurable.

Social proof الدليل الاجتماعي

Showing that many others already chose the product.

Scarcity الندرة

A real limit on quantity. A false one is a misleading claim, which the law does not allow.

Urgency الإلحاح

A real deadline. A deadline that moves is a false claim.

Positioning التموضع

The place a brand holds in the buyer's mind against the alternatives.

Tagline الشعار اللفظي

The short line a brand repeats across its ads.

Jingle اللحن الإعلاني

A short song that carries the brand name.

Mascot الشخصية الإعلانية

A character that stands for the brand across its ads.

House ad إعلان المطبوعة عن نفسها

A magazine or newspaper advertising itself: a new issue, a subscription, a gift.

Mail order البيع بالبريد

Selling from an ad or a catalogue, with the order sent by post.

Patent medicine العلاجات التجارية القديمة

Branded remedies of the 1800s and early 1900s, often sold on promised cures.

Public service advertising إعلانات الخدمة العامة

Campaigns that ask the public to act for a cause: save, give, vote, vaccinate.

Drip pricing التسعير بالتنقيط

Showing fees one by one after the first price, so the total appears only at the end.

Puffery المبالغة الواضحة

Exaggeration no reader would take literally, which advertising codes allow as long as it does not mislead.

Swipe file أرشيف النماذج

A collection of ads kept to study and borrow moves from.

The library

Lane المسار

One of the library's collections: the English archive, the Egyptian press, Gulf brand posts, Gulf campaign breakdowns and videos.

Text breakdown القراءة المكتوبة

A written reading of a Gulf campaign, with its lines, that links out to the ad on the brand's own site.

Embed المنشور المضمّن

A brand's own post shown from X, Instagram or YouTube, rather than a copy.

Crop القصاصة

An ad cut out of its newspaper or magazine page so it can be read alone.

Public domain الملك العام

Work no longer under copyright, which the library can show in full.

Reading shelf رف القراءة

The books, trade journals, type specimens and reports behind the ads, each with a summary and an analysis.

The 64 patterns

Demonstration ad إعلان العرض الحي

The product does the arguing. The viewer sees the thing work, not a slogan about the thing working.

Story lead افتتاح بالقصة

The piece opens inside a scene. The reader is already in the situation before the offer appears.

If-then promise وعد إذا-إذن

A conditional contract: if you do this, you get that. The sentence can be tested against the reader's own case.

Guarantee stack رصّ الضمانات

Several guarantees, each aimed at a different reason not to buy, stacked so residual risk is named and removed.

Price-anchoring offer تثبيت السعر المرجعي

A higher reference number is shown first so the real price reads as a concession, not as a starting bid.

Us-versus-them positioning تموضع نحن ضدهم

The buyer is invited into a side. The product is what we use. The named other is what we refuse.

Scarcity close إغلاق بالندرة

A real limit (time, units, seats, eligibility) that makes delay cost something.

Problem-agitate-solve مشكلة ثم تأزيم ثم حل

Name the problem, make the cost of leaving it felt, then present the way out as relief.

Long-copy editorial نص تحريري طويل

The sell is written as an article: argument, evidence, and length instead of a slogan.

Risk reversal عكس المخاطرة

The cost of being wrong moves from the buyer to the seller. The buyer can try. The seller eats the failure.

Reason-why السبب لماذا

A specific reason the offer is priced, timed, or structured this way. Not a mood. A reason.

Negative headline عنوان سلبي

The first line is a warning, a refusal, or a negated claim. Something the reader cannot skim as praise.

Direct-from-the-founder letter رسالة من المؤسس

A letter in one person's voice, written as if to one reader, signed by the person who owns the outcome.

Testimonial lead افتتاح بشهادة عميل

The first voice on the page is a customer's. Proof arrives before the company's claim.

Curiosity gap فجوة الفضول

A missing piece is named but not filled, so the reader has to continue to close the loop.

Iconic figure claim الادعاء بالشخصية الأيقونية

A single figure, drawn, silhouetted, or posed, is the whole claim. You can read it across a street.

Event symbol poster ملصق رمز الحدث

A symbol or allegory that makes an event feel like a destination. Not a timetable. A magnet.

Lettered cover hook غلاف بالحرف كخطاف

The cover is the hook, and the hook is lettering: a title treated as an image.

Data as proof البيانات كبرهان

A chart, map, or count that is the argument, not an illustration next to the argument.

Civilian war-duty equate مساواة الواجب المدني بالجبهة

A civilian act (saving, making, staying quiet) is framed as the same duty as the front.

Specimen as proof العينة كبرهان

A specimen (type, material, finish) is shown so the product proves itself under comparison.

Celebrity endorsement تزكية المشاهير

A named, recognizable person lends their reputation to the claim. The name is the proof.

Headline · visual lockup قفل العنوان والصورة

Headline and picture are one sentence. Remove either half and the claim disappears.

Keepable trade card بطاقة تجارية تُحفظ

A small card people keep (pretty, useful, or collectible) that carries the brand after the encounter.

Seasonal category cover غلاف الموسم والفئة

A cover that invents a buying occasion by naming a season and a category together. Spring coats. Ramadan gifting. Back-to-school.

Issue-as-product mood sell بيع العدد بالمزاج

The issue is sold as a feeling: a face, a color field, a stance. Not as a table of contents.

Campaign line as series خط الحملة كسلسلة

One line that can be replayed across executions so the campaign is a family, not a one-off.

Mark as compressed claim العلامة كادعاء مضغوط

The mark itself is the sentence: a monogram, a seal, a device that already means the claim.

House ad as portfolio إعلان البيت كمعرض أعمال

The firm advertises itself by showing the work, not by describing the work.

Craft-argument book كتاب الحجة الحرفية

A book or manual that sells a method by arguing it. Chapters as proof, not as decoration around a product.

Pack as storefront العبوة كواجهة محل

The pack is the store. On a shelf or a thumbnail, it must stop, name, and close without a clerk.

Image carries the claim الصورة تحمل الادعاء

One image does the entire argument. Copy, if any, is a caption, not a second ad.

Mascot PSA duty تميمة الواجب العام

A recurring character who personifies a duty. Not a one-shot cartoon. A resident conscience.

Candidate credibility مصداقية المرشح

The person is the proof. Ads, kits, and spots exist to make the candidate believable, not to decorate a platform.

Typographic cover frame إطار غلاف طباعي

A stable type frame (masthead, rules, folio) that stays put so the image inside can change every issue.

Borrowed medical authority سلطة طبية مستعارة

The claim wears a lab coat: a diagram, a percentage, a clinical tone that is not necessarily a clinician.

Exhibit in the column معرض داخل العمود

An image is dropped into the column of type so the reader meets picture and argument in one scan.

Prop-verdict cover غلاف الحكم بالشيء

A single object on a cover that is already the opinion. No headline required if the prop is right.

War-bond ask طلب سند الواجب

Money is requested as duty. The instrument is financial. The motive is belonging to the effort.

Brand name in the line اسم العلامة داخل السطر

The name is a working word in the headline, not a logo parked underneath.

Utility premium هدية المنفعة

The free thing is kept because it works (a calendar, a tool, a template) and the brand rides along.

Manifesto positioning تموضع بالمانيفستو

A public declaration of how the world should work, with the brand standing inside that world.

Recruiting duty offer عرض التجنيد كواجب

Join us, framed as who you become, not as a job listing.

Question headline عنوان سؤالي

The first line is a question the reader was already asking, or one they cannot leave unanswered.

Mail-order catalog كتالوج الطلب بالبريد

A catalog that is the store: browse, choose, order, without a clerk and often without a website.

Value-stack offer رصّ القيمة في العرض

The core offer is surrounded by named extras so the package feels uneven in the buyer's favor.

Public health warning تحذير الصحة العامة

A warning designed to change a health behavior (stop, screen, stay home), not to sell a brand.

Email response teardown تفكيك رسالة رد

An email shown in pieces so the reader learns why it got a reply: subject, first line, ask, P.S.

Direct-mail response بريد مباشر للاستجابة

A physical letter or pack whose only job is a measurable reply: an order, a donation, a call.

Donor guilt appeal نداء ذنب المتبرع

The donor is asked to feel the cost of not giving, then given a precise act that relieves it.

Step-by-step playbook دليل خطوة بخطوة

A numbered path through a process that used to feel like a fog.

Event urgency drive إلحاح الحدث

An external event (a shutdown, a deadline, a migration) becomes the reason to act this week.

Ramadan emotional arc القوس العاطفي لرمضان

A campaign that follows the month's emotional weather: anticipation, fasting days, family nights, Eid. Not one generic Ramadan kareem line.

Family gathering close إغلاق مجلس العائلة

The decision is framed as something the family will sit with, not a solo checkout click.

WhatsApp close (direct response) إغلاق واتساب للرد المباشر

The click is not a form. The click is a chat, and the chat is written to close.

Cash-on-delivery trust ثقة الدفع عند الاستلام

Trust is built for a market that still wants to pay when the box is in the hand.

Dialect versus fusha اللهجة مقابل الفصحى

A deliberate choice of register: spoken dialect for warmth and speed, fusha for authority and reach, or a controlled mix.

Tribal heritage appeal نداء الموروث

The offer is tied to lineage, craft, place, or a named heritage the buyer already honors.

Dual-face bilingual الوجه المزدوج ثنائي اللغة

English and Arabic are designed as two faces of one piece, not a translation dumped under the original.

Off-plan vision sell بيع الرؤية على المخطط

Selling a place that does not exist yet: a rendering, a masterplan, a life that starts after handover.

Payment plan as offer خطة السداد كعرض

The installment structure is the headline, not a footnote under a cash price.

Diwaniya / majlis invite دعوة الديوانية والمجلس

The marketing act is an invitation into a room: a diwaniya, a majlis, a hosted night. Not a broadcast.

Prestige exclusivity hook خطاف المكانة والحصرية

The first promise is not a feature. It is that not everyone will have this.

Seasonal offer first الموسم قبل العرض

The season is the offer. National Day, back-to-school, Hajj travel, White Friday. The calendar leads. The SKU follows.

The 34 emotions

Boredom الملل

A restless flatness when nothing holds your attention, even though you're itching for something that would.

Interest الاهتمام

Light, open attention toward something that draws you in.

Curiosity الفضول

Interest that grows into a need to know.

Stress الضغط النفسي

The demands feel bigger than you can handle, but you are still keeping things moving.

Overwhelm الشلل تحت الضغط

Stress piled so high you freeze up and can't think or get much done.

Anxiety القلق

Tense, unsettled feelings about an uncertain future, with no single clear threat.

Dread التوجس

Heavy anticipation of something bad you expect is coming.

Frustration الإحباط

Hitting a wall you can't move while still wanting what's past it.

Disappointment خيبة الأمل

The letdown when things turn out worse than you'd counted on.

Resignation الاستسلام

Discouragement hardened into giving up.

Comparison المقارنة بالآخرين

Ranking yourself against others, pulled between matching everyone and beating them.

Envy الحسد

Wishing someone else's advantage were yours.

Admiration الإعجاب

Looking up to someone for what they do or who they are, in a way that makes you want to grow, not take what they have.

Confusion الحيرة

Not knowing what to make of something.

Cognitive Dissonance التنافر المعرفي

Discomfort when beliefs clash with actions or new facts.

Vulnerability الانكشاف العاطفي

Putting your real self out there with no promise of how it lands.

Fear الخوف

A gut lurch when danger feels right here.

Trust الثقة

Letting someone hold something that matters to you, knowing they could drop it.

Regret الندم

Wishing you'd acted differently, knowing the choice was yours.

Relief الارتياح

The release when a feared outcome passes or a hard stretch ends.

Pride الفخر

The glow of having earned something through your own effort.

Betrayal خيانة الثقة

Broken trust, whether through a dramatic lie or the quieter act of someone slowly ceasing to care.

Shame الخزي

A gut sense that you are the problem, not your actions.

Guilt الشعور بالذنب

The pang of "I did something wrong," not "I am wrong." It points at the act and pushes you to repair it.

Joy الفرح

A sudden rush of delight that makes you feel connected to something bigger.

Belonging الانتماء

Being your unedited self and wanted anyway.

Desire الرغبة

Wanting a thing for itself: how it looks, tastes or feels, or the life it opens.

Amusement الاستمتاع بالطرافة

Light, playful pleasure when something strikes you as funny, often because it doesn't quite fit.

Nostalgia الحنين إلى الماضي

A wistful longing for the past.

Excitement الحماس

Eager, energized anticipation of something good.

Love الحب

What two people build when they drop their guard, let each other see everything, and handle it with care.

Hope الأمل

Wanting a better outcome that is not certain but still possible, and that matters: to get well, to have a child, to pass, to earn more.

Duty الواجب

The pull of an obligation to people you belong to (family, country, community, faith), felt as "this is mine to do".

Compassion الرحمة

Facing someone's suffering as an equal and offering kindness from beside them, not above them.

Keep going

• How to read an ad
• The 64 patterns
• The 34 emotions
• Browse the library
• The reading shelf