The most basic tools of creative advertising. Design and Writing principles and fundamentals

1. THE GOAL ISN’T A
GREAT AD, THE GOAL IS
BRILLIANT THINKING

2. ALWAYS START
WITH A PENCIL

3. GO FOR QUANTITY
OVER QUALITY
FIRST
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4. All art is a series of recoveries from the
first line. The hardest thing to do is put
down the first line. But you must.
*Nathan Oliviera

5. BEFORE YOU BEGIN
CREATING:

6. WHAT IS THE
OBJECTIVE?

7. WHAT NEEDS TO BE
SAID FIRST? THEN
WHAT?

8. HOW DO YOU WANT
THE VIEWERS EYE TO
FLOW THROUGH
THE PAGE

10. WHAT IS THE
TONE?

11. LET SOMETHING BE
THE HERO

12. STAY AWAY FROM
VISUAL CLICHÉS

14. ELEMENTS OF
DESIGN

15. USE A GRID

20. COLOR

22. ORDER OF
PROGRESS:

23. THUMBNAILS

24. ROUGHS

25. COMPS

26. PROOFS

27. TYPOGRAPHY

28. Serif

29. Sans Serif

30. WEIGHT
Light, Regular, Semibold, Bold

33. SOLVING THE
PROBLEM
VISUALLY

34. SHOW THE
PRODUCT

37. SHOW THE BENEFIT
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39. SHOW IT IN USE
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41. SHOW
COMPARISONS

43. SHOW THE
NEGATIVE

45. SHOW THE
POSITIVE

47. GET PROVOCATIVE

52. LEVERAGE THE
MEDIUM, IF YOU
CAN

53. LEVERAGE THE
MEDIUM, IF YOU
CAN

56. NOVELTY +
RELEVANCE =
CREATIVITY

57. Don’t let the headline flex its muscles if
the visuals are doing all of the heavy
lifting.
*Luke Sullivan

58. YOU MAY NOT
NEED COPY

60. BRING IT ALL
TOGETHER:

61. Does your layout convey the big idea?
Did you design with your audience in mind?
Did you prioritize the elements?
Do your visuals and headlines work?
Does your design catch the reader’s eye?
Did you keep it simple?

62. Did you consider alternatives?
Did you use the white space effectively?
Does your font match the tone?
Did you honor the margins?
Did you keep it simple?

63. FIND A DESIGNER
FRIEND

64. LEARN TO WRITE
GREAT COPY

66. YOU MAY NOT
NEED ART

71. HEADLINE
SUBHEADS
BODY COPY
TAGLINE

72. KNOW THE TONE OF
THE MEDIUM

73. KNOW YOUR
MEDIUM & WRITE
SPECIFICALLY
FOR IT

74. SOCIAL MEDIA=
ENGAGE

75. OUTDOOR=
MEMORABLE

76. PRINT=
ANYTHING GOES
Luke Sullivan: Hey Whipple Squeeze This

77. KNOW WHEN TO BE
TECHNICAL

78. A GOOD HEADLINE
DOES THE
FOLLOWING:

79. ATTRACTS ATTENTION
ENGAGES THE RIGHT AUDIENCE
COMPLIMENTS THE VISUAL
LURES READERS INTO THE BODY COPY
MAKES A CONNECTION

80. GET THE BAD PUNS
OUT OF YOUR
SYSTEM
Luke Sullivan: Hey Whipple Squeeze This

81. FIVE RULES FROM
WINSTON
CHURCHILL:

82. 1. Begin strongly
2. Have one theme
3. Use simple language
4. Leave a picture in the listener’s mind
5. End dramatically

83. DON’T BE AFRAID OF
WHITE SPACE

84. THE BEST COPY
FEELS LIKE A
CONVERSATION, NOT
A SPEECH

85. WRITE LIKE YOU /
THE BRAND TALKS

86. FINESSE

87. When you’re done you shouldn’t be able
to take out any word without disrupting
the flow and structure of the entire piece.
*Luke Sullivan

88. REWRITE THE COPY
FROM MEMORY

89. IF YOU NEED TO
WRITE ONE
HEADLINE WRITE A
HUNDRED Luke Sullivan: Hey Whipple Squeeze This

90. GET TO THE POINT
FAST

91. EMPHASIZE ONE
MAJOR IDEA
SIMPLY & CLEARLY
Luke Sullivan: Hey Whipple Squeeze This

92. READ YOUR COPY
OUT LOUD

93. VARY THE LENGTH
& STRUCTURE OF
SENTENCES

94. EDIT, EDIT, EDIT

95. ALLOW YOURSELF
TO COME UP WITH
TERRIBLE IDEAS
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96. THE TRASH CAN IS
YOUR BEST FRIEND
Luke Sullivan: Hey Whipple Squeeze This