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10-APR-2025 | Avis' "Can't afford television commercials" Ad

Author

Dan Bogachek
April 10, 2025

You glance at your watch.

It’s 6:28. You’ve been at it since 3.
Crap. Your hot date is at 7. Running late. Sink shower it is.
Nowhere close to done editing…

“…at least all the ideas are laid out, so there’s that. Did I miss anything? I don’t think so? Ok, but how do I make it flow? I need to get the final draft to Stacey for design asap, team cutoff is at noon Thursday…”

You’ve spent dinner completely distracted. Your date just took off. You go home exhausted, plod to your desk, and flip open the laptop.

Or… what if:

5:41 — you’re out of the shower and lip-syncing.
6:17 — dressed to the nines and zenned out.
7:03 — the sunset glints off your aviators as you smile hello.
8:36 — it actually feels like you’re hitting it off. Not just hot, funny to boot.
Next morning, 9:27 — final draft ready in your inbox.
10:31 — Stacey messages back, “thanks, looks good!”

The difference?

Copygloss handled it. Before you left for the date, actually.

For help with editing, email Dan:
[email protected].

Avis' "Can't afford television commercials" Ad

Avis can’t afford television commercials. Aren’t you glad?

Do you know what it costs to make a television commercial?

About $15,000.

Of course, that includes highway, western sky, car, pretty girls and a catchy jingle to delight the hearts of music lovers. And then you still have to pay for putting it on the air.

Avis hasn’t got that kind of money.

We’re only No. 2 in rent a cars.

What we do have is plenty of decent cars like lively, super-torque Fords. Plenty of counters with girls behind them who don’t think it’s corny to be polite.

We have everything but television commercials.

But business is getting better.

Maybe soon, you won’t be so lucky. 🏁 

  • Hook: negative hook, followed by a “you” rhetorical question which subverts expectations. “Well why can’t Avis afford these? And why would I be glad??”

  • So much “you” throughout. And all of the knife twisting still gets applied to “you” — even though it’s Avis’ problem, not the reader’s! It puts you into Avis’ shoes, creates empathy.

  • Longer sentences for illustration, shorter for punctuation.

  • Complete ideas > complete sentences with repetition. “Plenty of” → these are cuts to different scenes.

  • Hook-punchline sandwich, with a wink and a smile. “If things keep going the way they are, well then you may just have to put up with us.” Playful social proof built in.