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  • 18-OCT-2024 | Bill Bernbach’s “We regret to inform you” Ad for Ohrbachs

18-OCT-2024 | Bill Bernbach’s “We regret to inform you” Ad for Ohrbachs

Author

Dan Bogachek
October 18, 2024

Bill Bernbach’s “We regret to inform you” Ad for Ohrbachs

We regret to inform you your school stuff is ready at Ohrbach’s

Maybe you can’t face it happily. But at least face it. You’ll need slacks. Jeans. A rugby shirt. A coat with leather trim. Maybe even an Italian mohair sweater.

If you’ve got a sister, she’ll need an A-shape coat, something in fake fur, a skimmer, and the ski look for when it’s cold. At Ohrbach’s you’ll find it all, beautifully made, in huge assortments… at prices so low, you can afford what you need from now till school lets out. Come in, get it over with. We may not be able to make you look happy. But with clothes like these, we’ll darn well make you look smart. 🏁

  • The hook: acknowledgement & empathy + planting the end state into your imagination. “School is back… sorry…” + “All your school stuff in one place.”

  • Who cares about complete sentences?

  • Who’s the target for this ad? It’s written exactly for kids. Even the visual is geared so that kids to identify themselves and their feelings in it. That makes the kid Ohrbach’s champion in the eventual sale. Now the economic buyer? That’s the parent, of course. And as long as they can afford it, parents want to make their kids happy.

  • The structure:
    We have bad news… (consolation) → you do need the stuff (expectation setting) → your sister might need stuff too → you’ll find something you like because we have a big selection (reassurance) → you’ll look good in front of your friends (status).

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 crack open the laptop.

Or… it could go like this:

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, 10:27 — polished draft ready in your inbox.
10:31 — Stacey messages back, “thanks, looks good!”

The difference?

You had Copygloss handle it yesterday afternoon.

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