A Pharoah’s Challenge: The Egypt Crossword in The NY Times Magazine

To say that Egypt’s Tourism Authority has an uphill climb to promote their country is a little like saying Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay found Mt. Everest to be a bit of a hike.

Nevertheless, they’re giving it their all in their latest print ad. If you were turn to the middle section of The New York Times Magazine on January 22nd, here’s what you would have seen:

Here’s why this works…

1. IT’S UNPREDICTABLE

Pop Quiz:

• How many tourism ads full of beautiful 30-somethings sipping beautiful drinks can you remember?
• Got one? Okay, name the location.

Check out Greece’s clunky 2009 effort for the problem of image saturation. Ignoring the dated computer arrow, this looks a lot like an ad for a Caribbean destination. After a while, all those pretty people (and places) start to blur into one.

• The Egypt Tourism Authority has another problem—for the past year, the public has been saturated with images of violence and Tahrir Square.
• To use a typical Egypt image (pyramids, Sphinx) would feel dated.

A crossword is unusual—it gets the little grey cells working…

2. IT TARGETS THE APPROPRIATE PUBLICATION

You don’t sell nuclear physics software on People.com and you don’t advertise Egypt holidays to harried mothers-to-be.

• As part of the Sunday paper, The New York Times Magazine is read by approximately 1,623,697 people.
• Many of these readers are wealthy enough to afford a trip to Egypt…
• And many believe themselves to be of the open-minded, adventurous sort.

Note the use of the word “believe”—as David Ogilvy would suggest, advertising is often an aspirational game. This ad says: “I’m cool/brave/smart enough to visit a country in transition.”

3. IT APPEALS TO THE AUDIENCE

The Sunday Times Crossword has become an institution. In a wired world, sometimes it’s the only reason people buy the paper.

This is a nice play on the concept, with:

• A visual shape that attracts attention and reminds readers of Egypt’s #1 tourist attraction.
• An interactive component that teases puzzlers and/or those who consider themselves educated (again, the aspirational quality).

Plus, even if readers are not interested in crosswords, the words prompt interest.

4. IT HAS AN ONLINE CALL-TO-ACTION

Note the bar at the bottom of the ad. Anyone looking for answers (other than the metaphysical kind) are directed to visit the Experience Egypt Facebook page. Here you’ll see an active wall, with photos, polls, videos, etc. that reminds you the country is still full of wonder and surprise.

Yet, despite the progression past the Stone Age, many print ads contain absolutely no way of tracking effectiveness. They’re done to “keep us in the mind of customers.” Burning money has more benefits—at least you stay warm.

If you’re running an ad (any kind, online or print), be wise and:

• Create a targeted call-to-action—a landing page, a dedicated 800 number, a QR code—anything (!) that will tell you if your message is working.

5. BUT WE’RE STILL SEARCHING FOR ANSWERS…

Here’s the thing, though:

• Once you visit the Experience Egypt Facebook page, you’ll be searching for some time to find the answers to the puzzle. There is no tab devoted to the crossword or any indication of where to go to find the solution.
• What’s more, since the link is generic, I doubt their online gurus have any way of tracking how many visitors have come from the print ad.

There is one post on January 22nd, but it only alludes to the ad. If you’re running a campaign like this:

• Think about your social media follow-through. Experience Egypt could have been posting teasers to clues, offering photos of answers, talking up the person who created the puzzle, providing a printable version of the ad for those who didn’t receive the magazine—anything to keep the conversation going.
• Make sure you have analytics plan. With the tools available, there’s no excuse for poor data.

SOLUTION TO THE EGYPT CROSSWORD IN THE NY TIMES MAGAZINE

Somewhat counterintuitively, if you click on the post that says “Look out for the upcoming issue of the NY Times Magazine!”, you’ll discover the answer…

Ah, Mark Twain—it’s nice to know that even literary gods stoop to silly puns on “Denial”.

BUILDING A PYRAMID?

Having trouble seeing returns from your print or online ads? Contact me at any time to discuss your advertising architecture.

Advertisement

Tagged: crossword print ads, effective print ads, egypt crossword, egypt crossword new york times magazine, egypt crossword ny times magazine, new york times magazine advertising, new york times magazine crossword, print ads new york times magazine, social media and print ads, solution crossword ny times magazine, solution egypt crossword new york times magazine, solution egypt crossword ny times magazine, tracking print ads, unusual print ads

Posted in: Copywriting Tips, Facebook, Marketing Content, Social Media