How many times have you been sitting in a meeting or chitchatting with friends and you have some jingle playing in your head? Instead of tuning into what they’re saying, you’re thinking “Five…five dollar…five dollar foot-longs.” This, folks, is good advertising.

The same can be said for good slogans. A good working slogan is a statement that:

• Gives a quick snapshot of what you do, and gives a key benefit of using you over your competitors
• Is extremely credible and easy to understand
• Is memorable

First, include a key benefit. “Engineered like no other car in the world” does this beautifully for Mercedes Benz. It doesn’t say “Drive the car with the 5.5 Liter, 32-valve, V-8 engine, that gets 22 miles per gallon.” Why? Because there’s a well-known piece of advice in the world of marketing: sell the sizzle, not the steak. It means to sell the benefits, not the features.

Second, remember the KISS method (Keep It Simple, Stupid). Think of the famous Wendy’s slogan of “Where’s the beef?” Even a first grader knew that they were talking about meat and saying there just wasn’t enough of it. If it gets too complex, you lose your audience and it just doesn’t stick.

And speaking of “stick,” the most important thing is to be memorable. A lot of this is based on the brand heritage and what visual images accompany the slogan. For example, in addition to be being a clever line, “My goodness, my Guinness!” was made memorable by the illustrations of the Guinness drinker seeing his pint under some sort of threat (perched on the nose of a performing seal, for example). It invoked a wry smile and a tinge of sympathy on the part of the audience if the Guinness was dropped.

The bottom line is, a slogan should leave the key brand message in the mind of the target (that’s you). Take a look at a few successful slogans over the years:

• American Express: “Don’t leave home without it”
• Apple: “Think different”
• AT&T: “Reach out and touch someone”
• Timex: “Takes a licking and keeps on ticking”
• Wheaties: “The breakfast of champions”

See you next time. “Same bat time. Same bat channel.”