Headlines like this saying that AIDA model doesn’t work pop up from time to time. And often they are used to sell various copywriting courses. Many people even begin to frantically send links to them to their friends: “Did you hear that?! AIDA model bye-bye! That’s all! It doesn’t work any more!”
It is important to understand that this, as well as the effect of disseminating such information, is nothing more than the result of manipulation. And ironically, this manipulation is a little more than completely built on the same AIDA model that allegedly does not work. And now I will show you this clearly. But first, a brief digression into the theory.
What is the AIDA model
AIDA is a marketing model of human behavior. Consists of four stages. Each stage corresponds to the letter of the abbreviation:
- A – Attention / Awareness – at this stage we attract the attention of the audience so that people begin to perceive what we want to tell them.
- I – Interest – at this stage we transfer attention to interest so that the audience maintains focus on what we are saying (since attention itself is short-lived and constantly strives to jump to something else).
- D – Desire / Decision – the stage at which the readers receive the information necessary for certain emotional reactions and conclusions.
- A – Action – the stage at which we encourage readers to take some kind of target action.
In practice, if you build a text according to the AIDA model and consistently guide readers through each stage, then the probability of convincing them to take the action we need (order, subscribe, leave contacts, etc.) increases significantly.
If you want how to use AIDA model to create a text in copywriting, see this lesson or watch this video:
The first stage of manipulation
We return to the essence of manipulation. The title which we started this post with is nothing more than a provocation to attract attention. And due to the fact that the audience sends the link to each other, the provocation captures more and more gullible people.
And now the question is: in which model the attracting of attention is the first stage? Wait a minute! It’s AIDA! The one that doesn’t work. But maybe it’s just a coincidence? Let’s look further.
The second stage of manipulation (or AIDA model?)
Further, as a rule, the text itself begins. It usually says that AIDA is obsolete and has lost its effectiveness. That it was replaced by more efficient and progressive models like ACCA or PmPHS and stuff like that. Then the text says that there is a special course where all these models are analyzed in detail with examples. In a word, everything is said to interest a person in modern realities and tools, as well as the prospect of mastering them.
And it doesn’t matter that the announced “new” models are just derivatives of AIDA. The main thing is to interest the reader who does not know about it. But… Wait a minute… Arousing interest… Isn’t it the second stage of the AIDA model that… Doesn’t work…? Hmmm… How interesting… On the other hand, maybe it’s a coincidence? Again. Let’s look further.
The third stage
Further, as a rule, the text tells about the course itself: about its features, benefits, content, teachers and reviews of happy graduates. In a word, all the necessary information is given so that a person, after reading the text, wants to buy a course and makes such a decision. But wait! That’s the desire and decision stage, isn’t it? The third stage of AIDA model!
The final stage of “not” AIDA
Finally, the icing on the cake: a call to action, they say, only those who adopt new tools and use them in their work take off all the cream. Sign up, they say, for the course, and you will be happy! In a word, we have a typical call to action or implementation of the final, fourth stage of the AIDA model. The curtain!
So, what do we have in the bottom line? The AIDA model, which allegedly does not work, underlies the entire text. Because it still works, and no one has yet come up with anything conceptually new and more effective. And the initial message in the headline is just a trick that is needed to attract attention and arouse interest among a gullible public. Nothing more and nothing less. Eh… Nobody can be trusted. Take care of yourself.
Best regards, Dan
P.S. Check out this new free and systemic copywriting course.
