Where’s the beef in your newspaper advertising?

John Foust

Apr 1, 2026

Wendy’s received a lot of publicity from the campaign, and Clara became an instant celebrity. In fact, “Where’s the beef?” became a popular catchphrase. (To see the commercials, go to YouTube and put “Wendy’s where’s the beef?” in the search bar.)
Foust

Wendy’s ran a series of TV commercials in the mid-1980s that featured actress Clara Peller, as she disapprovingly observed the size of the burgers in fast food places. I remember one that showed Clara and two of her friends at the counter of a place called “Home of the Big Bun” (according to the sign behind them). Her friends commented on the size of the “big fluffy bun,” but Clara sternly said, “Where’s the beef?” when she saw the tiny burger inside. The voiceover included the statement, “At Wendy’s, you get more beef and less bun.”

Wendy’s received a lot of publicity from the campaign, and Clara became an instant celebrity. In fact, “Where’s the beef?” became a popular catchphrase. (To see the commercials, go to YouTube and put “Wendy’s where’s the beef?” in the search bar.)

These days, as I browse through printed pages and online media sites, certain ads make me wonder, “Where’s the beef?” or “Where’s the message?” Those ads have generic words and pictures, but nothing else. Nothing of interest. Nothing that makes me want to conduct business with them.

How can advertising contain substance — real beef — that is worth noticing and remembering? Let’s look at three important ingredients:

1. Information. Although some ads have an entertainment element, they are primarily for information. Even Wendy’s humorous commercial provided information at the end.

Glance at the articles in your paper. They are loaded with information about what is happening in the world and in your community. Now look at the ads. Do you see rock-solid information or puffed-up claims?

2. Value. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that value is limited to price. Value is in the mind of the consumer. It’s a matter of perceived benefits. People who buy Bentleys are just as interested in value as people who buy economy cars.

I remember a blurb in Readers’ Digest that described the evolution of a classified ad. The first ad read, “Boat, motor and trailer for sale - $200.” Nobody called. So the ad was changed to read, “Boat and motor for sale - $200. Will throw in trailer for free.” The phone rang off the hook.

What was the difference? Value.

3. Urgency. An ad can have the first two ingredients — information and value — and still not work. Without urgency, there’s no motivation to buy now.

Urgency can be created with time or quantity limitations. In either case, the message is the same: “Buy now or miss out.”

A sale is the most common offer in using time to create urgency. (“Half-price sale ends Saturday.”) And a limited inventory is frequently used to create urgency with quantity. (“Only three lakeside townhomes left.”)

Urgency can also be created by emphasizing benefits that can be enjoyed now, instead of later. (“Get ready for football with your new big-screen TV.”)

If one of your advertisers has ads that Clara Peller would complain about, maybe it’s time to add some information, value and urgency.

 

John Foust has conducted training programs for thousands of newspaper advertising professionals. Many ad departments are using his training DVDs to save time and get quick results from in-house training. Email for information: john@johnfoust.com