Advertising is never an exact science-sometimes you just have to keep throwing your ideas up against the wall until something sticks. Even then, you can spend thousands of dollars into different advertising media and still not have anything concrete to show for it. And if you ask any of the "experts" out there what the best
advertising strategy to take is, you'll get a different answer from each of them. Truth is, there is no one magic advertising success secret to follow. But there are a lot of common mistakes that you can learn from instead.
The biggest mistake business owners make with their advertising strategy is to expect instant results. It will take repeated exposure to your advertisement over an extended period of time before your ad begins to pay off. Some say that a person has to see an ad about ten times before they even consider buying a product or service. That's a lot of commitment on your end to keep running your ads even if you're not seeing an immediate response. And the ad that sparks enough response in the public that they just have to buy now is the same ad that won't be remembered a month down the road. Although it seems great at the time, the big, flashy ad isn't always the best way to create your identity, or brand, in the mind of the consumer.
The goal of advertising is to create a clear awareness of your company and its unique selling proposition. Too bad that most advertisers judge their ads by the comments they hear from the public, instead of measuring an ad's success by a measurable increase in sales. The funniest and most creative ads do generate a lot of buzz but often don't actually say anything about the advertiser's product. When you confuse response with results, you end up with a whole slew of ads that don't translate into dollars for your company.
In order to have an effective advertising strategy, you must place your ads in a variety of media-newspapers, trade journals, magazines, TV and radio, for example. Putting all your eggs in one basket, say just newspapers, is not effective and not the best bang for your buck. Target your ads to reach the biggest section of your target market and repeat, repeat, repeat. Too often, the mix of media you advertise in will reach a lot of people but there isn't enough repetition to make you memorable to the consumer. That's too much reach but not enough frequency.
Many business owners get poor results from their advertising because they are reaching too many people with little or no interest in what they are selling. This happens when the advertiser goes with the cheapest type of media to invest in, instead of picking a publication targeted to his or her specific market. Advertising in the right place is the key to success. Seems like common sense, but unfortunately, many people simply look for the lowest price for the number of readers they'll reach.
Yes, you want to get a good deal on pricing, but you'll simply be throwing away your money if you don't place your ad in a publication where it will reach the type of people you wish to sell to. Study your selected media closely-what other types of businesses advertise there? What kinds of ads are they putting in and do they catch your eye? Once you find a publication or venue you'd like to advertise in, try it for at least 3 consecutive months or issues. And don't stop with just one publication-run a slightly different ad in another and compare response rates. If one is markedly more effective than the other, use it instead for all your advertising.
Although you, as the business owner, have the most in-depth knowledge about your business, this same knowledge gives you a kind of tunnel vision where your advertising is concerned. Because you know your business, you have a preconceived notion about what you want to say in your advertising, as opposed to what a consumer actually wants to know. You might think that the XYZ feature is wonderful, so you create a huge advertisement extolling its virtues when your target market is really concerned about the benefits of ABC instead. When creating your advertising, it's important to have an unbiased party review your ideas before you sink tons of money into a campaign that is doomed to fail before it even starts.
Passive media, such as newspapers and yellow pages, are terrific mediums because they are non-intrusive-you're ad isn't interrupting your prospect's day because they're already looking for information. However, these media only reach people who are already looking for your specific type of product-they are poor at reaching prospects who might not otherwise know about your company, so they're not great at creating a want for your type of product or service. Instead, the persistent use of "in your face" media, like radio and TV, will burn you into the minds of new customers long before they're ready to buy from you.
Many businesses cut down on advertising when sales are great. This is a big mistake. So is cutting your advertising budget when times are tough. Consistency is the key to long-term success here and a repeated cycle of off and on advertising prevents your business from growing. Scheduling a regular advertising routine is necessary to produce steady growth, regardless of your sales volume at any given time. Even if you think that an upswing in sales will continue indefinitely, keep plugging away with your ads-you'll appreciate the effort when business slows down again, as it inevitably will.
If you find yourself too busy to handle your company's advertising needs, your advertisements need a more professional image or you realize that you're not the best person to handle this responsibility, it's time to call in the big guns. Hire an in-house marketing manager, a public relations agency or an independent marketing consultant to take over. Doing it right the first time helps you avoid the headache of a wasted advertising budget. The money you spend on their salary is a small investment that will reap big financial benefits down the line when your advertising finally starts to pay off.
