Five Characteristics of Highly Successful Advertising
Have you ever spent a small fortune on advertising that generated disappointment rather than sales?
Many small business owners have been down the road of flat advertising results and are at a loss when it comes to developing new ideas to improve the response to their ads.
Whether you run ads in your local newspaper, your industry's top periodical or on-line, you need your investment in advertising to pay for itself, and then some, in order to justify its cost.
If your ads aren't generating the interest you want in your products and services they may be suffering from one of the five common mistakes small business owners and professional service providers make when developing and delivering their advertising.
Here is a list of five qualities common to successful small business advertising campaigns.
Zero in on Your Best Prospects
Many small business owners make the mistake of thinking bigger is better when they choose a medium in which to run their ads and opt to spend their advertising dollars to reach a larger but less focused market.
For example, if your company specializes in helping law firms reduce the cost of long, ongoing cases and you choose to run a series of full page ads in the New York Times instead of the New York Law Journal you will likely be disappointed by the response to your campaign. Despite reaching the considerably larger audience of the New York Times your would be missing the focused attention of the legal minded readership of the New York Law Journal.
Be sure to zero in on your market. You will increase the likelihood that the readers who see your ad will actually have a need for your service.
Set Yourself Apart from the Crowd
Unless your business sells a product or service that is completely unique and faces no competition your ads need to set your products or services apart from the crowd of your competitors.
If you are the owner of a pet supply company and your ads simply say, "We Sell Pet Supplies" they will be passed over along with every other bland advertisement for Fido's food.
On the other hand, your ads will stand out and attract much more attention to your shop if you state that you sell, "King Sized Bones and Bowls for the Royalty in Your Family."
By focusing your ads on the owners of large breed dogs you distinguish yourself from the crowd of pet shops that simply sell pet supplies and make it clear to the owners of large dogs that you sell what they need.
Be sure the copy of your ads has the effect of making what you offer unique. Your highly targeted prospects will reward you by noticing the difference in your ads and buying from you.
Demonstrate Value
Another property of a highly effective advertisement is that it demonstrates the value your products and services provide. By demonstrating value in your advertisements you give your prospects a clear idea of the benefits you provide and a clear reason to buy from you. Demonstrating value can also help you set yourself apart from you competitors.
How can you change your ads to demonstrate the value you provide? What special offers can you make to set yourself apart from the pack?
Focus on client problems
Consumers buy products and services because they fill a need or solve a problem. If your ad copy does not address your prospects' problems they will never know that you provide the solution they need.
If you are recovering from knee surgery and need to work with a physical therapist to regain your full range of motion, would you be more likely to choose a therapist who advertises his new and modern equipment or the one who advertises that she will have your knee working and feeling like new again in just three weeks?
Be sure to focus your ads on your clients' problems. You will win more business as more and more prospects come to see you as the solution to their problem.
Require Action
The final aspect of a highly effective ad is a call to action. If you've done your job up until this point, your prospect has read your ad. If your ad does not finish the job and inspire your prospect to contact you for more information or visit your store or your web site, it is not worth the money you spent to have it published.
Don't assume that your prospects know what they should do next. You need to tell them to be sure they know.
If you've gotten their attention, demonstrated your value and shown them that you are the solution to their problem, don't waste your good work by neglecting to instruct them to take the next step and contact you.
If all this seems like a lot to accomplish in one advertisement, you need not worry. A well-written marketing message will take care of most of the details of writing a highly effective ad.
Do you have a marketing message you can use to consistently deliver effective ads and position your business as the solution to your client's problems? You should.
The author, Jeremy Cohen, helps small business owners and professional service providers attract more clients, grow their business and be more successful with his marketing and web site enhancement coaching service and his marketing guides. Get his free guide: Jumpstart Marketing: More Profits, Clients and Success at: http://www.bettermarketingresult s.com/marketing-services/asp
 Google News Updated : Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:51:51 GMT Hunt begins for Karadzic helpers - BBC News
BBC News - Officials investigating captured Bosnian Serb ex-leader Radovan Karadzic say they will track down and punish those who aided his false identity. Video: Karadzic plans to defend himself in The Hague Kenya: Karadzic's Fate a Lesson Publ.Date : Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:47:45 GMT Finding Bale's dark side - Chicago Sun-Times
Chicago Sun-Times - BY BILL ZWECKER Sun-Times Columnist 'The Dark Knight'' star Christian Bale's alleged ''assault'' in London against his mother and sister is part of a long-simmering family feud. Batman star stays silent in Spain Christian Bale's lady sidekick: Sibi Bale Publ.Date : Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:08:50 GMT Day After, WNBA Untangles Brawl - New York Times
New York Times - By MIKE OGLE Some of the WNBA’s biggest stars commanded national attention Tuesday night and into Wednesday - but not in a way their teams or the league wanted. Don't count on fights becoming WNBA trend WNBA may have a fighting chance Publ.Date : Thu, 24 Jul 2008 05:06:48 GMT Aurilia, Vizquel help Giants rally for win - San Jose Mercury News
San Jose Mercury News - By Andrew Baggarly It would be difficult to claim that the Giants improved their playoff hopes when they rallied for a 6-4 victory over the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night. Aurilia gets key hit, makes pitch for old guys Giants rally in eighth to edge Nats Publ.Date : Thu, 24 Jul 2008 08:43:04 GMT Sudan's president boogies on last Darfur pit stop - AFP
AFP - EL GENEINA, Sudan (AFP) - A dancing Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir paraded as a man of peace on Thursday during a heavily protected tour of Darfur defying accusations that he masterminded genocide in the region. Sudan counters charges with diplomacy Al-Bashir in Sudan peace pledge Publ.Date : Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:15:43 GMT US cancer boss in mobiles warning - BBC News
BBC News - The director of a leading US cancer research institute has sent a memo to thousands of staff warning of possible higher risks from mobile phone use. Cell phones: The next cigarettes? Group sees possible link to brain cancer Publ.Date : Thu, 24 Jul 2008 10:35:11 GMT Obama to demand more from Europe in Berlin speech - Reuters
Reuters - By Caren Bohan and Noah Barkin BERLIN (Reuters) - US presidential candidate Barack Obama is expected to call on Europe to do more in hotspots like Afghanistan when he speaks in Berlin on Thursday in his only formal address of a week-long foreign tour. Berliners welcome Obama as they did JFK Obama Starts European Trip With Stop in Germany Publ.Date : Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:25:11 GMT Clickbank |
PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts,
Websites, and more... So you've decided to run a print ad in your... Read More 100 Excellent Words Absolutely. Amazing. Approved. Attractive. Authentic. Bargain.... Read More Classified ads do not have the big market appeal that... Read More 2005 puts us at the mid-point of the first decade... Read More Oh Grand and Glorious Southern Guru, I am perplexed. What... Read More Is fear of failure an issue when you commit valuable... Read More I have been reading articles on increasing sales using search... Read More I recently saw an ad taped to my mailbox, mind... Read More A well-planned and properly executed marketing program should include a... Read More Today, more than ever, it is crucial that your ad... Read More One of the challenges facing marketers is determining the most... Read More An effective way to gain company recognition is to order... Read More Did you know generating positive media coverage is four times... Read More Often considered as "plain Jane's" of the print world, trade... Read More Scrolling LED signs is type of LED signs that displays... Read More If you have a computer and a printer, preferably one... Read More Too many small business owners today run ad campaigns that... Read More The president of a manufacturing company recently asked me, "Why... Read More In 1957, a perspicacious young journalist from Pennsylvania named Vance... Read More Walk around any trade or consumer show and you will... Read More Are your business-to-business ads working for you? If they are... Read More Your Yellow Page Ad Deserves More than 10 Minutes of... Read More Well, Super Bowl XXXIX is history. Too bad for the... Read More In a recent article, I shared five of my top... Read More A few years ago, I analysed the statistics of where... Read More
Adsense
websites
Print Advertising: Knowing What To Put In Your Ads
100 Excellent Words and 70 Action Getting Phrases for Ad Writing
Classified Ads That Get Results
Predictions for 2010
Is Advertising Art?
The Art Of Fear Free Advertising
Increase Business By Being Nice
Creditability In Advertising
How You Can Create Advertising That Sells
Turn Your Ad Copy into a Goldmine!
When Advertising Wears Out
Custom T-shirts -- Put Your Company Logo on Cotton!
Media Savvy - How To Manage Your Time To Gain The Best Media Coverage
Trade Writing - For Cash!
Scrolling LED signs
Can I Write and Print My Own Business Brochures and Business Cards?
What Happened? Troubleshooting Poor Response from Ad Campaigns
Why Your Ads Aren?t Working
The Not-So-Hidden Persuaders: The Power of The Media Upon Us All
10 Tips to Use Giveaways Effectively
How to Write B2B Ads That Catch Customers
Consider These Pressing Facts Before You Renew Your Yellow Page Ad
2005 Super Bowl Ads... Winners and Losers
More Cheap Tricks for Promoting Your Business
If You Invest Money on Advertising, then You could Save Thousands through this Simple Little Secret
Affordable and Reliable Web Hosting Starting at $4.49/Month
Books, Bibles and Fast-Talkers
Every community has 'em. Fast talkers who roll into town... Read More
If You Want To Get More Customers, Heres 10 Powerful Stories To Improve Your Ads
Remember, as a child lying in bed and listening to... Read More
Marketing Tips For Small Business ? Advertising That Works, Part I
Have you ever seen an ad on television that was... Read More
Grab Your Share of Untold Amounts of Advertising Dollars
If you advertise in any way, the following information could... Read More
Just What Are Consumers Thinking?
Research would indicate that consumers don't know what they're thinking.... Read More
Placemat Ad Advertising
Starting a placemat ad business can create more business for... Read More
How To Create Instantly Compelling Ads Every Time
Use This Quick 3-Question Evaluation Process, So You Can Be... Read More
Double the Effectiveness of Your Company Brochure
Let's face it - most brochures go straight into the... Read More
The Shrinking Ad Dollar
CPR CPA CTR... what does it all mean? What it... Read More
The Skinny on Billboards
Several years back the billboard people put a big picture... Read More
Take Your Radio Ads to the Next Level
Most small businesses do not have a high powered advertising... Read More
Business Ideas: 5 Uncommon Ways To Generate More Online Business
Sometimes, it is not an obvious business idea that will... Read More
The Online Equivalent of an Effective Newspaper Advertisement is FREE
Ask anybody who has been in business for a long... Read More
Avoid Being Vague
We are bombarded with thousands of marketing messages daily?on television... Read More
Present Your Product On A TV Show for FREE
Would you like to get your new or existing Internet... Read More
Mortgage Marketing - Broadcast Advertising vs Direct Advertising
Do you know how to design and deploy a marketing... Read More
Ten Ways To Sell Advertising Space Fast
1. Give your customers a discount when they spend over... Read More
Become a Storyteller Not an Advertiser and Watch Your Traffic Increase
When you read the newspaper, do you read advertisements as... Read More
Push vs Pull Advertising
Push vs. Pull Advertising - Understand the Consequences for your... Read More
Secrets And Top-Tips Of Mail Order Advertising
Good Advertising creates more production, thus greater consumption, faster turnover... Read More
How To Write More Powerful Brochures, Leaflets, And Catalogues
Probably the most interesting thing about brochures and leaflets is... Read More
Advertising Agency In Boston: Tips and Tricks
The big news on Wall Street last year was the... Read More
If You?re Tired Of Adverts That Don?t Work And Letters That Don?t Sell, Then You Must Read This
Over the 32 years I've been involved in sales, marketing... Read More
10 Ways To Improve Your Print Ads
1) Include a coupon in your large ads. This can... Read More
Advertising 101
Advertising has truly become a part of all of our... Read More
Advertising |