Advertising Campaigns that Get Results
by Charlie Cook
Published on this site: August 9th, 2005 - See
more articles from this month
"Advertising doesn't work." I hear it from my clients
all the time. One client was about to file for bankruptcy
because she wasn't getting a good response to her radio ads,
and the cost was killing her. But she knew her target market
was listening; she knew she needed to get her name out there
to generate more business. What should she do?
Owners of small businesses and professionals like yourself
realize that to take your business to the next level, you
need to get your products and services in front of a larger
audience. You want to generate more leads, get more prospects
to contact you and buy from you. Advertising is essential
but how do you get more out of your advertising dollars?
Have you been disappointed by your advertising campaigns?
I felt the same way about my family's VCR. I paid good money
for it (though probably not nearly as much as most people
pay for advertising) and as far as I was concerned I could
never get it to work the way I wanted it to. I spent way too
much time fiddling with it and I still couldn't get it to
record a TV show or a movie reliably when I was away. After
a while I stopped trying to use its record function.
Sound familiar?
Compared to programming a VCR, creating a successful advertising
campaign is simple. Note the operative word here is "successful".
It's easy to put together an advertising campaign, but creating
one that helps you make more than you spend should be the
objective. The following seven elements are what separate
a successful advertising campaign from one that just costs
you money.
Elements of A Successful Advertising Campaign
- Choose the media that will reach your target market.
It sounds obvious, but make sure your target audience will
see and/or hear your ad. Select a publication or radio or
cable station that your target audience reads or tunes to.
If you're advertising on the web, your keyword selection
is critical here.
- Write ad copy that your prospects will want to read.
Your prospects' primary interest is in what your product
or service will do for them, not what it actually is. Which
would you be more likely to read, a headline that reads,
"Accounting Services" or one that reads, "How
to Avoid Overpaying Your Taxes"?
- Have others establish your credibility. If space allows,
include testimonials in your ad verifying the outstanding
results your products and services generate.
- Motivate prospects to contact you Include a limited-time
offer or something for free - a report, appraisal or bonus
product - to prompt your prospects to take action.
- Tell prospects what you want them to do and how to do
it. This is your "call to action". Tell them to
call you, visit your web site, send you an email, fill in
the reply card, etc.
- Follow up your offer with the information prospects need
to make a purchase. Too many people make the mistake at
this point in the s.ales process of launching into a s.ales
pitch. Whether your prospect is on the phone with you or
is visiting your web site, help them clarify the problem
or concern they have and detail the solution you provide.
Then remind them what action you want them to take.
- Continue to educate your prospects and clients. Stay
in touch with likely prospects by contacting them at least
every month. Get the conversation going by discussing a
common problem. Give your prospects a quick tip they can
use and, of course, mention the solutions you provide.
A successful advertising campaign will include all seven
of the above elements, not just one or two. When you put all
these elements in place, your advertising will generate more
leads and s.ales and you'll see a good return on your advertising
dollars.
By the way, the client who came to me on the verge of bankruptcy
is now back on solid financial ground. Once she understood
how to write her advertising copy and manage her advertising
campaigns, her radio advertising started to bring in a steady
stream of new business.
Charlie Cook, the author helps service professionals,
small business owners and marketing professionals attract
more clients and be more successful. Sign up to receive the
F.ree Marketing Strategy eBook, '7 Steps to get more clients
and grow your business' at http://www.marketingforsuccess.com
|
