Advertising Basics for Business 4

Reprinted with permission from Janet Attard* Copyright 2004. All rights reserved.
     
Can I tell from one ad whether or not I should continue my advertising?

Running one ad isn't really a good way to determine whether or not you should advertise. All you can learn from the response to a single ad is whether that one ad worked in the media you chose. For instance, one woman who wanted to start a one-person cleaning service put a small ad in the smaller of two weekly newspapers in a well-to-do community on Long Island, New York. She got no responses to the ad. She tried the identical ad in the competing newspaper and got all the customers she could handle.

The same thing could happen to you. Or, if the ad doesn't bring as many responses as you'd like, it could be that the ad doesn't have a good headline, doesn't make clear what you sell (a very common problem when people try to be creative when writing their ads), isn't in the right media to reach potential clients, or neglects to give a phone number. People who are most successful at advertising track responses and test different ads, changing one thing in an ad at a time (either the headline, copy, media in which they advertise, etc.), until they are satisfied they are getting the best possible results.

Because of the number of advertisements competing for readers' attention, potential customers may gloss over your ad the first few times they see or hear it. Experienced advertisers say customers often need to encounter your ad or hear your name a minimum of six to nine times before they pay much attention to it. Furthermore, a prospect might not want your service this week, but might need it three months from now. If he sees your name in an ad now and then sees it again in three months, you will seem somehow familiar to him and therefore more trustworthy than someone whose name he hasn't seen before. He may call you instead of a competitor.

Of course, a lack of initial response could really mean you shouldn't bother advertising.

Should I advertise in the classified sections of newspapers?

Certain kinds of businesses gain a lot of benefit from classified ads or small display ads in the classified section of publications. Many people turn directly to the classified ad section when they are ready to buy a product or service. That means you don't have to sell them on buying the product or service; you just have to convince them to buy from you.

One indicator of whether you should advertise in the classified section of a particular publication is if it has a classified heading, such as "Plumbing" or "Music," that seems appropriate for what you sell. If you find such a heading and see that many people advertise under it regularly, you can probably figure readers look for that type of product or service in that paper.

The most successful classified ads in newspapers and weekly shoppers tend to be those for services people can't do themselves or don't want do themselves, or for products or services they can't find anywhere else. Usually plumbers, electricians, those who repair appliances, tutors, cleaning services, rental services, and the like do well with this type of small ad.

What should I put in my ad?

What goes into an ad will depend somewhat on the size and nature of the ad; however, whether you are placing a full-page ad or a small classified ad, it should:

• get the reader's attention
  
• make clear what is being sold
  
• build interest and desire for what is being sold
  
• tell the reader what action to take and persuade the reader to take that action

You should also be sure the ad:

• states how the reader can contact you
  
• states the name of the product or service
  
• includes your business phone number and, preferably, your address, too. If you don't want to give out your address in an ad that has your phone number in it, at least include the town if the publication circulates throughout several towns.
     

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