Many businesses and many individuals say, “Advertising doesn’t work.” Typically, their evidence is anecdotal. They recently spent xyz on a print campaign or a radio campaign and the results weren’t impressive or were nonexistent. Advertising is like a diet in that sense. A lot of people will tell you they tried one and it didn’t work. What they don’t tell you is that they took donut breaks during the diet and substituted beer for broccoli. Advertising doesn’t work,” is a ridiculously broad, false statement. It should be “my advertising doesn’t work.” That is succinct and honest. And it begs the question, “Why not?”
Successful Advertising
There are four basic things that make advertising successful. If your advertising isn’t showing significant results, it’s likely that one or more of those things were ill-conceived and are malfunctioning. The four things are media choice, targeting, messaging, and money.
A Focus On Audience And Location
Your media choice is simply where you are advertising. There are lots of places. You can be on billboards, on television, on the radio, in the newspaper, in magazines, online and in the mail. It’s certainly effective to be advertising in multiple places, but not every place may be right for your business. In an effort to spend on multiple things you may not be spending enough on more effective things. It’s better to shout on two kinds of media than whisper on four.
Targeting is who you want to reach and that should have an enormous effect on where you decide to advertise. Don’t pick your favorite radio station to advertise on. Pick the stations your customers listen to! What does your customer read? What do they watch? What social media platforms are important to them? Where are your competitors advertising?
Consumers see thousands of ads each day. If your ad doesn’t stand out it won’t be noticed. There has to be something compelling about it. It has to relate to your target. Your messaging should have a voice, a personality. It should fit your brand. Don’t be boring. You don’t want to sound or look or read like everyone else. Don’t rely on one “sale” after another.
Put Your Money Where You Mouth Is
The last important piece is money. Is your budget allocated correctly? You may have overspent on one form of media at the expense of a more effective form. The media buy you made may not match the demographic of your target. A good agency should be able to look at your media buy and quickly determine if it makes sense. A good agency will help you with media choice, targeting and messaging. Advertising does work. The right agency will make it work for you.