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Advertising has been called an American art form. Each year about $20 billion is spent on television commercial time, and twice as much on advertising in newspapers, magazines, radios, signs, direct mail, and other publications. A tremendous amount of research and thinking about where, when and how to advertise is done before any of that money is spent.
Extra Income Ideas From Advertising
Kevin Rosen of Junior's Cheescakes Advertising has been called an American art form. Each year about $20 billion is spent on television commercial time, and twice as much is spent for advertising in newspapers, magazines, radios, signs, direct mail, and other publications. Before any of those dollars were spent, you can be sure that a lot of thought and study preceded the decision.
The most effective ads are those that are run and seen consistently. They may differ in size or content, but they keep a company's name before the consumer to maintain name recognition. During the Great Depression and the two world wars, many companies continued to run their ads, even though many people had no money to spend. But once they were able to, they chose the brands they remembered seeing in advertisements.
"It pays to advertise" has been proven, and the lesson has been learned well. If the business budget is tight, cut something other than advertising. Experts agree that advertising is the last thing
that should be cut. For the person looking for something, advertising helps. It can be compared to matchmaking, although advertising has not been around as long as matchmakers. Before the printed work, vendors would call out what they had, drawing other vendors who could use the product to add to theirs. The town crier was the first advertiser, notifying the townspeople of town meetings and other community events.
Later, signs by the side of the road would draw people to fruit stands and so forth. Advertisements let people know what's available, what's going on, and where they can find something. Ads inform and bring people with mutual interests together. An ad can be the matchmaker for a man and his dream car or for a man and his dream to be in business for himself.
The purpose of advertising is to get people's attention. The old saying "Let's run it up the flagpole and see who salutes" is still valid when referring to an ad's new design or concept. Ads are constantly being tested to see if they can produce greater results.
Large corporations know the value of a good ad and that they must rely on advertising to generate a greater share of the market. When you are ready to place your ad, be certain it is effective. Does it say what you want it to say? Are your name and address accurate? Is all the necessary information included? Then test your ad by placing it in a publication that appeals to the audience you hope to capture. Consider how many people the ad will reach and how many of those people will be interested. Some publications, like newspapers, may reach 50,000 people. That is a broad market, consisting of people with varied (or a broad range of) interests. You may prefer a publication that is more specialized to reach a vertical market, i.e., if you are selling dolls, consider doll collectors, hobby, craft, and business-related magazines targeted to your market. Try a test ad. If it works, run it again. If it doesn't, try another approach. Rewrite your ad and test again.
You will find that advertising serves your purpose and gets attention if you have a well-done ad in the right place.
Always watch for ads in places you are considering for your own ads. If ads for similar products continue to appear, you know they are working for the advertiser; and it should be a good place for you to run yours. Be aware of how ads attract your attention. Be aware of what you think is good and learn from it.
Choosing the right words to capture attention and to tell about your product or idea is as important as choosing the right place to run the ad. Obviously, if you are planning to sell straw hats, you will not place an ad in a newspaper in Alaska. Common sense should dictate where your ad will be most effective; although there have been some big surprises for some big advertising experts.
A trip to the library will help you choose publications that are logical candidates for your ads. The SRDS (Standard Rate and Data Service) will give you the information you need to determine costs, requirements, and so forth. Look at publications that cover the subject area best. And remember to check back issues to see which ads are running frequently--again, it is an indication of the type of ad that is working well in that publication.
When you prepare your ad, concentrate on creating strong, eye-catching headlines. For many readers, the headline is the only line worth reading. Make certain your headline and artwork or photograph work well together. Keep your message simple; appeal to readers' interests. What will your product do for them, and why should they buy it? Make it as easy as possible for the reader to respond to your ad. And always check and recheck that it has all the required information and that it is accurate.
Give yourself the ten-second test. Look at your ad for 10 seconds. If the prime objective of your ad does not come through to you in 10 seconds, start again.
Once you have an ad that you believe will give you good results, test it. When you have a winning advertisement, run with it. Run it. Run it.
New ads are tested against those that have proven successful. You may want to try other ads and test them as well to see which "pulls better," once you know what to expect from the first one. (This will give you a basis of comparison.)
Testing also means creating and running ads in different sizes: partial pages (one-half or one-fourth), even smaller ads, and full-page ads are all tested to see if results can be increased. Always include a code or department number in your ad so that you can accurately determine results. Use some method for identifying the ad from which you get responses months later. Your tests will not be worthwhile if you cannot identify the ad that has been answered.
Reprint your advertisement. Mail copies to prospective customers and to your regular customers. Then mail it again. You may triple your advertising effectiveness by direct-mail follow-up with the same sales message. If you are sincere and enthusiastic, your ads will reflect that authenticity, and your message will get responses and good sales results.
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