Should you advertise?

Advertising is an interesting topic and it's still one of the main things that people think marketers do, probably because it's an easy area of marketing to understand. That's not all we do of course, but it's still an important element of the marketing mix. There are some other facts we think we know about advertising:

• It's expensive
• Big companies do it
• You mostly see advertising on posters, TV, radio, newspapers and magazines, and on the Internet.

All of the above are correct as far as they go, but it's surprising to learn that traditional advertising, like we see on the TV and in magazines has become more accessible as these media fight to compete with more cost effective advertising options on the internet. The other reason the costs have come down is that many of them are losing readership as consumers move online so have to compete harder for your advertising business.

As part of a marketing campaign or long term awareness raising, traditional advertising can still work. What doesn't usually work are one-off advertisements, especially in newspapers but this also applies online with banner advertising as once or twice is not enough time to establish your message with the reader or visitor.

Today, our customers are likely to consume information online as well as via traditional media so like most other marketing a mix is a good idea. Here are our favourite tips to prepare for advertising:

1. Ask yourself how can you measure it? Traditional advertising may mean you need a code on the advert to track its success, or a use a unique phone number so you know the advert generated that enquiry, not another medium. If you use online advertising you can also measure conversion rates using visitor statisticss and tracking an "action" like completing a sale or signing up for a newsletter.
   
2. Before you decide whether to advertise or not, find out where your customers are. If they're Daily Mail readers at least you know your advert will be seen by the right people if you advertise with the Daily Mail.
3. Off-line, negotiate. Most printed media, radio and TV are desperate to bring in more advertising revenue. Online, look at low cost bids and long-tailed search terms to get more clicks for your budget, although bear in mind that longer search terms tend to get less volume, which is why you pay more for the short, popular ones.
   
4. Whichever medium you choose, have more than one advertisement over a period of time and make sure your adverts are seen/shown regularly.
5. Never say yes to a one-off advert in anything, no matter how cheap it sounds! If you're tempted, spend that money on another form of marketing where you get longer exposure.
6. Have a clear call to action. What do you want the person who sees or hears your advert to do next? Telephone you, visit your website or do something else? This also helps you to tack the success of your advert.
7. Seriously consider trying online advertising methods such as pay per click on search engines like Google or in social networks like Facebook. If your customers are looking in these media. It's a way of getting straight to them when they login or search. The biggest advantage of nearly all online advertising is control. You can control budgets instantly and have constant access to performance stats and conversion rates.

The Internet has made it easier for small businesses to dip their toes in the water with advertising as it's not only affordable but highly measurable. As always, it still has to meet your criteria for spending marketing budget and guarantee you a return that you're happy with.

Karen McNulty
www.MarketingPlanWiz.co.uk and www.BusinessPlanwiz.com