Advertising Tips

Budget Your Advertising

"I can't afford to advertise right now as it's too slow." OR "I'm busy enough right now that I don't really need to do any advertising"

When should a person be advertising?

ALL THE TIME ! Budget a comfortable amount towards advertising every month. In some cases you may need more from a monthly budget or less, but if you allocate a certain amount aside, you always have it ready when you need it most.

Target Your Market

Television, Newspapers, Magazines and Radio, are an effective staple diet of advertising to are not as effective as target marketing. With these mediums your customer often has to be in the right place, at the right time, looking for your service.

Create an updated database list of your customers with phone, mailing and email information. This will come in handy for creating mailers, email announcements and specials.

New businesses spring up ever day

Check with your city regional district. They often have lists of new businesses which you can obtain or purchase to seek new clientele.

Use the power of the internet with e-mailing information to your targeted customers (Not Spam). Include an option to unsubscribe from the list. Use your website to reach customers regularly. They will re-visit your site if it is updated often.

Keep It Simple and to the Point

Try not to turn your ad, business card etc. into a full blown brochure. Customers do not need to know every aspect of your business and often leads to dis-interest. Include enough information to create just enough interest for the call. Photos, Graphics and illustrations are helpful, but use sparingly to keep things from looking too busy to read. The average customer attention span is mere seconds, not minutes.

Don't Fly Off the Handle

Too many ads today are creative without being persuasive. Slick, clever, funny, creative and different are poor substitutes for informative, believable, memorable and persuasive.

What really sells an ad the most? TRUTH ! Promises you may not be able to keep or just plain hype is now a cliche in a lot of advertising. Expect that your customers are intelligent and inquisitive.

Timing is Everything

If your business is seasonal, if you have specials that are time sensitive, or if the bulk of your business are done during specific times of the year, forward planning is critical. To secure the best available spots in publications, radio or even to book your printing or design of your ads, stay ahead of the game and contact them well in advance. Media companies can deal with stressful issues but they are not saviours, or immortal superheroes. If you try to rush them, mistakes can often happen.

Track Your Results

When advertising in several mediums, keep a record of your results. Do not be afraid to ask a customer where they found you. It's important to know where those dollars you spent are working for you the most.

MONEY SAVING TIPS

You don't have to order the farm to get a good price

Many print shops offer discounts when ordering large quantities. With our digital print on demand technology we can print you 5 or 5000 of anything, you can go with small runs, experiment with your marketing and hone in on your customers without spending a lot of money to get it at an affordable price.

Have a good idea of the message you want to convey

The more detail that's provided, the closer we have an idea of what you would like to see. This takes a lot of guess work and proofing. It doesn't have to be perfect, draw it a napkin if you like, but the more details artist has the faster he can accomplish your marketing image and save you on artwork charges.

Never tackle your project alone

Have some people look at your ideas and see if your sales pitch is well made. Bouncing ideas of an outside source can spur interesting ideas you may want to add or prevent you from a disastrous response if you didn't hit the right note for your customer.