| |
| |
|
Advertising Information |
|
|
|
Improve Your Promotional Flyers And Improve Sales
Admittedly, I have not seen your advertising flyer. Then again, I probably don't have to. I have reviewed hundreds, if not thousands, of advertising flyers for small businesses. After 30 years I have found that nearly every small business ad flyer contains the same mistakes and missed opportunities. Avoid these seven common mistakes, and your advertising flyer - and your marketing in general - will be stronger for it. Advertising flyer mistake #1: A Blah Headline (Your Company's Name) Remember, your flyer is an ad. It needs to SELL. Your potential customers aren't interested in your name. They're not even interested in what you do. Sounds cruel? Well, it is but that's life. Get over it! Prospective customers are interested in their own needs and wants. So, hit them with a headline they can't ignore, because it addresses their needs. Instead of: Sheri's Pet Grooming Try: Smelly Pet Stinking Up The House? Or: We Treat Your Cat Like The Royalty They Are! Or: Man's Best Friend Deserves Something Special! You get the idea. Figure out what's important to your potential customers. Then, use your headline to immediately answer their question: "What's in it for me?" Advertising flyer mistake #2: Not Solving A Problem! Although your ad flyer copy should include your key features or services, each feature or service should be attached to a clear, customer-oriented, benefit that addresses a problem, or hassle, or pain. Also, tell - or, better, show - how those benefits prevent or solve problems for your potential customer. Think about all the problems, both real and potential, that could stem from not using your product or service. Put yourself in your customer's shoes. Talk to them. Listen to them. Learn what their problems are. Identify benefits about your product or service that make a difference to your potential customers.Emphasize in your flyer the problems and solutions that set you apart from your competition. Advertising flyer mistake #3: Be A Friend! People buy from people they like. One key thing your potential customer needs and wants is to feel good about you. Are you knowledgeable? Are you trustworthy? Do you understand my problems? Am I comfortable doing business with you? The more comfortable someone feels about buying from you, the more likely they are to do so. That's why I recommend that you have an "I" section - a section where you talk about yourself, your qualifications, your values, your personal commitment. Help them understand who you are and who they will be doing business with (hopefully). Advertising flyer mistake #4: Going Quietly Into The Night! This is the typical close to a flyer: "for more information, call 555-5555." Instead, create a "call to action". Here are three basic, proven closers: · Buy before (DATE), and receive $10 off. This closer is effective at getting immediate action, and works especially well for one-time purchases or regularly purchased items. · Act before (DATE), and get (VALUE-ADDED PRODUCT/SERVICE), FREE with your purchase! This closer offers an incentive for fast action. It also works "free" into your flyer. "Free" is a very powerful word. · Purchase before (DATE) to take advantage of our slow-season! This closer attaches a negative consequence to any delay or hesitation. Note the more believable the reason for the limit, the more powerful this closer becomes. Advertising flyer mistake #5: Forgetting There Are Two Sides! With an advertising flyer, the printing or photocopying is but a small part of the overall expense. The larger expense, in time or money or both, is distribution. So, distribute a two-sided flyer, for twice the opportunity to make a sale! Just make sure your second side doesn't compete with your main message side. The second side could be used for: · A comprehensive list of your services · A map with driving and parking directions · Customer testimonials · Relevant tips or advice · Answers to Frequently Asked Questions Use the second side to support, expand upon, or enhance the message on the main side. Advertising flyer mistake #6: One Good Shot! One-time advertising efforts are seldom effective. It is a rule of thumb among marketing professionals that you need to reach people at least eight times before they really notice you. Your prospective customers need to see the your ads over and over. So, plan a series of distributions as part of your strategy. I recommend that you plan to hit each household at least eight times with an ad flyer. Mix the message up a bit! Change the color of the paper you use. Change the headline. Keep track of which flyer drives the most business. If possible, combine your flyers with other localized advertising, so you reach those homes through a variety of media channels. At the very least, combine door-to-door distribution with posting in public areas where allowed. Community centers, schools, stores, and libraries often offer public bulletin boards. Advertising flyer mistake #7: Flyers Gone Astray! You should keep two objectives in mind when targeting neighborhoods for your flyer distribution. · It's much more cost-effective for you to have clients in convenient clusters instead of scattered all over town. Concentrate your ad distribution within and around your existing clusters of clients. · Reaching the right people within the target area is also critical. An advertising flyer for a landscaper is largely wasted if it's delivered to residents of an apartment building. The added advantage to walking your "territory" house-by-house will be giving you a better understanding for what services or mix of services you should offer. Promotional flyers are one tool in the small business' marketing arsenal. Learn to use them well and you will create customers while saving yourself time and money. Michele Schermerhorn calls herself a "Corporate Freedom Fighter" dedicated to freeing cubicle prisoners. She has over 30 years experience in the business world and over 12 years running her own successful online businesses. She is President of Online Business Institute Inc. (http://www.obinstitute.com), authors a marketing blog (http://www.imarketblog.com), and regularly conducts free online seminars. Online Business Institute Inc. exists to "Create Successful Online Business Owners One Person At A Time".
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Principle Of Advertising Online Advertising online is very similar to advertising in any environment. You really are trying to get your message or your product out there by the most cost effective means possible. Crazy Ads? Maybe Youre Just Out of The Demo! My father called me to complain, again. He's 82 and he's angry. 10 Tips For Writing A Profit Producing Ad 1. You can get ad copy ideas by studying similar product's advertising material. 4 Ways to Double the Power of Your Business Cards Sure, everyone needs business cards. But why not make your business card do double or triple the work of an average business card. Do Your Adverts Get You More Sales? Philadelphia retailer and US Postmaster General, John Wanamaker, once said, "Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don't know which half."If you're spending $10,000 a month on advertising $5,000 is going straight down the tubes. Brand Young and You Brand for Life; Why Cinema Advertising is an Effective Tools for Marketers In the world of advertising there are many forms of media that can be utilized to get an advertisers message to its intended audience. Newspapers, television, radio, Internet and billboards are effective tools in this effort but one form of advertising that is often overlooked is Cinema Advertising. The Online Equivalent of an Effective Newspaper Advertisement is FREE Ask anybody who has been in business for a long enough and they will tell you how newspaper advertisements have for decades helped to build countless small businesses.The advantages of a newspaper advertisement are many, but what has attracted small business entrepreneurs for decades is the speed at which a struggling entrepreneur (short of funds as many starting small businesses always are, and looking for customers fast) is able to get a very quick response. Can I Write and Print My Own Business Brochures and Business Cards? If you have a computer and a printer, preferably one that can print in color, then you can make your own brochures and business cards that are very professional-looking! Be sure to use good quality paper (that is available at any office supplies store like Office Depot or Staples) for anything that you are going to hand out or send to potential customers and clients.Writing Text for Your Brochure and Business CardThe very best thing to do is to get a few examples of business brochures and business cards, preferably from the same type of business as the business you are starting. Create Your Own Business Cards, Part 2 This is the second part of creating your own business card. If you missed the first one, let me know: mailto:webmistress@janes-place. When Times Get Tough... or When to Really Advertise The Pundits say the economy is slowly, but surely, recovering. Maybe not at the rate of the mid-90s stock boom, but recovering nonetheless. 10 Simple Techniques To Make Your Ad Get Powerful Attention 1. Make your ad's keywords and phrases standoutby enlarging the text. Why Your Ad Failed So you spent good money on an ad, put it in a magazine or newspaper, and waited patiently for phone calls that didn't materialize. You're upset: you feel that you've wasted money and time, and now you're convinced that advertising doesn't work. Tips for Using Paid Advertising Quite a few business out there can't survive without some type of advertising and/or brand recognition, so advertising your business is one of the most important aspects in running certain types of business. It's also one of the most frequently asked questions for "how to". Just What Are Consumers Thinking? Research would indicate that consumers don't know what they're thinking. According to an article written by Jack Shimell (2002) for Quirk's Marketing Research Review, Consumers make their decisions and react to advertising based more on unconscious emotional processes than on conscious rational processes. 2005 Super Bowl Ads... Winners and Losers Well, Super Bowl XXXIX is history. Too bad for the folks who consider themselves the always-pullin'-for-the-underdog type. How to Save Money by Making Your Own Sign In the sign industry we commonly refer to the material that the sign is made out of as the substrate. Examples include, wood, vinyl banners, aluminum, coroplast, etc. Free Publicity With Dogs, Cats, and Rats Here's a fascinating idea.. How Well Do Postcards Work? The humble little postcard has been getting a lot of attention in the marketing world. Along with this heightened interest comes some very good questions, such as. Whats The Frequency? The more things change, some say, the more things stay the same. When it comes to marketing, I tend to agree. Free Internet Advertising: 6 Proven Ways To Prevent Your Competitors From Stealing Your Customers It is getting harder daily to generate traffic.And when you succeed in getting new customers, you shoulddo all that is possible to avoid losing them to yourcompetitors.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
