The Power of Simplicity & White Space!

Readability is the key to effective visual communication. You can have a relevant, important, timely message to deliver but if it is not presented properly; sadly it may go unnoticed and no one will benefit, defeating it’s purpose.

Far too often the media itself is blamed when advertising doesn’t achieve the desired results but if you have done your homework, if you have taken the time to select the right media to reach your target audience the problem may simply be too much clutter leaving the reader subconsciously overwhelmed.

So what do readers do? They move on to other ads until they find “an island in a sea of information” for their eyes to land and relax.

Let me take you back… to some of advertising’s most revolutionary & effective campaigns. Imagine a time (the 1950’s & 60’s) when “the Big Three” North American auto makers (Chevy, Ford & Chrysler) dominated the auto industry with big cars known as gas-guzzlers. It was a time when bigger was considered better and the price of gasoline was just starting to get crazy.

Volkswagen was trying desperately to be accepted as the new alternative – before Honda, before Toyota and long before Kia so they focused their messages on what made them different.

Volkswagen used messages like Think Small, Drivers Wanted and Small Wonder to spark the imagination and interest of consumers ready for change and it not only worked – it made advertising history!

How effective was it? Studies showed that those simple Volkswagen ads with plenty of white space had higher reader scores than the editorial pieces in many magazines that they appeared in. Volkswagen broke through and the rest is history as we know the auto industry today.

The purpose of advertising is not to sell!

The purpose of your advertising is to create “the opportunity” to sell - to make people want to buy (and there is a big difference!) by delivering messages that are memorable & unique… that will make the phone ring and bring people to your door or your website. But remember, they have to be able to read it first!

As you consider the content of your advertising, keep it simple. Give them enough information to get them interested but not to make a decision… until they first talk to you!

Successful advertising is more than market research and understanding your customer. It’s the result of simplicity and readability. For more related information, check out my articles: “The Inquisitive Marketer” and “Trendwatching – Recognizing Tomorrow’s Opportunities Today” both found here on my website… Larry

“Everyone” gets you No One!

When asked to define one’s market, a common and optimistic response that I get is often “Everyone!” I’m not sure if that is just the easy answer to a complex question to avoid having to elaborate or if they actually believe that they can successfully pursue “everyone” but regardless, the response is troubling.

Your ability to recognize the often subtle differences between potential customers will position you to more effectively deliver a unique message to each that relates to their particular situation and to push the emotional buttons that they will react to.

You may indeed have a product or service that everyone can use but each market segment is driven by a different set of circumstances that influence their behaviour and require their own special message.

Advertising is an investment and by recognizing & addressing even the most subtle differences in a customer’s circumstances you will find that prospects & customers alike suddenly seem to connect with you much more readily and feel that you “understand them” when so many others don’t.

What I am asking you to do as an advertiser is invest the time upfront to “target a specific market”. Like any worthwhile investment, it will take more time and effort but the payoff (their business) will make it all worthwhile when you better understand, embrace and respond to their differences in your advertising, promotion and one-on-one interaction.

From an advertising & promotion perspective, the goal is to deliver the right message… to the right people, using the right venue, at the right time and your open mind to what makes them different is the answer.

For more ideas on market segmentation and the importance of recognizing the subtle differences in customer needs & expectations, check out my articles: “Sell the Benefits” and “The Inquisitive Marketer” both found here on my website… Larry

Dealing with “Advertising Reps”

The moment that you “Open for Business” it seems that an army of enthusiastic advertising sales people come knocking at your door. They all bring exciting news of their incredible product that will reach your target audience… and lead to your good fortune!

While many of them will have a worthwhile advertising product or promotional opportunity that can make a difference to your business, just as many others are simply looking to get a sale and move on!

So let’s look at the best ways to deal with them and separate the good from the bad.

The past two Mondays I have talked about and the importance of combining Advertising, Promotion and Publicity in your Marketing Strategy and having a budget allocated to grow your business. I consider this an important staging activity to help you deal with ad reps & sales people to make the best decisions for your particular situation.

With a Marketing Strategy in place you can carefully examine each opportunity using the following criteria:
1. Its “Fit” with your type of business
2. It’s ability to reach the customers you are looking to attract (Your Target Market!)
3. How it complements the marketing approach that you are currently using
4. Its potential return on investment (ie: sales, exposure, credibility, etc.)

Even with the best opportunities, I never “get involved” without doing some investigating first. Invite the one’s that intrigue you most to come back for a second appointment and in the mean time:
1. Check out their product yourself and learn more about it… (and them)
2. Contact advertisers or participants to get their impression… (will they continue to participate)
3. Ask your customers if they are aware of it and what they think.

If the response is favourable, it may warrant further consideration and if it isn’t, you have done your due diligence and can confidently decline their offer.

If you are impressed but just don’t have enough in your budget to accommodate the cost, invite them back at the end of the year for another look and possible involvement next year. They wouldn’t be doing their job if they gave up without a struggle but the purpose of this exercise is to develop an understanding of what is best for you at this point in time.

The best decisions that you make as a business owner are those that you have researched & carefully examined. Return on investment should always be the cornerstone of the marketing tools that you select for your business.

Every decision, big or small, leaves an imprint and impacts the degree of success that you achieve. For more information on decision making, check out my articles: “Creating an Action Plan to Help Ensure Success” and “Delivering on Promises will Deliver Success” both found here on my website… Larry

Your Marketing Strategy

This is the second of three ‘Monday’ posts covering fundamental steps to successfully grow your business. Last Monday I identified the importance of utilizing a diverse approach through Advertising, Promotion & Publicity.

Today I will focus on the Fundamentals of a Marketing Strategy and next Monday, How to Use your Strategy to Deal with “Ad Reps” who come knocking and pressure you to buy their product.

For the purpose of this post, in the simplest of terms, a Marketing Strategy outlines your approach to positioning and growing your business through Advertising, Promotion & Publicity. For a more in-depth definition, check out this Wikipedia link.

It is important that you have a fundamental sense of how to most effectively attract business and generate sales opportunities for your particular type of business… and there are endless ways to accomplish this.

Let’s look at a few examples of the directions that certain types of businesses take:

1. A restaurant or food service business can effectively reach customers through targeted coupon distribution supported by strategic business alliances and community involvement.
2. A home maintenance or renovation company might distribute flyers door to door in the neighbourhoods that they are working in; prior to beginning a project and identify their presence with lawn & vehicle signage.
3. A manufacturer or fabricator may participate in specific trade shows that potential customers attend. They can use the media to announce their participation and send invitations to their established clientelle. They then use the contacts that they make at the show to build their data base and follow up with throughout the year.

With a fundamental strategy in place, you can then carefully build upon related options as they come along whether it be a website, co-op advertising, charitable work, etc. as outlined in last Monday’s post. Given the nature of your business, you should plan, budget & implement activities that are most appropriate in reaching each of your target markets.

Now let’s identify The Five Core Factors in your Marketing Strategy
1. Your Target Market and their Expectations
2. The Seasonality of your Business
3. Your Marketing Budget
4. The Best Direction to take (as outlined above)
5. Key “Vehicles” or Media that will most effectively reach your Audience

With these five factors you place yourself in a position to develop the right message, deliver it to the right audience, at the right time, using the right vehicle or media.

Developing a sense of marketing direction is critical for every business. For more related information, check out my articles: “Finding a Way to Win” and “Building Brand Awareness” both found here on my website… Larry

Attract More Customers thru Advertising, Promotion & Publicity

Too many business owners that I meet use a one dimensional approach to marketing themselves and communicating with customers. They advertise when they’re slow to get busy and use a price driven message as the incentive. As a result, I have decided to devote the next three Monday posts to examine essential marketing components that work together to successfully promote & position your business.

Today I will define Communication Resources, next Monday the importance of having a Marketing Strategy and on August 11 how to most Effectively Deal with the “Ad Reps” who come knocking and pressure you into buying their product.

A three dimensional approach to marketing your business and communicating with customers will combine Advertising, Promotion and Publicity and it’s the diversity that makes it so effective! Let’s begin by identifying the unique role of each.

Advertising:
It is the non-personal, static act of communication generally delivered through a paid venue to a targeted market of either Existing Customers or Potential Customers (Prospects) to create interest, instill credibility & generate activity to your door, phone, email address or website.
• Some common examples are: Business Cards, Brochures, Signage (both storefront and vehicle), Ads (in newspaper, magazines, internet, radio television, etc.) flyers, direct mail, etc.

Promotion:
Venues that provide interpersonal contact between you and your customers or prospects to create multiple levels of interest, awareness and participation which involve, demonstrate, educate and build relationships.
Successful marketers schedule Promotions both on and away from their location.
• Some examples are: Participation in Trade Shows, Conferences & Festivals, Retail Displays, Networking, Seminars, Speeches, Strategic Alliances, Personal Selling, etc.

Publicity:
Non-paid for, news-worthy information published through the editorial or news department of a media that is often initiated through a Media Release. Identify business activities & community involvement that will generate a positive, favourable impression of your business and your values to build your Publicity Strategy around throughout the year.

Publicity positions you within the marketplace and positively impacts the public’s perception of your business venture largely due to the influence of the unbiased, professional news sources delivering the message.
• Media Releases are generally sent to Newspapers, Magazines, Newsletters, Radio & Television Stations as well as respected ‘news’ Websites that reach your target audience.

Successful marketers will utilize all three of these valuable resources to communicate on a variety of levels as essential elements in their Marketing Strategy.

Instead of simply running more ads to boost your sales or find more customers, carefully examine each of these important options. For more ideas, check out my articles: “Use Diversity to Overcome Seasonality” and “Trendwatching” both found here on my website… Larry

Building Share of Mind

If we were to meet for a cup of coffee, where might we go? When you don’t feel like cooking and decide to order pizza, who first comes to mind to call? If I asked you to recommend a good men’s clothier, where would you send me?

Understanding how the answers are determined to these and similar questions that are asked by consumers every day plays a vital role in your marketing and advertising success. On the surface it’s Brand Awareness but deeper down, on an emotional level the answer is “Share of Mind”.

Chances are you are quite familiar with the following organizations
and they rank among the first that you think of in their category!
ie: Wildlife Preservation, Vacation Destination, Specialty Coffee, etc…
Each has a strong Share of Mind and it hasn’t happened by accident!

Share of Mind refers to that personal collection of names & preferences that every consumer stores in the back of their mind that are referenced as the need arises. And the preferred ranking of every business is always to be “Number One” in the minds of as many potential customers as possible.

How is Share of Mind created and increased?

Through the consistency and frequency of the advertising, promotion & publicity that your business generates. Your Marketing Plan should deliver your message on a variety of levels using a variety of methods.
ie: External Marketing: using media, technology, positioning, networking and personal selling to deliver your message. And Internal Marketing, making sure that you and your team deliver on the promises and image that you have presented through your External Marketing.

Every business has Share of Mind to some degree. It’s just that some have more than others. Building Share of Mind is more than running price-driven ads when you’re slow to get busy. A one dimensional approach to marketing will limit your effectiveness and minimize your Share of Mind. Everything that you do both internally and externally sends out a message that collectively increases your Share of Mind.

So don’t just think “advertising” to grow your business, recognize and encourage those best practices that raise awareness, set you apart from the competition, reach people on a unique level and contribute to building your Share of Mind.

The more that you understand about attracting and retaining customers, the more you will enjoy being in business. For more related information, check out my articles: “Use “Summer” as a Marketing Tool” and “Blogs, Wikis & Podcasts” both found here on my website… Larry

Reaching your Customers thru Radio!

Radio can provide a powerful communication tool to promote your business and build share of mind when used properly. Radio is the backdrop for so much of our lives; while we work, while we shop, while we drive, while we work around the house, while we relax – it always seems to be there!

However, unlike print media, we are talking about an intangible message that is delivered in 15, 30 and 60 second spots (or commercials) so retention is generated through consistency & repetition of the message.

Every radio rep who comes through your door to sell you advertising will tell you that their station is #1 and they most likely are correct however; their #1 classification comes with a particular market demographic at a particular time of the day. ie: the most listened to radio station, Monday through Friday by working professionals between the hours of 6:00 and 9:00 am as they drive to work.

The key to your radio success is to advertise on a station that is #1 with your particular target market and run your commercials when your audience is most likely listening. All of this information is calculated annually for the Canadian Association of Broadcaster’s Bureau of Broadcast Measurement through ComQUEST Research Inc. and statistics are available to you through any radio station (ask about the BBM’s).

Understanding your market and when they are most likely to tune in will help you position your ads around the most effective time of day, ie: drive time, lunch hour, late night, weekday afternoons, special events, etc.

You’ve heard that radio advertising is expensive? Well once again, “expensive” is relative to the return on your investment!

To justify your investment, you will need to commit to a budget large enough to run a “flight” of ads on a consistent & regular basis from which will come the share of mind that places you as a business of choice in the mind of the consumer.

Regardless of your specific strategy, successful advertising is the result of diligent market research and understanding your customer. For more related information, check out my articles: “Trendwatching – Recognizing Tomorrow’s Opportunities Today” and “The Inquisitive Marketer” both found here on my website… Larry

Writing Effective Promotional Copy
The way that you write the copy for your promotional material will largely determine the response that you receive and the return on advertising investment. My first piece of advice is to collect advertising and promotional materials that impress you and that you feel are easy to read. Use their writing style as a model.

You will notice that the use of relevant photographs, graphics and colour add to the visual impact of effectively written promotional material making it’s communication multi-dimensional.

Here are Six Important Considerations when Writing Promotional Copy:

1. Keep the Headings Simple - use no more than seven words.
The job of the heading is to attract attention and to entice the consumer to read on. Sub-headings and spacing make large amounts of copy easier to read and help the reader stay focused.

2. Direct your copy content towards One Specific Target Market that you are attempting to reach rather than using a generic message for everyone.
Each target audience has its own particular needs, applications and expectations so if the message is too broad no one may relate to it.

3. The Purpose of Advertising is to Create Awareness, Stir an Interest, Educate the Consumer and most important, to Generate Activity but not to make a sale.
Leave out one important decision-making detail in your promotional copy content so the reader needs to speak with you before they decide. Too much information may position the reader to make a decision on their own when actually you want them to call or come in first so you can tailor your response to their specific questions or concerns.

4. Identify Advantages & Benefits in your copy which place the focus on “what’s in it for the customer”. Features outline what you offer but people make buying decisions on the advantages of choosing you and the benefits that they receive. Advantages & Benefits make customers comfortable with their choices.

5. Including a Call to Action Encourages the Reader to React Immediately and works best with an incentive or time limited offer.
ie: Seating is Limited, Call Us Today!

6. Provide a Couple of Ways for Interested Consumers to Reach You.
A single method to contact you may not work for everyone so include at least two such as: street address & phone number, your phone number & email address or your website address & phone number.
Including a map can be helpful if you are attracting first-time visitors to your location.

Communication is vital in every aspect of business. For more on this topic, check out my articles: “Building Brand Awareness” and “Sell the Benefits” on this theme, both found here on my website… Larry

Vehicle Signage
You have often heard me say that advertising is an investment and one of the most effective advertising investments for most any business is vehicle signage. Out there 24/7, literally 365 days a year creating awareness, delivering your message and establishing your brand identity makes vehicle signage an all around cost effective method of both positioning and promoting your business.

When you weigh vehicle signage against other forms of traditional advertising such as print media, broadcast media or direct mail on its ability to target a market, catch attention and build share of mind on a limited budget, vehicle signage is tough to beat.

When I say “target a market”, business vehicles constantly move from location to location, customer to customer, job site to job site telling the community that you are a player, complementing the image and messages of your other forms of advertising.

The right message on the right (smart or hybrid) vehicle can make a strong, memorable “green” statement regarding your company’s position on recycling, conservation and the environment.

Vinyl applications allow incredible visual possibilities from simple contact information to a full vehicle wrap capable of providing an appropriate image for any type of business. From an investment perspective, vinyl applications can be removed when leases expire or vehicles are sold.

Let’s talk about accountability and look at an example of how vehicle signage can directly impact sales. My pizza client’s signed vehicles make the phone ring almost single-handed as they move through neighbourhoods, prompting people to think “hey, let’s order pizza! After all, we work hard and we deserve it.” This is so effective that during a slow Monday evening, we have our pizza drivers cruise through neighbourhoods and then watch as the phones light up!

Whether you are a retailer, wholesaler, manufacturer or even consultant or service provider working from a home based operation, vehicle signage when handled appropriately can prove to be a unique and powerful marketing tool.

To take a closer look at ways to grow your business, check out my articles: “Five Great Ways to Think Bigger than the Next Guy” and “The Benefits of Hanging in There” both found here on my website… Larry

The Great Outdoors!
There are an endless number of ways to effectively promote your business and the key always comes back to your ability to deliver the right message to the right people at the right time. The fourth component to this equation is “using the right media” so today we’ll talk about billboards.

We have also talked about the importance of uniqueness in every aspect of business and uniqueness applies to your advertising as well and the attention that a unique message can draw.

Outdoor advertising is just what it infers and includes the use of billboards, bus shelters and bus signage itself - both internally and externally. I have heard people comment that billboards are expensive, but given the cost of a 1/8 page newspaper ad which appears once and is tossed, in comparison, the cost of a billboard becomes quite reasonable, giving you a 30 day period of exposure which in terms of advertising power is arguably a better investment.

A billboard will deliver your message 24/7. They come in a variety of sizes, they can be moved from location to location, month by month and the Outdoor provider can supply you with statistics on the number of vehicles that will typically be exposed to your message hour by hour. To ensure that your billboard message achieves maximum readability, use no more than 7 words.

So rather than continuing with the same media selections year after year, make it a point to research “Outdoor Advertising” as an option when you plan your promotion strategy for the upcoming year.

Diversity and uniqueness are important components to every business. For more related information, check out my articles: “Building Brand Awareness” and “Using Diversity to Overcome Seasonality and Stabilize Sales” both found here on my website… Larry