On the Internet, it is easy to advertise something that somebody is looking for. It’s very difficult to advertise something that nobody is looking for.
That sounds like an obvious statement, but it’s actually quite true.
When somebody is actively looking for something on the Internet (like cooking supplies or a game cheat code) they usually go to a search engine like Google and type it in. If you do PPC advertising, you can bid on keywords and present your offer exactly when the user is looking for your product.
When you have a product that nobody is actively searching for (like extended warranty refunds or lost rebates), how do you get customers to your web site? The answer is to branch out to traditional media.
First, it should be said that it’s not wise to market a product that nobody is looking for, unless the appeal of that product is so strong that you can convince a customer to break away from their world for a few minutes to check it out. This usually is the realm of FREE MONEY or LOSE WEIGHT IN YOUR SLEEP or LEARN THE HIDDEN MARTIAL ART OF INSTANTANEOUS DEATH. But occasionally, a reputable retailer has a product that is of value to the consumer; if only they knew about it.
The recurring theme that follows is this: find the right person to place your ads in each type of media, and everything else falls into place. It really IS who you know, and not what you know.
Newspaper and magazine advertising can be cost efficient and extremely effective for a strong appeal offer. My guru of the print placement passes along these tips:
- Look for people that have relationships with newspapers that can place ads in remnant space. Remnant ads are placed in an empty spot at the last second by a newspaper when they have nobody else to fill it, or when another advertiser pulls out at the last second.
- Use a vertical ½ page ad. Horizontal ½ page ads usually get put below the fold and are never seen. ¼ page ads are ineffective. Full page ads don’t pull as well, dollar for dollar, as vertical ½ page ads.
- Advertise in “thin” papers. You won’t even be able to find your own ads in thick papers like the LA Times and Chicago Sun Tribune. How is the customer going to?
- Try small town papers. The CPM cost is much higher, but the response rates are often much higher as well.
- Try classified ads. They’re cheap. You can test a classified ad in papers with millions of circulation for a few hundred dollars.
Radio ads are affordable these days, and can reach a massive audience. My authority of audio passes along these hints:
- Try to find an ad agency that has long standing relationships with several radio stations (preferably in several states).
- This person should know which radio stations have the most responsive listeners for certain types of offers.
- He should also know who likes to negotiate rates.
- She should also be able to get you into a studio to record your spot for free, and perhaps even provide the talent for free.
- Look for remnant radio space. Radio stations offer the same sort of remnant advertising that newspapers do. They also have open spots and advertisers pull out at the last second.
- Try to negotiate a “performance deal” where you pay the station nothing (or next to nothing) unless certain performance metrics are reached. It’s rare – but it’s out there.
- "In radio, frequency is the hammer." It’s better to run your ads in a high frequency for a short period of time than it is to run them every once in a while over a longer period of time.
Direct Mail is for brave souls who aren’t afraid of failure. But it can be the most reliable profits of any advertising avenue. Since a lot of advertisers have moved onto the Internet, direct mail is an often overlooked way to make money. My pundit of postage has this to say:
- A good list broker will know the hot lists, the responsive lists, and the lists that will work for your offer. There are a ton of list brokers out there. Your best bet to find a good one is a referral, and the next best option to just to interview several of them before choosing one.
- If you aren’t an educated copywriter, hire one. Direct mail is painfully honest and if you don’t have a strong letter your money (time, postage, printing) will be wasted.
- Your mail won’t be read if it isn’t opened. Don’t use envelope teasers, or bulk mail postage because it is obviously junk mail that gets tossed right away. Letters from Aunt Millie are never thrown in the trash!
- People love coupons. Everybody loves to get a deal. It is one exception to the rule above. If a piece of mail is obviously a coupon book, it will usually get opened.
- A sales letter can never be too long; it can only be too boring. That goes for most types of advertisements. Details are the key to getting a potential customer to trust you. If you can convince someone that they want to buy your product, and they want to pay the price you’re selling it for, the next big hurdle is to get them to trust you. That mission is only accomplished by details – and lots of them.
Although I no experience or education in TV ads, it’s widely known that
cable television can reach a niche audience very effectively. I can only imagine that (like everything else on this list) if you contact the right person/organization about placing these ads that you can do very well.
A few other ideas for offline advertising include:
- Yellow pages – a properly written yellow pages ad that gives more detail than your competitors can still pull very well.
- Movie theatres – I have an acquaintance who advertises her dance studio exclusively on movie theatre screens before the movie begins. And her studio stays busy all the time.
- Billboards
- Bus benches
- Taxi cabs
- Mail inserts – put your flyer in another merchant’s mail.
In the end, no matter what form of advertising you do, it comes down to the numbers. Everything is a test until it proves to make money. If you’re not measuring the response you get from each advertising channel you’re running blind. You will fail. Measure measure meausr measr mesr until you know what works and what doesn’t.
Happy profits,
Travis
P.S. In an upcoming post, I’ll go over advertising your consulting business. Consulting is a different animal. Advertising it is a practice in building reputation, as you’ll see…
Labels: advertising