Putting Some Pizzazz In Your Ads
The media bombards us with thousands of images, messages, and
logos everyday. In fact, the average person in the United States
watches between two and four hours of television on a daily
basis. (www.mediafamily.org) Does it surprise you that we start
to tune out advertisements after awhile?
This makes it a lot harder for people trying to market their
business come up with ideas that stand out in the frenzy of ad
pitches. Unless Britney Spears happens to be singing jingles on
national broadcasts about your company, your ad campaign is
probably going to have to work a little creativity in there. Here
are some common advertising methods and ideas to give them some
sparkle.
Classifieds: Classified advertising is one of the oldest forms in
the book. Tons of people look through their Sunday paper in
search of apartments, jobs, or anything else you might ever want.
Smaller local publications are now also offering a classifieds
section, not to mention that the world of online classifieds is
at its peak.
So many places to find, place, and ignore classifieds. So how do
you prevent potential customers from skimming right over your ad?
Grab their attention from the get go, and chances are they'll
read your ad, thanks to a great opening line. There are three
types of opening lines that work well with classifieds:
Informative, enticing, or challenging lines.
If you tell your reader in the first statement what you're
offering, they'll know whether or not they want to keep reading.
"Learn How to Quickly Generate Hot, Hungry, Targeted Traffic!" is
a great opening line, because it tells readers that the product
has to do with increasing website traffic. Right away
your reader knows whether or not that ad is for them.
Secondly, you can entice readers into your ad by using images in
your opening line. "TRY LIGHTING FIXTURES BEFORE YOU BUY!"
Although this line doesn't give any specific detail, it does give
the reader a nice mental picture of being able to see their
lighting fixtures in place before they ever put any money down.
Offer your reader something they want: "BRING PEACE BACK INTO
YOUR LIFE! In today's hectic world, who could resist?
Finally, if you challenge your reader to do something, they will
be more willing to see what the ad has in store. "TIRED OF
ANSWERING TO YOUR BOSS? START YOUR OWN SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS!" or
"SAVE YOUR DRIVING RECORD AND STOP PAYING A FORTUNE FOR
INSURANCE!" The incentive is there, and more often than not, the
reader will be motivated to see what else in store.
The body of a classified ad should be short and to the point.
Once you've gotten your main point across, readers will follow up
if they're interested. Leave your contact information at the end
of the ad, in clear type.
Remember that you should devise a method for tracking your
classified ads. If you place three different ads in three
different places, you want to know which ads or which
publications are bringing the most business. This is so you can
continue a similar ad campaign to further your business.
Ezines: Most ezine subscriber lists currently have 100,000 to
300,000 readers per issue. That's a lot of potential business!
Furthermore, most ezines are specifically targeted at a certain
audience. If you have a great business opportunity that needs to
be declared to the world, a biz opp ezine is a great place to put
an advertisement. Check out http://www.bizguru.com for top ezines
that reach millions, for less than two hundred dollars.
Most other ezines are also pretty inexpensive. The bigger ones
charge about $35 to $150, but there are smaller ezines that run
ads for much cheaper, too. Granted, smaller ezines only reach
about 2,500 to 5,000, but that still a few thousand people that
you're reaching, and all for a relatively small price.
Remember that if you choose to advertise in an ezine, you need to
be marketing a product that can be shipped easily anywhere in the
world. If you product are breakable or expensive to ship, to
might want to consider advertising in your local area.
Local Media: With the advancement of the Internet, many
newspaper, radio and television stations realize they are in a
fierce competition. It doesn't cost as much as you might think to
place ads in these ever present media sources. Not only is it
cost effective, but a great way to get your name out in your
immediate community.
Let's face it. It's not exactly easy to add attention grabbing
flair to a radio or television ad on a limited budget. You don't
have to hire the cast of Friends, however, to get people to
listen to you.
Listen to the ads that are already out there. You know what you
like, and it's probably the same sort of stuff that's going to
grab the attention of potential customers, too. Try to use
components of ads that have affected you, and see what you come
up with.
Don't forget that while bizarre ads can be a little, well,...
bizarre they can also have a lasting effect on people. There's an
ad out right now that features an array of singing belly buttons.
I was a little freaked out the first time I saw it, but I still
tried on a pair of the jeans advertised the next time I was
shopping for new pants.
Using a little creativity will get your ad noticed far more than
the boring ones, no matter where you place them. Target your
audience and track ad placement, and you will be well on your way
to having an awesome ad campaign.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ana Ventura writes sizzling ads for DrNunley's http://BizGuru.com
See her super Ezine Ad Package that gets your ad in front of 55
million people without spamming. Reach Ana at
mailto:ana@bizguru.com or 801-328-9006.