Secrets to Advertising Your Business

Have you tried advertising as a marketing strategy to grow your business? Did it work? If not, you may have missed one, or all, of the following components of effective advertising. You must advertise in the right places, place ads the right number of times, and have the right ad.

It is key that you advertise in the right places. And the best places are the ones where your ideal clients will see your ads. If you don’t have a huge budget then think about starting off by placing classified ads in magazines, trade publications, or newspapers.

You can also place affordable ads on websites or directories. And of course Google AdWords is an option (a great way to test different versions of an ad to see which one is the most popular).

Frequency is another vital key to effective advertising. It’s been said that it takes at least seven contacts with a prospective client before they will act. If you plan to place an ad only one time, please forget advertising as one of your marketing strategies because it will not work.

Once you’ve found the right place to advertise (and you’re committed to sticking with it for at least seven placements), it’s then time to create the right ad.

Think about it, when you see an ad that only has a logo, the name of a company, and a phone number are you really motivated to drop what you are doing and pick up the phone and call them? Not usually.

Here’s the deal, effective advertisements are not about you and your company. They are about your ideal clients and what they want and need.

It’s important to have the right expectations about what result you want your ad to deliver. It is unlikely that someone who reads your ad will immediately buy from your business.

People want to get to know you a little bit first and find out more about how you may be able to help them. It’s not about making a sale; it’s about inviting someone to take the next step with your business.

Here is a simple three step formula you can use to create an effective ad. I’ll use my business as an example.

STEP ONE - Name them Who are your ideal clients? You can use a question, for example: “Are you a small business owner?” Or you can grab attention by saying, “Attention: Small Business Owners.”

STEP TWO – Name their problem What is one problem you can help your ideal clients solve? I’m sure your business helps clients solve more than one problem, but you want to keep your ad focused so just choose one. Again, you can ask a question, “Would you like to attract more clients.” You can also make a statement, “Attract more clients now.”

STEP THREE – Give your solution in the form of a ‘call to action’

Your ‘call to action’ is the ONE action you want someone to take who is interested in knowing more about your business. Choose a ‘call to action’ that is simple and easy to do. If you offer something valuable at no cost, even better. It can be a consultation, an article, a free report, or an audio recording.

Here’s one example of a ‘call to action’: Grab your free copy of the special report, 7 Steps to Attract More Clients in Less Time, plus monthly business building tips written by Life & Business Coach Stephanie Ward by simply visiting www.fireflycoaching.com.

Now, putting all three parts of an effective ad together you get this:

Are you a small business owner who would like to attract more clients? Grab your free copy of the special report, 7 Steps to Attract More Clients in Less Time, plus monthly business building tips written by Life & Business Coach Stephanie Ward by simply visiting www.fireflycoaching.com.

There’s one more thing you have to do when you advertise. You must measure your results to find out if it’s working. The goal of placing an ad is to attract more business, so are you? One way to find out is to ask every prospective client who contacts you how they heard about you.

If you’re going to use advertising as one of your marketing strategies to grow your business, make sure you give it the best chance to succeed. Take the time to find the best place to advertise and create a compelling ad that will motivate prospective clients to take action.



Secrets to Advertising Your Business - To learn more about this author, visit Stephanie Ward's Website.

Like this article? Share it with your friends

E-Mail | Print | More

Related Articles
No More Secrets
	In personal develop there’s a lot of promotion around “secrets.” That was once true in the martial arts community as well...
The 13 Most Powerful Words in Marketing
	Powerful words, combined with powerful, well written, benefit-packed copy is the best formula for guaranteeing powerful results from your marketing campaign.
How to write ads that sell
	If you want to write ads and letters that fill your order book, you must study the classic ads of Claude Hopkins in his book Scientific Advertising. He still ranks as the greatest ad writer of all time.
Publicity Or Advertising?
	Which is better - publicity or advertising? Learn why you don't always need a big ad budget to create buzz about your product or service. Learn which to use and most importantly, the difference between the two.
Advertising And PR Guidelines In All Forms Of Media
	The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulates advertising at the federal level to ensure that sellers take responsibility for telling the truth about products and services.

---

Related Forum Posts
	Top 19 Copywriting books
	Free Business ebooks
	Re: A Book For New or Experienced Entrepreneurs - Act Now
	Re: Recommended advertising and affiliates.
	My entry
	A Book For New or Experienced Entrepreneurs - Act Now
	Re: Congrats Shri!
	Business Models on the Web