There are so many places where you can promote your company: magazines, online, newspapers, bus shelters, tv, radio, blogs…or even outside a building under construction (seen here in Barcelona). With seemingly endless options how do you choose the right mix?
Recently I’ve had discussions with clients about whether or not they should use Yellow Pages as one of their advertising vehicles.
Yellow Pages offers advertising in both their printed book and online (website and mobile). Much of the discussion dealt with the print version, as more and more people turn to the Internet to find local businesses. In the end, the final decision came after considering their clientele and what they wanted to get out of using that type of advertising.
These conversations got me thinking about what businesses need to do in order to choose the right advertising mix.
Here’s what you should analyze:
Your business. What type of business are you in? What are your strengths and weaknesses? Which advertising channels make sense for your brand? Not every type of advertising is appropriate to your brand, image, or type of business.
Your target audience. Who is your audience? Age, gender, life stage, etc. Where does your audience “hang out”? For example, are they reading their news online versus in print? If so, you’re best to focus more efforts in online advertising than print. The more you know about your target audience, the better. Aren’t sure about your target audience? Here are 3 Reasons to Have a Target Market for Your Business.
Your competition. Where does your competition advertise? Does it make sense for you to advertise there as well? Is there somewhere else appropriate that your competition has missed?
Your statistics. What are your statistics telling you? If you are using advertising, you should be measuring its effectiveness. How many leads are you getting from a particular ad? How many clients are then converted? Knowing what’s working and what’s not working will make it easier to decide what’s best for your business.
Your goals and objectives. What’s the goal or objective of your advertising? Decide what your goal is (you can have multiple goals) and then analyze which advertising channel would best help you reach that goal. For example, a goal of increasing brand awareness would likely use a different type of advertising than a goal of driving traffic to your store. Look at your statistics to determine your results and make changes as needed.
Bottom Line: Every company is different. Know your company, your goals, your target market, and your statistics. Look at all the parts together to determine the best avenues for your business.
Question: When was the last time you evaluated your advertising strategy? Do you have all the pieces of the puzzle to make the right decisions? What’s missing?