As a copywriter, clients often ask for my advice on how to improve the results they get from their advertising. I'll talk today about the common mistakes small businesses make when it comes to advertising and help you get a better return on your advertising investment.
Layout
Many small business ads look like a shopping list, this is the biggest mistake to avoid.
I'm sure you've seen these ads; company name at the top rather than a compelling headline. Dry copy which doesn't manage to get your interest. There is nothing to induce you to do business with this company, even remember it. No call to action is given, just the company address and phone number.
We all know these ads don't work. They just don't get people's attention. Readers want to know one thing: what's in it for me?
This is a much more effective ad layout:
You need a headline to lead in, it doesn't have to be all that clever, just clearly state the biggest benefit of your product or service to the consumer.
Coupon or contact number at bottom right (called the "anchor point" of the ad).
Company name and address at bottom left (where the prospect will find it once they're convinced.)
If you are using photos or illustrations, place headlines underneath them to keep your reader's eyes moving down the page. Make your headlines and photos part of a narrative.
Bullet points briefly outlining the benefits of your product or service is a good idea. While long form copy can be effective as well, it's a lot harder to write.
How are your ads? Do they read like a shopping list, or a compelling story ending with a call to action? If the former, I know you'll get great results from changing your formats.
Failing to Test and Track Ad Response
You should always test and track your ads. Even a slight change can generate many more sales for the same product or service. Testing and tracking can help you to cut out what isn't working and keep what performs well.
How to Track Advertising Response
Tracking advertising response is as easy as asking callers where they heard about your company. As you publish more ads and test one ad against another, you'll need to get a little more sophisticated with your tracking by implementing one or more of the following?
Your coupons can be colour coded, you can include coupon codes or ask callers to ask for a specific person or mention an offer mentioned in the ad.
If you're advertising online, it's even easier, you can use tracking software to compare response rates between different ads.
When one of my marketing consulting clients started tracking their ads a while back, they found that $500 newspaper ads were generating almost zero response, while cheap flyers were bringing in loads of customers. So they were able to save a bundle on ineffective advertising.
What To Test
Test these parts of your ads:
Headlines Offers Body Copy Guarantee Price
Hint: You'll get the greatest return by testing headlines first.
When you find something that works, stay with it until you find something better. It really isn't hard to improve your marketing ROI if you use this approach, yet hardly anyone does it! If YOU decide to take action on this tip, you can save money, leverage your marketing budget, and put some distance between you and your competition.
Taking the time to ensure that your ads are effective at generating responses can make a huge difference to your business. It may even be worthwhile for your company to take on a copywriter. Having an expert on hand to create your advertising can be more than worth the salary you'll pay him or her.
Not Making The Most of a Powerful Guarantee
A lot of small businesses fail to offer a strong guarantee in their ads. You need to do this, since a guarantee can increase your response rates by 50% and up.
Gurantees work because they remove the risk of purchase from your customer, making it easier for them to buy. When you guarantee your product or service, you're showing confidence that it will produce the result you claim, customers respond to that.
This is how to incorporate guarantees into your ads effectively:
1. Your guarantee should be a specific promise of performance or results.
Avoid boilerplate like "satisfaction guaranteed". Use more distinctive copy like:
"If you're not thrilled with our product, we'll pay you to go to the competition"
" 50% increase in traffic to your site in 60 days or your money back"
"Send $35 to [Your Company Name and Address]. $40 refund if you're not completely satisfied."
2. Test Your Guarantee
In my work as a small business marketing consultant and copywriter, I often work with clients to develop a powerful guarantee. Sometimes the business owners are hesitant, what will happen if customers try to take advantage of a money-back offer? The simple answer to this is to test. Test small at first (one ad with the guarantee, versus one ad without). Keep track of the difference in sales results and any returns or refund requests. If it works, keep doing it!
A good guarantee will make, not lose money for your business.
You can fine tune the wording and dates of your guarantee to get even better results; you may see a significant difference between the response for a 30 day and 60 day guarantee.
3. Make your guarantee highly visible
Your guarantee should be a headline; you don't want your reader to miss it.
What powerful guarantee can you offer your prospects to make it easier for them to do business with you?
Layout
Many small business ads look like a shopping list, this is the biggest mistake to avoid.
I'm sure you've seen these ads; company name at the top rather than a compelling headline. Dry copy which doesn't manage to get your interest. There is nothing to induce you to do business with this company, even remember it. No call to action is given, just the company address and phone number.
We all know these ads don't work. They just don't get people's attention. Readers want to know one thing: what's in it for me?
This is a much more effective ad layout:
You need a headline to lead in, it doesn't have to be all that clever, just clearly state the biggest benefit of your product or service to the consumer.
Coupon or contact number at bottom right (called the "anchor point" of the ad).
Company name and address at bottom left (where the prospect will find it once they're convinced.)
If you are using photos or illustrations, place headlines underneath them to keep your reader's eyes moving down the page. Make your headlines and photos part of a narrative.
Bullet points briefly outlining the benefits of your product or service is a good idea. While long form copy can be effective as well, it's a lot harder to write.
How are your ads? Do they read like a shopping list, or a compelling story ending with a call to action? If the former, I know you'll get great results from changing your formats.
Failing to Test and Track Ad Response
You should always test and track your ads. Even a slight change can generate many more sales for the same product or service. Testing and tracking can help you to cut out what isn't working and keep what performs well.
How to Track Advertising Response
Tracking advertising response is as easy as asking callers where they heard about your company. As you publish more ads and test one ad against another, you'll need to get a little more sophisticated with your tracking by implementing one or more of the following?
Your coupons can be colour coded, you can include coupon codes or ask callers to ask for a specific person or mention an offer mentioned in the ad.
If you're advertising online, it's even easier, you can use tracking software to compare response rates between different ads.
When one of my marketing consulting clients started tracking their ads a while back, they found that $500 newspaper ads were generating almost zero response, while cheap flyers were bringing in loads of customers. So they were able to save a bundle on ineffective advertising.
What To Test
Test these parts of your ads:
Headlines Offers Body Copy Guarantee Price
Hint: You'll get the greatest return by testing headlines first.
When you find something that works, stay with it until you find something better. It really isn't hard to improve your marketing ROI if you use this approach, yet hardly anyone does it! If YOU decide to take action on this tip, you can save money, leverage your marketing budget, and put some distance between you and your competition.
Taking the time to ensure that your ads are effective at generating responses can make a huge difference to your business. It may even be worthwhile for your company to take on a copywriter. Having an expert on hand to create your advertising can be more than worth the salary you'll pay him or her.
Not Making The Most of a Powerful Guarantee
A lot of small businesses fail to offer a strong guarantee in their ads. You need to do this, since a guarantee can increase your response rates by 50% and up.
Gurantees work because they remove the risk of purchase from your customer, making it easier for them to buy. When you guarantee your product or service, you're showing confidence that it will produce the result you claim, customers respond to that.
This is how to incorporate guarantees into your ads effectively:
1. Your guarantee should be a specific promise of performance or results.
Avoid boilerplate like "satisfaction guaranteed". Use more distinctive copy like:
"If you're not thrilled with our product, we'll pay you to go to the competition"
" 50% increase in traffic to your site in 60 days or your money back"
"Send $35 to [Your Company Name and Address]. $40 refund if you're not completely satisfied."
2. Test Your Guarantee
In my work as a small business marketing consultant and copywriter, I often work with clients to develop a powerful guarantee. Sometimes the business owners are hesitant, what will happen if customers try to take advantage of a money-back offer? The simple answer to this is to test. Test small at first (one ad with the guarantee, versus one ad without). Keep track of the difference in sales results and any returns or refund requests. If it works, keep doing it!
A good guarantee will make, not lose money for your business.
You can fine tune the wording and dates of your guarantee to get even better results; you may see a significant difference between the response for a 30 day and 60 day guarantee.
3. Make your guarantee highly visible
Your guarantee should be a headline; you don't want your reader to miss it.
What powerful guarantee can you offer your prospects to make it easier for them to do business with you?
About the Author:
About the author: David B. Ascot has important information concerning sales lead generation strategies that will help your company expand through online lead generation.
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