How To Make Your Competitors Green With Envy With Great Advertising Results

I've come up against this problem more than once. A client calls me up because they need a boost during their slow period. I ask them about his current ad program. What they show me makes me cringe. The first three questions I ask are "Who is this ad speaking to? What demographic? What problem is it addressing? There usually is no answer.

Why is that? Because when a Yellow Page or newspaper sales person comes by to get your ad for the next edition, they rarely ask the business owner the basic questions regarding targeted advertising. They will create and submit a sample for the business owner's review. The business owner, being very busy and not really thinking about marketing strategy, will simply evaluate the ad based on facts and eye appeal.

Let's lay out a set of qualifications for building effective ads. I now email this information to my clients, whether I create their Yellow Pages and newspaper ads or not.

So here's how to build a great ad campaign and kick the competition's keister.

1. Identify who you're targeting. Your message must be specific to a group of people who you feel needs to hear or see your story - your solution to their problems.

2. No matter what the medium, every ad must have a compelling headline. It must pull the attention of the target audience to view or hear your story. This can be a compelling offer.

3. Throw your features and advantages out the window. No one really cares about your whiz-bang gadgets - they want to know what's in it for them. Tell me about the benefits to ME.

4. Your as copy must speak to one person - me. This is not a seminar. It's face time with one person - the viewer /listener/reader.

5. The essential concept must be this - Ask me a personal question, reach for my greatest fears, hopes or anxieties- make me think, or make me feel special, then offer me your solution.

6. If you can offer me evidence as to why you are the best answer to my problem then make the evidence as personal and compelling as possible.

7. Third party endorsements are better than your recommendations -- always.

8. Focus on ONE message. If you have more information, take them to your website.

9. It's not always the size of the ad that matters, its whether it gets results.

10. Double check your ads and ad copy at least three times before commitment to a final delivery.

11. Always make your ad a part of an overall marketing strategy. Remember that you should have at least five of seven essential marketing tools working for you at all times.

12. Last, test your marketing, evaluate and test again.

Good luck.

Three Common Mistakes of Marketing

1. Copy-cat ads that simply follow the "pretty ad formula". The purpose of this type of ad is to look as close to the lead ad as possible. You must be able to highlight what makes you better and different from your competitors. Why should anyone come to you?

2. Using valuable ad dollars to produce image building ads instead of direct response ads. Direct response ads directs the viewer to buy your product or service. Image ads bolster your status and builds your perceived value.

3. No primary objective for advertising- whistling in the dark and hoping for a light. You must start with an expected outcome from your marketing efforts. You will need to track your results in order to realize substantial gains in the future.

Here is a test for you to measure your relevancy. Take your best print ad or Press Release and remove your name from the copy. Remove your logo and replace it with your closest competitor. Would the ad still be true? Would anyone know the difference?

This works for print, audio and video marketing as well.

Remember to:

1. Tell your targeted audience a compelling story with lots of action words
2. Get them to take action on your compelling offer.
3. Tell them what you want to tell them - again.
4. Define your value in the solution you offer.

An advertising program is not expensive if it paid for itself. It's free. Remember include your website information on all marketing materials.

Dennis Francis is a consultant and business coach for chiropractors and other professional healthcare and wellness practitioners. His website, http://www.doublemyrevenues.com offers its members online coaching on automating marketing on and off the web. He offers a free book called "Double Your Revenues in 12 Months or Less."