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Depending on whom you ask, you will get told many “truths” about advertising. The question I have for you today is this – “Is the only bad advertising, no advertising?”

Before we begin, it might help us to agree on what advertising is, so here’s one definition:

“Advertising is the non-personal communication of an individual’s paid persuasive information regarding products, and or services via various media.”

In other words, someone is trying to “sell” us on something – be it a product, or a service, or just picking up the phone. Advertising is all about getting people to do something – well, for the majority of us, it should be.

So, if advertising is about selling stuff, then perhaps we can answer our question now: “Is the only bad advertising, no advertising?” Of course not! You could create a really bad advert that did a terrible job of selling… and that would easily be a bad advert.

“Repetition, repetition, repetition!”

Is the battle cry of the ardent advertiser. “You must have repetition to have an impact.” Do you believe this? A healthy dose of scepticism is always handy at a time like this. But before you start patting yourself on the back thinking that you’re right I think you might want to hear this.

Repeating an advert works. Studies have shown conclusively that a ‘sale’ regularly occurs between the fifth and eighth exposure to a sales message (sure it can happen sooner, the point is that one-hit-wonders are rare). So repeating an advert works – BUT… and this is quite an important “but”… the advert must be having an effect (or working) for the repetition to be meaningful.

Flogging a Dead Horse

Permit me to explain. If your advert tanked on the first run you may have a bad advert on your hands. You will need to think carefully about what you do next. Experience tells us that this might be a fluke or a freak of circumstances so it warrants at least another run – may be two.

However, if the advert is not performing at all well after a couple of exposures to your market place, exposing that advert continuously will NOT (I repeat NOT) improve it. In this instance, repetition is quite simply a waste of time and money.

However, if your advert worked well then keep running the advert. For how long you might ask? The answer to that is actually very easy. Keep running performing adverts until the numbers tell you to stop. That’s right, let the sales numbers tell you when that advert needs a rest.

Great Adverts Need A Vacation Too

Adverts are like people, they get tired and need a break. Just because an advert eventually loses some steam doesn’t mean that after a suitable ‘rest’ it cannot go right back to work – performing flawlessly.
So how do the numbers tell you when to pull the advert or give it a rest? When all the costs of running the advert outweigh the sales the advert is bringing in. Remember to take a more pragmatic view and consider the long term sales value of a new client. In a previous article I explained that a client you acquire has a ‘lifetime value’ not just a ‘now-time value’. Include the future sales this client will bring you when deciding if the advert is no longer effective.

Size Does Matter!

So how big should your advert be? That’s easy, it should be ‘dominant’. After all, your advert is trying to do its first job – CATCH ATTENTION! This is easier to achieve with a larger advert. All things being equal on the page, the bigger ads get more ‘eye time’ than the smaller adverts. As with all things though, there are exceptions to the rules and a small advert developed properly will outperform a big advert that is poorly designed.

There are other advertising ‘secrets’ we copywriters have learned that help us gain the edge when writing adverts. For instance we know whether colour makes a difference and when to use it, we know which single colour out performs all other colours and why, and we know which fonts (yes fonts) make a difference to an advert… but sadly I’m out of space again so we’ll have to save those tidbits for another time.

By: James Burchill

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In the current climate of business closings and employee layoffs, many marketers are finding it increasingly difficult to get their advertisements to resonate with consumers. Especially online, where the consumer must read the sales pitch rather than just listen to it or watch it.

Reading a sales pitch requires both interest and patience on the part of the consumer. But often times the consumer’s patience is only maximized once interest is established and a consumer’s interest only perks up once something in the copy grabs their attention.

Here’s the problem. When an economically strained consumer begins understanding that they are just reading a sales pitch, they stop reading. They figure that the copy is leading them down a road that wants them to spend money and much like the choice between driving on the freeway or taking the toll road, they will avoid the toll road unless it is absolutely necessary. Most products aren’t absolutely necessary or must haves. They are options.

Gasoline is a must have. Consumer’s lives are intertwined with the use of it. They need it to get to work, to travel to buy their food, pick up their kids, etc. A new couch, on the other hand, is an option. Consumers have the option of just sticking with their old couch or sitting on the floor Japanese style.

Being successful at advertising in today’s climate of plummeting consumer confidence requires an approach that helps minimize the consumer’s negative feelings about being hit with a sales pitch asking them to spend money, while they are simultaneously concerned about their personal finances. There is a way to do it. I’ll write more about this later.

Remember these: Confidence, Interest Patience, Reading, Purchase

We have all figured out by now that high gas prices aren’t going anywhere, any time soon. Due to increased demand on dwindling reserves, inflation directly affects the consumer’s state of well being. Marketers must adjust to this new reality as seen through the eyes of consumers or fail at their attempts to reach them.

You must understand that the heart of a successful advertising and marketing campaign is “confidence”. Really…think about it. The purpose of saying all of the good stuff about a particular product is to instill confidence in the consumer of your product’s ability to solve their problem. Some marketers think that gaining that confidence is all that it takes, but guess what.

Not anymore. In today’s economy, simply raising consumer’s impression of the quality of your products can actually be a moot point. That timeless marketing approach has its highest rate of success in good economic times but looses much of its power once tough economic times hit. Consumers can have a very high level of confidence that the widget you are selling will do what they want done. But if their overall confidence of their financial well being is low, advertisements tend to fall on deaf ears.

Remember, your ultimate goal is to sell your products, not to simply brag about them.

Today, plummeting consumer confidence means that many consumers are more focused on saving money wherever possible. Remember, they must look past job losses, a shaken housing market and a weak dollar to see your product. Getting them to do that is no easy task. However, you need to make this as easy as possible for them.

The New Tactic
A new online advertising tactic is proving to be effective at eliciting the Confidence, Interest, Patience, Reading, and Purchasing Decision that has eluded many marketers recently.

The tactic will seem strange at first but read past the point that you ask the question “what?” and you will see why this works.

The tactic consists of offering the consumers a monetary reward for locating errors on in your website’s copy and reporting them to you first or in other words, allowing your customers to become a loyal part of a group that makes you better by pointing out things that your website could be doing better.

This is probably where you just asked the what question. Remember, open your mind and read on.

Remember, Confidence, Interest, Patience, Reading, and Purchasing Decision. Through web communities like TypoBounty dot com, advertisers offer millions of consumers the opportunity to locate and earn money for reporting valuable information to the marketer. THERE IS A LIMITED NUMBER OF ERRORS ON ANY WEB PROPERTY. Just because millions of consumers come and read all of your copy does not mean that you will pay millions of dollars. It just means that millions of consumers willingly read every word of your sales pitch with Confidence, Interest, and Patience, and your sales pitch has the opportunity to cause a Purchasing Decision.

Through sites like TypoBounty dot com, you choose the help you want, decide how much you will pay consumers for valid reports, you choose what is valid and what is not and how many payments you are willing to pay per month. You keep total control while gaining unprecedented consumer attention and website services.

To the consumer, it is a game that allows them to earn money. They are in many cases unaware that they are being marketed to. They read the entire sales pitch looking for an opportunity and simultaneously being convinced of their need for your product as your sales pitch copy side steps the reluctance that sales pitches conjures up in the consumer’s mind. TypoBounty dot com gets the consumer to pay attention to every word you have to say to them. What you say to them is totally up to you.

It costs less than conventional advertising. Ad spaces cost much less to provide budget room for paying for reports should they occur.

This marketing tactic costs less, provides more bangs for the buck in consumers’ undivided attention and is a great public relations move. Consumers begin to see your brand as a fun brand and as a brand that is helping them cope with their economic difficulties. At the same time, the consumer learns about why your product is worthy of their limited resources.

By: John Reed

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