Traditional Advertising
The good part is that you will gain massive exposure and great results through advertising in these places. This author has worked in the media advertising business for over 15 years, so hopefully, I can shed some light on the requirements and where you can get the most bang for your buck! Newspapers Newspaper advertising is going to be your best bet as a way to start getting your name out into the community. They tend to be less expensive than the others and you’ll have a wider audience. You control the content of your ad and can make changes to it as changes are needed. The downfall of newspaper ads is that often people just glance at them and then move on to the rest of the paper. Because they appear in black and white, it’s difficult to get yourself to stand out without a huge ad and a huge ad will probably be cost prohibitive. How can you make your ad stand out? First, use graphics along with a catchy tag line. “Scraps R Us make your memories live forever”, for example. Provide a coupon in your ad for money off services or products. People love to save money and once you get them as a customer, they’ll likely return for more as their needs change. Don’t overcrowd your ad with unnecessary words and phrases. If you provide too much information, the print will have to be smaller to fit in the space provided. People don’t like to have to read a lot of words. Be concise and to the point. Use the line “For more information, visit our website at _________” or “Call today to learn more”. We suggest running your ad at least 3 times a week. You don’t have to run them every week, but the more exposure you can get at any given time will increase the possibilities of your message getting out there. Most newspapers offer up package plans that can be affordable for you, so ask what they have available. Don’t go overboard and spend more than you can make. Be mindful of how your ads are working for you by asking new customers to indicate where they got your information. That way, you’ll know what’s working and what isn’t. Telephone Books The phone books are going to be one of the more expensive options, but they have advantages all their own. Most areas have more than one book, so if you can’t be in all of them, the general rule of thumb is to go with the one that has the largest coverage area. With phone book advertising, you get advertising for a whole year. Your name is out there 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and is available when customers need to find you. If they’re not looking for scrapbooking in January, but they need your services in April, you’ll always be there as opposed to the paper which is more immediate. On the downside, once your ad is printed in the phone book, it’s there for a whole year. You can’t make any changes as your business grows and evolves, so you’ll need to be sure that the information you provide will still be timely throughout the course of a whole year. Be sure you choose your category wisely. Do you want to be listed in “Scrapbooking Services”, “Scrapbooking Supplies”, or “Scrapbooking”? Be sure your white page listing with your main phone number stands out. Print it in bold. This way people can find you easier and your name will stand out from the other smaller listings. One note here, as a local customer, you are usually entitled to a free listing in both the white and yellow pages. You don’t HAVE to purchase ads or upgrades. You are entitled to these listings, so if you can’t afford to buy advertising, make sure you get your free listings no matter what. If possible, use color in your ad. Buy the largest ad you can afford and ask your sales rep for any promotions that are going on with their company. Some will offer two categories for the price of one or free color with the purchase of a certain size ad. If you are a new customer, they may also be able to include you in other phone books they have in the area for a discounted or even free rate. Television Television advertising will be your most expensive option. The cost of producing a television commercial and then airing it during peak times can be very prohibitive to the small business. If you decide to go this route, remember that your ad will be quite short – usually 60 seconds and people can generally only remember what they’ve seen for an average of 3 minutes after it is aired. Repetition is the way to make your name stand out and stay in the minds of your potential customers. However, this can be quite expensive, so choose wisely. Radio Finally, radio advertising, we’ve found, is the type of advertising that truly works. It can be a little expensive, but your returns are likely to be much more tangible. People listen to the radio everywhere. They listen at home, in their cars, and at work. You need to go with the radio station that fits your demographic if there are multiple stations in your area. Ask around and see what station most people are listening to. Keep in mind that if the majority of people are listening to country music, but you hate country music yourself, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t advertise on there. You want to reach the most amount of people with your ads and your personal opinions should stay out of making smart business decisions. Just as with television advertising, repetition is the key here. As with TV ads, your commercials are going to be short – usually 30 seconds, so the more times your commercial airs, the more exposure you’re going to get and the better the chance that people will remember your company name. Many radio stations also sponsor various events and promotions. If you can afford it, get in on these specials. They’re a great way to piggyback along with the station’s promotion of these events and you will likely get mentions to go with your advertising. Ask for packages. All stations have them and you can save a lot of money by going this route. Ideally, you should combine a couple of these types of traditional advertising together to get maximum exposure, but we know that’s not always possible. Take a look at your advertising budget – as a business, you should always have one – and decide what you can spend then choose which route meets your needs the best. Other Marketing Tools There are a lot of other ways to promote your business. You may want to look into give-away items that you can offer as free gifts during crops or workshops. If you decide to do a trade show, these gifts will be immensely popular! Many people go the traditional key chain/pen route with your business name on it. This is great, but you’re a scrapbooking business. Why not make your giveaways a little more pertinent to the scrapbooking venue? Craft bags can be an excellent marketing tool. These can be simple carry-alls with your company information screen printed on the front. Give them away at crops and/or workshops so people can carry their materials in them. This is advertising that is out there all the time and can generate interest in your company just by having people carry them around. You can have pens imprinted with your company name and information, but instead of the standard ink pen, why not choose a decorative type of pen like a glitter ink or colored marker that your customer can actually use when they are scrapbooking? There are many other items that you can look at such as customized sticker pages, mini albums with your name on the back cover, specialty scissors, rubber stamps, etc. These products are out there, just seek them out and spend a little extra money by adding them to your marketing arsenal! |
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