Call Tracking Tips

25 tips on making advertising effective

1. Radio stations, newspaper agencies and magazines will frequently offer free help to those trying to come up with an advertising strategy. They can provide valuable information, including demographic information and money-saving tips when producing your ads.
2. Placing your ads in unusual locations can sometimes still reach your targeted market.
3. Being more consistent with frequent small ads, opposed to a one-time huge splash ad, is more beneficial.
4. Some monthly magazines that have unsold ad space will sell that ad space at a discounted price.
5. Putting a unique Call Tracking number on every single ad you generate will provide you with immediate feedback detailing whether that ad was successful or not.
6. Advertising consistently in the classifieds section may draw a higher number of customers than advertising in more expensive ads.
7. Exchanging services may lower the cost of advertising.  For example, if you own an Air Conditioning Repair business, maybe you could offer the Ad agency cheaper AC repair services in exchange for lowered advertising costs. It’s always worth a try.
8. Piggyback advertising is a smart way to get the word out about your business. Do you know someone who sends out a lot of bills?  If so, perhaps you can negotiate putting in one of your business flyers along with the bill for a small fee? Or maybe split the postage costs?
9. Split advertising costs with your vendors. If you carry their products, let them know and see if they can pick up a portion of the ad costs.
10. Check if the advertising company provides any discounts if you pay in cash.
11. Advertise in regional issues of national magazines. The costs are lower and you can still target your audience. The magazines may stay around in dentist’s and doctor’s offices for years to come!
12. Share ad costs with your neighbors. Nearby stores may be willing to advertise your business if you will advertise theirs. Hand out coupons to each other’s stores or split the cost of flyers.
13. Reduce the length of your radio ad. A few 30 second ads are better than one 60 second ad. Frequent smaller ads will pull in more customers than 1 single ad.
14. Produce ads that sell!!! The message of your ad is extremely important; make sure to structure your ads to sell, not win awards.
15. Consider your customers. Aim each ad to speak directly to your best customers.
16. See what suppliers will give you. Posters, handouts, stand ups, display racks, etc?
17. Also, check with national chains to see if they can provide you with outdoor or indoor signs to display your business name.
18. Check if you can sponsor a charity or community event. In some cases, the charity or event will allow you to prominently advertise your business. Your displayed name can bring positive exposure to your business and attract new customers.
19. Be selective with the media you choose. Most small businesses cannot afford saturation advertising. Make your advertising representatives show you exactly how they are going to target your audience.
20. Exploit your business to the fullest.  Whether your message is verbal or written, use your media to its fullest. Radio, newspapers, billboards, etc.
21. Direct mail can increase your business. A study conducted by IBM found that sales increased from 8 orders out of 100 cold calls to 38 orders per 100 calls when direct mail was used.
22. Consider an editorial style ad. An editorial style ad looks like an actual story, but it has an advertisement at the top of the article. A good headline will attract a lot of customers.
23. Unconventional advertising is cheaper. Consider advertising on taxi boards, blimps, parking meters, bulletin boards, weekly newspaper shoppers, etc.
24. Set aside extra funds. You never know what your competition is up to. It’s a good idea to have extra funds set aside just in case you need it to react quickly to a situation and keep your business afloat.
25. Track every ad. If you don’t know where most of your leads are coming from, then you’re wasting money! Placing a call tracking number on each of your ads allows you to determine which ads are generating the most leads, and which ads aren’t generating any. Don’t flush your money down the toilet investing in advertisements that you don’t even know are working.