Advertising is used to find new customers, increase sales, increase profit margins, increase brand equity or simply to let an audience know your brand exists. Traditional advertising mediums like television, radio and print can be very expensive because they communicate with big audiences—and many of the people in these audiences aren’t really interested in your message. So is there a better way to spend your advertising dollar? Here are some possible alternatives:
A new website
One of the best ways to get found by new audiences is through Google—and you can’t get found if you don’t have a website. Make sure your website is optimised for Google’s search index, so it will get listed high up the list when people search for your brand’s keywords. When visitors find your website through a Google keyword search, you know they are mostly looking for your product/service and are much more likely to be ready to buy.
Google Ads
A great way to make you website jump above all your competitors to the top of Google search results is by using Google Ads. The best part is you only pay for your ad if they click through to your website, and each click normally only costs a few dollars. How good is that!
Facebook Ads
Facebook ads are similar Google ads, but they don’t appear in Google searches. Instead the ads appear on the side of people Facebook news feed. The best thing about Facebook Ads is the ability to target people of specific demographics like age, gender, occupation, interests, relationship status, level of education, etc.
Social networking
Social networking can be valuable but it must be used to distribute information and offers that are of value to the target audience—not just sell to them. Twitter, Facebook and Linked In are not just another broadcast medium. They can and should be used to encourage two way communication with your audience.
Direct e-mail
Email and eNewsletter are a great way of increasing sales with existing customers. Your contact base may only know you as a provider of one particular product or service—let them know what else you do for them. Case studies and recently completed projects are a great way of showing the diversity of service based businesses. Or simply show off your new product line or offer tips and tricks for using existing products. The list of ways you can add value to existing customer relationships through email marketing is endless!
If you’re not convinced these new mediums can replace your traditional advertising techniques, speak to Flux about improving your message by developing a Single Minded Proposition.
Please feel welcome to contact me with your opinion, comments or questions related to this article.
Frank Stillitano
Founder of Flux Visual Communication
