5 Ways To Create Effective Advertising

Advertising is an important part of any marketing plan. But with so much focus on social media these days, you'd think that advertising isn't worth the cost. However, done right advertising can be a really important part of your marketing strategy, especially with a good mix of online and traditional advertising. If you've ever attended one of my workshops or even read some of blog posts you'll know that I am all about consistent, integrated marketing. That means that all of your marketing activities need to work together in a systematic approach to achieving your business goals. And advertising is one of those activities.

The biggest advantage that advertising has over other marketing activities is the sense of control. With proper target marketing you can control (to a point) who sees or hears your ad and you can control when your ad is run. The key to effective advertising is knowing what your objectives are and how you want to approach your campaign. 

Below are 5 elements that you should consider in order to make any form of advertising effective.

1. Advertising should have one of 3 objectives... to inform, remind or persuade your audience. Know what your goals are before you even think about writing the ad. The desired outcome will ultimately determine the look, feel, sound, and distribution of the ad. The goal of most advertising should be to start a relationship, not sell a product or service.

2. Be realistic about what an ad can do. If you are running a small online ad chances are it will be pretty unrealistic to expect a multi-thousand dollar sales achievement from 15 words and a link. When setting your advertising goals, set a realistic goal and set a ‘stretch’ goal to strive for. Also, know that advertising alone cannot be the only metric to measure your success by. There are a lot of factors that go into the buying decisions of consumers.

3. Advertising, both online and offline can be and should be targeted at a narrowly defined viewer. If a radio station that tells you that 75% of its listeners are 18-55 that isn't narrow enough. Know your ideal customer really well, what they want and how they want to communicate with you before implementing any advertising.

There are lots of resources out there to help you learn more about your ideal customer but Google AdWords is a great tool to find out what your customers are looking for. Group your Google AdWords into very tightly crafted keyword groups to target people looking for very specific things. You can also find geo targeted mailing lists and then cross them with lists of people that buy a similar product.

4. Measure everything

The most successful business owners, managers and marketers can tell you exactly how every element of their marketing is performing and why. It takes a great deal of work to get serious about things like analytics and tracking, but you won’t really succeed until you do. By taking the time to create a process that allows you to measure every aspect of your advertising you can see what's working and what isn't, allowing you to make necessary changes and further improve on what is working all the while staying tuned in to what your market wants more of.

5. Test, test, and test again

This last element goes hand in hand with measurement, but takes it a step further. Once you have a baseline you can start to work on improving your results by simply tweaking things like headlines, calls to action, visual elements, keywords, content, publications and lists. Once you know what’s working in one place you can expand on it to test it in other places. Google AdWords is an inexpensive way to test thing out before broadcasting more widely. As for online advertising, particularly in social networks, you also might want to test out new social networks and their advertising structure to get a feel for what works and what doesn’t, providing it reaches your target audience.

So, even with the advent of social media, advertising still has its place in your marketing strategy. Advertising has changed its distribution channels over the years and that will continue for many more years to come. But no matter what distribution channel you use, whether it’s online or off ine advertising, using these tips will allow you to create advertising that resonates with your customers.

Create a Marketing Strategy in 3 Easy Steps

I just came to the realization that all of my blog posts just dance around the topic I am the most passionate about.  And that’s strategy.  I’ve written about integrating your marketing, 3 easy steps to creating a marketing budget and I’ve talked a lot about building a brand.  So, today I decided that I’m just going to lay it all out there, straight forward, step by step on how to develop a strategy before you even attempt to spend $1 on any of your marketing.

Developing a strategy is by far the most important step when marketing your business.  The biggest mistake small business owners make is that they know they need to market their business, but they don’t know where to start.  So, what happens is that they get roped into these “deals” from ad executives from the local newspapers, and radio and TV stations.  They wind up spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on advertising but don’t really know whether it worked or not.  Well, let me walk you through a 3-part process to help you develop a strategy so you don’t spend any more money on advertising that doesn’t work.

Part 1 – Brainstorm:

This is where you throw out every possible thought that comes to mind.  Sometimes the crazier the better.  I have found that sometimes a member of the team will throw out some weird and wild idea that ultimately we end up using some or all of that idea.  But this is also the time to define some really key things such as your intended target market, your goals and your budget.

One of the most important keys to developing a strong marketing communications plan is to determine your target market or target markets and know what they want and how they want to communicate with you.  The trick is to discover what that ideal customer looks like in the most specific way possible and then go about building an entire marketing strategy around attracting more of these ideal customers. 

Part 2 – Budget:

This is where most of my clients get the most stressed out because they haven’t allocated any specific amounts to their business activities.  They are really just “winging it.  If you don’t have a plan this is where you can get into trouble with your spending and then it really will be too expensive. 

1.       To create a marketing budget for the year, set your budget between 5 – 10% of your gross annual sales.  When you think about it, $100,000 is sales with a marketing budget of 5% only gives you $5000 to work with for the year.  This is where the creativity comes in, knowing where to best allocate those dollars.

2.       From that budget, develop marketing campaigns for the year.  Then develop a budget for each campaign based on the yearly budget you have just set for the company.

Remember that advertising doesn’t have to cost you a fortune.  Leave the big marketing budgets for the big corporations who have the money to spend on it. 

Part 3 – Metrics

Now, you need to set metrics for tracking the direct impact of each campaign on its ability to help you reach your marketing goals.  If you have nothing to measure your marketing efforts with you won’t know whether or not your marketing is actually working.  Some common metrics include number of click-throughs on an online ad, number of new sales, number of new leads or percent increase in traffic to the store.  In order to be useful, metrics need to be measurable and quantifiable.  So, make sure you define them specifically with numbers and then break them apart into tiny segments that you can work towards achieving.  Review last year's sales records so you have something to which to compare this year's sales. Here is where good record keeping is essential. 

An increase in leads or sales over last year's numbers might indicate that your current marketing campaigns are actually working but don’t make the mistake of putting all of your eggs in one basket.  One marketing activity cannot be held accountable for your total business success.  So be sure to have a variety of metrics to track.

So, now you have an idea of how to create a strategy before you actually go about spending any money on your marketing.  For more in-depth information, download the video below.  This video is from a webinar I presented a few months ago and gives you a much more detailed step by step process to creating a strategy that works.

Strategy Before Tactics

I always love hearing from small business owners to find out how you do things.  I’d love to hear your input on creating a marketing strategy.  Tell me how you created your strategic marketing plan.

 

3 Easy Steps to Creating a Marketing Budget

Setting budgets is so critical to any business, big or small.  But I often see so many small business owners just winging it, not really knowing where all of their money is going.  I’m not an accountant but staying on budget is crucial to my job.  Everything I do is based on a budget.  Without a budget or a plan, a business runs the risk of spending more money than it is taking in or, conversely, not spending enough money to grow the business and compete. We all know that we need to spend money to make money and we want to save as much money on those expenses whenever possible.  But how do you determine how much to spend on marketing your business?

Creating, monitoring and managing a budget does not have to be a scary, overwhelming thing.  Even if you have no accounting experience or if you don’t think you have enough time in a day to do it, it really is imperative that you take the time to do it… and do it well.   It will allow you to allocate resources where they are needed. You simply need to work out what you are likely to earn and spend in the budget period.  Here is an easy 3 step plan for creating a marketing budget that works.

Step 1:

Start by creating budgets for the entire year. Be realistic about your projected sales for the budget period.  If you overestimate, it will cause you problems in the future.   Develop separate budgets for marketing, inventory, payroll, and anything else that you will be required to spend money on.  Continuously check to make sure your budget balances and that your numbers make sense.   

Don’t forget to work in a salary for yourself.  I see this happen all the time, where the business owner sinks so much money into the business that they don’t bother paying themselves. 

Step 2:

To create a marketing budget for the year, set your budget between 5 and 10% of your gross annual sales.  When you think about it, if you only have $100,000 in sales with a marketing budget of 5% that means you only have $5000 to work with for the year. Choose a number that you are comfortable with but a substantial amount of money to achieve all of your marketing objectives.  In step 3, you will need to use your creativity to know where best to allocate those dollars. 

Step 3:

From the budget amount you determined in step 2, develop your individual marketing campaigns for the year.  Determine a budget for each campaign based on the yearly marketing budget you have just set for the company.  Make sure you align your marketing goals and objectives with your campaign planning and spending.  You may need to put more money into marketing activities in one or two months in the year, especially if you’re running a strong campaign or if you run a seasonal business, and less in other months.  Just really take a look at your marketing goals and make sure you’ve budgeted enough money for each of those activities.  If that 5% you allocated in step 2 isn’t enough, go back and adjust your numbers. 

Remember that advertising doesn’t have to cost you a fortune.  Leave the big marketing budgets for the big corporations who have the money to spend on it.

It’s going to take some time to play with your numbers to make everything balance.   That is ultimately the goal… to make sure you’re not in the red.   Stick to your budget as closely as possible, but review and revise it as needed. Remember it’s a plan, a guide to your business finances.  It’s not set in stone, but constant review of it is essential to make sure you know where your business stands.

 

Things You Need to Know Before Hiring a Marketing Consultant

Have you ever watched the show Dragons Den?  Or the American version, Shark Tank?  I’m addicted to watching those shows every week.  There are a few of the Dragons and Sharks that I would love to partner with in business and some that I could do without.  Some of the Dragons and Sharks have changed over the seasons and some have made a big impact on my own business decisions. 

I think what’s really amazing to me when I watch Dragons Den or Shark Tank is the sheer number of people who come on the show completely clueless about doing business.  Time and time again, people have spent countless hours and money developing a new product.  But they obviously have not done their research first.  People go out there on national television absolutely, solidly believing in their product but it’s clear that the market doesn’t want or need it.  Their valuations are often ridiculous too, usually because they have valued their company at a million dollars or some other crazy number but they haven’t made any sales yet.  But what really gets me (and I think it’s because I’m a marketer) is the people who go out there and have no clue who their customer is.  They go into this dramatic sales spiel about their product but then one of the dragons cuts them off and says, “But who’s going to buy it?”  It amazes me that they often can’t answer that question.

Whether you’re going on Dragons Den or Shark Tank to pitch a product or you’re approaching a consultant to help you move your business forward, there are things you need to do to prepare for this meeting.  So, here are some thoughts about what you need to know before hiring a marketing firm.

·         Do you have a business plan?  If you don’t have one that’s an issue because it shows me that you haven’t taken the time to do your research.  And if you wrote a business plan 5 years ago and haven’t looked at it since, you need to do that and update it.

·         Do you know your numbers?  You need to know how much it costs to produce the product, how much to sell it for, what your expenses are, what your profit will be and an accurate sales forecast for the next 12 months.  You also need to know how much you will be allocating to marketing expenses.  I can help you with that, but you need to come in prepared.

·         What are your marketing objectives?  Many clients come to me and say, “I need help with my marketing.”  Well, that encompasses a lot of things, so what exactly do you want help with?  What are your goals and how do you think various marketing activities will help achieve those goals?

·         What makes your product so different and special?  I can help you further define your differentiating factors and help you align those with the right target market, but you need to be able to clearly tell me why this is such a fabulous product and why anyone would buy this from you as opposed to buying it from a competitor.

Marketing is one of the most time consuming and expensive aspects to operating a business and it is absolutely crucial to any business.  But you can’t expect to sit back and just let it happen.  You need to do your homework first.  Here is also a list of questions to ask your marketing consultant before signing any contracts with a marketing firm.

Reaching Life's Milestones

Reaching important milestones is a big part of life.  Now that the kids are back in school and focused on their school work and activities it’s time for us to refocus, to set goals and to reach for some of our own milestones in life.  About a month ago, I celebrated a very big milestone in my career.  My company, Small Business Marketing Solutions celebrated its first birthday!! 

Over the past year in business I have learned a lot about myself and what I’m capable of achieving.  And anyone who has a dream but doesn’t think they have what it takes should read these lessons learned and know that you can absolutely achieve anything you set your mid to.

1.       Don’t let anyone stand in your way.  A year ago there was a person in our community who was hell-bent on destroying me.  Because my career hinges on my reputation, I was terrified of what other people thought of me, especially those that had never met me.  I soon learned that the vast majority of people actually wanted me to succeed.  I had given way too much power to this one person and I needed to regain that power back.  So, as scary as it was, with my head held high I mustered up the courage to make some really key phone calls and I walked into meetings and networking events with confidence.

2.       Believe in yourself and others will too.  When you believe in your abilities and what you have to offer, you will attract other like-minded, positive people.  If you honestly believe that you are capable of providing an exceptional product or service, don’t be afraid to share that with everyone.  But there is a difference between having confidence and being full of yourself.  Confident people just exude that confidence and positive people are drawn to them.  They don’t go looking for admiration from anyone who will give it to them. 

3.       Persevere when things get tough.  I knew that going into this business was not going to be easy.  Having kids to take care of and bills to pay along with juggling work responsibilities is part of the world we live in today where the vast majority of women work outside the home.  I’m not going to say it’s easy to balance it all, but keep your goals in mind in everything you do.  Just keep plugging through, giving 100% in everything you do, whether it be your business, your finances, your family, or your friendships.

4.       Stay focused on your goals.  Sometimes it’s difficult to remember why you started this venture in the first place.  I knew that going into this I was opening the only marketing communications consulting firm north of Sudbury.  My goal was to give small businesses throughout northern Ontario the opportunity to adequately plan their marketing strategies with the assistance of a local marketing firm who understood their needs.  Just because we’re a little off the beaten path doesn’t mean that businesses in this area shouldn’t have access to the same resources as businesses in other areas of the country.  Keeping that focus top of mind throughout the year has helped me stay on track as to why I chose to start this company.

 

5.       Don’t settle for less.  Don’t sell yourself short.  Setting goals and achieving them is what keeps me motivated to do more.  I may not have achieved all of my goals by the timeframe I had originally set out but that doesn’t mean I’ll never reach them.  It may just take a little longer to do that.  I know what I want to achieve in my life, my career and my business.  And there is no way I’m going to settle for anything less.  I have goals set, but more importantly I have a plan of action to achieve those goals.

6.       Build a strong support system.  This may sound harsh, but there are people in your life right now that are weighing you down.  Surround yourself with people who genuinely care about your success, people who you can bounce ideas off of, people who will share in your big moments and be there to listen when things start going south.  I’ve had to part ways with “Negative Nellies” and I’ve been fortunate to have found people in the business community who have become real champions of my business.  The friends I have are people who genuinely like me for who I am and want to be friends with me.  I don’t hide my emotions well, so I don’t have patience for phony people.  But the one person I know that is always backing me up is my husband.  Having been together for 12 years, our marriage has been through a lot of good and a lot of not so good.  I don’t do this job (or anything else for that matter) for the recognition, but it’s nice to know that at the end of the day, someone is proud of me.

I once had someone tell me that they admired me for having the guts to start my own business.  I never really looked at it as having the guts to do something that other people may be afraid to do.  But it really does take a certain personality to run a successful business.  Not everyone is cut out for it, nor do they want to.  But if you’re anything like me and you want to make a contribution to business community in any way, just go for it. 

Olympic Style Training for Business

Once again, the Olympics are upon us.  Hopes and dreams of hundreds of athletes are either achieved or shattered.  And all it takes is one mistake or one flawless performance.  Think about how much time and effort these athletes have put into their chosen sport, how dedicated they are, but how unbelievably rewarding it is in the end.

The same can be said about your business.  You can’t expect your business to be successful right out of the gate.  A lot of small business owners start their business with a grandiose idea of what their sales forecast will be for year 1, 2, and 3.  Rarely are those numbers realistic.  Why?  Because as a new business owner, you are absolutely determined that your product or service is the best and everyone needs it. 

Put that into perspective of the Olympic athlete.  When a 10 year competitive athlete says they’re going to make the Olympics one day, they’re generally just brushed off as having a “dream”.  Lots of kids have dreams of making it to the Olympics (that’s their grandiose sales forecast of life), but only a very select few will ever achieve that goal.  But, you can be one of those “kids” who grows up to be an Olympian in your own sport.

You have a business concept that you know is good, just like the kid who know he has an athletic gift.  But what you do with it will determine how far you can take it.  So, what do you need to do?

·         Dedication – If you want to make a name for yourself, dedication is paramount.  How hard are you willing to work?  Olympic athletes train 5+ hours a day, 6 days a week, with a solid focus on the goal they have set for themselves.  You can’t expect to compete in the OIympics by watching from the sidelines.  Nor can you expect to be successful by just sitting around waiting for customers.

·         Key Partnerships – Athletes have built relationships with the top coaches and doctors in the country to ensure that they are in the best possible shape.  Partnerships with carefully selected sponsors helps to fund all the training and travelling involved.  As a business owner, you need to make some very key connections as well.  Develop cross-promotion opportunities with other businesses, practice your communication skills to help you establish connections at networking events, reach out to your customers in a way that makes them feel like you really care.

 

·         Patience and Persistence – Any athlete who has been training for 15+ years has dealt with numerous set-backs.  If you expect to beat out the competition, you’ll need to have lots of patience, knowing that there will inevitably be set-backs and hurdles to deal with.  How you handle those will determine your future.  Handle difficulties with class and patience instead of getting upset and giving up.

So, use the Olympic athletes as inspiration.  Find that Olympian inside you and give it your all.  In time, you will also be basking in the glory of a very successful business.

Do You Know Your Numbers?

So, how many small business owners think about developing an accurate budget?  We all know that we need to spend money to make money and we want to save as much money on those expenses whenever possible.  But do you know how much you actually have available to spend in the first place? 

Estimating and matching expenses to revenue (real or anticipated) is important because it helps small business owners to determine whether they have enough money to fund operations, expand the business as well as generate income for themselves. Without a budget or a plan, a business runs the risk of spending more money than it is taking in or, conversely, not spending enough money to grow the business and compete.

The budgeting process is a key part of running a business successfully. It provides an opportunity for management to thoroughly review progress and to set objectives.  The budget is also a living document which needs to be continuously reviewed in light of the business environment and actual performance. In addition, formal reviews should be done on a quarterly basis. This gives business owners a chance to see what’s really going on their business.   

Benefits of a business budget

There are a number of benefits of drawing up a business budget, including being better able to:

·         manage your money effectively

·         allocate appropriate resources to projects

·         monitor performance

·         meet your objectives

·         improve decision-making

·         identify problems before they occur - such as the need to raise finance or cashflow     difficulties

·         plan for the future

·         increase staff motivation

Okay.  So, now you know why it’s so important to have a budget, but do you know where to start when making one that works?

Creating a budget

Creating, monitoring and managing a budget is key to business success. It helps you allocate resources where they are needed, and it does not to be complicated. You simply need to work out what you are likely to earn and spend in the budget period.  The key here is determine a budget for each item that you need to spend money on; marketing, inventory, payroll, rent and utilities, office expenses.  Everything. 

Start preparing your budget two to three months before the start of a new financial year.

Begin by asking these questions:

1.                   What are the projected sales for the budget period? Be realistic - if you overestimate, it will cause you problems in the future.

2.                   What are the direct costs of sales - ie costs of materials, components or subcontractors to make the product or supply the service?

3.                   What are the fixed costs or overheads? Break down the fixed costs and overheads (the costs that are beyond your control) by type, for example:

•             cost rent or mortgage

•             payroll costs - pay, benefits, etc.

•             utilities - heating, lighting, telephone, internet, etc.

•             vehicle expenses

•             equipment costs  

•             legal and professional costs, including insurance

Your business may have different types of fixed expenses, and you may need to sub-divide these into smaller categories. Don’t forget to work in a salary for yourself.  I this happen all the time, where business owner sink so much money into the business that they don’t bother paying themselves. 

Now you need to figure out your variable expenses, the things you can control.  Things like marketing, travel costs, office expenses, etc.  Decide how much you want to be able to spend on these things throughout the year, based on the funds available.  Once you have figures for income and expenditure, you can work out how much money you're making. You can look at your costs and work out ways to reduce them. You should also be able to spot if you are likely to have cashflow problems - giving you time to do something about them. 

It’s going to take some time to play with your numbers to make everything balance.   That is ultimately the goal… to make sure you’re not in the red.  But taking the time to really dig into your business’ finances is a measure of control all business owners need to have.  Stick to your budget as closely as possible, but review and revise it as needed. Remember it’s a plan, a guide to your business finances.  It’s not set in stone, but constant review of it is essential to make sure you know where your business stands.

Is It Just a Dream or an Actual Goal?

With the new year upon us, everyone is making New Year’s resolutions… lose weight, get out of debt, stop smoking.  Personal goals are important, but what about your business goals?  Every business owner has dreams of what they want to achieve, but unless you have a plan in place, those dreams will never become a reality.

Running a business requires a great deal of planning.  My husband laughs at me because I am the queen of lists and schedules, but that’s just the way my brain works.  But it’s a good thing I’m wired that way.  That’s what keeps me so organized with all of the marketing activities going on with my own business as well as my clients’.  Make your calendar your absolute best friend.  Here is what I do for myself and for my clients.

Plan things out on a yearly, monthly, weekly and daily basis.  Start off by setting some goals you would like to achieve for the year.  Maybe you want to see a 10% increase in sales this year.  Maybe you want to get your book published by end of the year.  How are you going to achieve that? By doing things on a daily, weekly and monthly basis until you’ve achieved what you set for yourself, that’s how.

Whatever your goal is, make sure it’s a SMART goal.  Most people are familiar with SMART goals, but here’s a quick refresher.  First, it needs to be SPECIFIC.  Don’t just say you want to increase sales (everyone wants that!).  How much do you want to increase it by?  Next, make sure your goal is MEASURABLE.  If you don’t have a plan in place to track and measure your results, you will never know how close or how far you are from achieving it.  Is it ATTAINABLE?  Make sure the goal you have set is actually REALISTIC.  Good for you that you want to increase sales, but if you’ve decided you want to increase sales by 200%, you might likely be setting yourself up for failure.  And finally, make sure you have a TIMELINE.  By setting a timeline, you are essentially giving yourself a deadline.  That makes your plan an actual goal, not just a dream. 

By building tasks into your daily, weekly and monthly schedules that are geared around your goals, you can achieve your goals slowly and systematically.  Schedule every hour of your day and follow your schedule.  If your personal goal is to lose 100 pounds this year, you’re going to need to follow a strict schedule of workouts and planned eating.  Your business is no different.  If you want to see success you need to build it into your schedule every single day.  So, get that calendar out and start using it.  I want you to achieve all of your goals this year!!  Happy New Year everyone!