If you are offering a product for sale or maybe a new service for hire, then it goes without saying, that you need to advertise. Yes the dreaded "A" word. All of us in business must do it, otherwise you will either go out of business very quickly, or your customers will be nothing more than friends and relatives.

Here are some thoughts to keep in mind when creating your advertising campaign. To start, do not over think the process. What I mean by that is, yes, you want to think outside the box, but don`t get too crazy, where your advertising has become so creative, that no one has any idea what the heck you are trying to sell to them. I am sure you have experienced this yourself as a consumer. You are watching TV and a commercial comes on so you sit through it. At the end of it, you sit their and wonder, what in the world are they selling. I know I have experienced this, and so have others. Do not fall into that trap.

Often, often often! What does this mean? It means, run your advertising as often as your budget will allow. Do not run it today, then wait 60 days to run it again. Studies have shown that consumers must be exposed to advertising on average about 5 to 7 times before they make a move and purchase something from a company. Using that information, you will need to get yourself out there 7 times to start gaining some customers. If you wait in between advertising segments, it will be like starting over every time you run it. So get your name out there often.

In business there is nothing better than the impulse buy. A lot of consumers will impulse buy if they feel they are getting a great deal. They understand real numbers, so saying "buy right now!", won`t work. What you want to do is offer them a huge discount, as much as 35% to 40%, if your budget will allow, then show them the real price. So if you are selling a widget, and it normally sells for $19.99, let the consumer know, that if they act right now, it will only cost them $12.99 (or a number that meets your budget). The discount has to be significant enough for the consumer to act on it right there and then. 10% to 20% hardly ever does it.

Avoid using catch phrases, such as "you must act right now in order to get this discount", or "we only have a limited number left". These statements are more destructive to your ad campaign then constructive. Instead set a deadline. I saw a real good one the other day for someone trying to sell their home. The headline read, "If under contract by Sunday 8:00pm, I will reduce the asking by $45,000". The price drop was a significant one, and it sets a deadline for someone to act on it, limiting their time.

If you offer coupons in your business make sure you put a code on the coupon so you can keep track of which advertising medium it comes from. This way you can track exactly where you should emphasize more advertising dollars.

Finally, do not neglect current customers. Most of the time there is no better resource then consumers who have already purchased your product or used your service. Get their feedback on what they would like to see changed in regards to what you are offering. Remember, all criticism is helpful, regardless of how negative it comes across. We`ll get to criticism in another article, but for now, know that you can learn from all criticism that you receive. As you receive feedback, if you notice patterns from multiple customers such as hearing from 5 to 10 of them that they would like to see your widget in purple, then consider making a purple widget. You get the point.

By: Bruce A. Tucker