Advertising? Ask These Questions Before You Commit to a Campaign

© 2024 by James Bahm

Every business does some form of marketing and some do their fair share of advertising on top of their marketing. Throughout my career I have often heard a variation of the following: there are many ways to advertise/market incorrectly, and a few ways to do it right.

Marketing is everything you do to bring attention to your product/service, whereas advertising is your way of generating buying interest.

If I had to guess, I'd say that most local business owners want to attract new customers and grow revenues. In my line of work I hear a range of objections from, "I tried advertising and it didn't work", to "I have more business than I can stand" (more on this one later), to many others in between.

What follows are a few questions you can ask potential advertising partners, along with some metrics you can use to determine if your most recent advertising campaign is successful.

Question Everyone Who Presents a Solution

Small business owners are inundated with countless sales people on a daily basis, most of whom talk about how great their product/service is, rather than sharing information of value exclusively from the perspective of the business owner/decision maker with whom they'd like to meet.

This is one area sellers and advertisers need to be in agreement: Everything you present needs to be delivered from the perspective of your target customer. If you sell widgets, then you need to give your prospect a reason to meet with you, that is from their perspective. 

Here are some questions you need to ask:

Listen to the radio, or watch television, and you are likely to hear two car dealerships in the same commercial break, or multiple attorneys, grocers, and so forth. The likelihood of you being the only person in your industry on a station is extremely low, and that is a good thing. 

Ask this: Since I'm not the only person in my industry that you work with, how will you manage my advertising in a way that will keep my message fresh and different from my competitors? 

Most television stations, outdoor advertising, and other marketers charge their clients to produce their commercials. (I know in Phoenix one station charged $1200 to produce a one :30 spot, and that was over a decade ago.)

Ask this: Do you charge for copywriting and production?

One item of frustration that I hear from many clients is once they bought XYZ, the salesperson never came back around. Advertising and Marketing is often trial and error. A company can have excellent copy, but something just doesn't connect with the audience. Maybe the call to action needs to be restated, or some other small change is needed.

It's perfectly all right to make changes (especially in print/digital advertising) as necessary. 

If your vendor doesn't mention a collaborative approach early on in the process, here are some questions for you.

Ask this: How often can I expect to see you during the campaign? 

Ask this: If we need to make changes, how accessible are you? 

Ask this: What is the process for making changes?

Ask this: What are my deadlines for making changes?

A doctor doesn't prescribe any medication without a thorough examination of a patient's symptoms. So why do lazy sales professionals bring the latest package and offer it as a solution for every company they visit? 

Don't misunderstand: these are great if you are having a food festival and looking for vendors, or planning a listener party and need a place to host it, but one-sized advertising does not fit all companies.

A package might serve as a conversation starter: "Mr. Customer, our company prides itself on being a vital part of the community, one way we do that is through live events. While I would like to share some examples with you, I'd rather spend time talking about your business...." 

Just as you'd not accept a script from a doctor who didn't examine you, be very leery of any potential vendor you meet with who shows up with a "package" without first asking any questions about your business; unless of course they present you something centered around a one-off event that makes sense for your company.

The Measure of Success

How can you determine if your advertising campaign worked? "An increase in $ales!" you might say. And while that is the obvious answer most all clients provide, there are other metrics that must be considered before looking at the sales totals:

1. What does Google say? 

Do you run Google Analytics on your website? If not, it's free and essential to seeing the impact of your advertising. Here is a great read on the impact radio advertising has on increasing online searches.

You will see an increase in online searches where consumers will type your name in the search bar, rather than your industry ("Bob's House of Surfboards" versus "Surfboard shops near me") and that will lead to an increase in page views.

However... if your website is not user-friendly, or is difficult to navigate, or has outdated information, you will not know just how much of a success the campaign was in driving new consumers your way. Therefore, make sure your website is ready for the new consumer about to visit.

2. Does the phone ring? 

I remember helping a colleague with Xerox who had the worst person imaginable working at the front desk.  This particular doctor’s office had several negative reviews on multiple sites, all complaining about the office manager who was unpleasant on the phone, and even worse in person.

If you hear the phone ringing a few more times than it previously rang, but sales are not increasing, consider the advertising successful.  However, take a hard look at who is answering the phone: Are they friendly? Do they answer questions correctly? 

3. Is there more foot traffic?

An increase in customers coming through the door is great news for any business owner…unless your sales staff are poorly trained, fail to ask the right questions, or fail to pay attention to what the customers tell them.  

Advertising will get customers to you, once they get there, it’s up to you and your staff to keep them and convert them to advocates who tell others how great you are. 

4. Where are you located?

If your storefront is hard to find, or doesn’t look appealing to passersby, then don’t expect many people to stop in.  They may well want to give you a chance to earn their business; but if they do not feel comfortable, don’t expect them to visit.

Your vendor is not responsible for any of these.  You want new customers, advertising will bring attention to who you are, what you do, and how to get in touch with you; however, make sure you are ready to earn their business. 

One footnote…  In your advertising/marketing message never, never, NEVER say you have a “friendly, knowledgeable staff eager to serve, and we’re conveniently located”…. Consumers expect to work with knowledgeable professionals; moreover, you aren’t convenient to someone who lives more than a few miles away.  It’s bad copy, and a waste of precious seconds. 

“Everyone else says that in their commercials,” you may say.  Yes, I reply, and if everyone else sounds the same, how will consumers be able to differentiate you from them? If you want to truly grow your business, stop sounding like everyone else.