Does Your Advertising Method Make Sense?

By Erin Quinlan

Sometimes, we see things that make us stop and just shake our heads.

Take for example the Big Y 18-wheeler at the Big E. Who thinks about going to the grocery store to get food after stuffing themselves at the Big E?

Not us. We at The Silent Partner Marketing made sure to eat everything in sight at the fair.

This giant advertisement probably cost at least $10,000. That’s a lot of dough to spend on something that won’t matter to people – because they’ve already eaten enough dough in the last few hours to last at least a couple weeks.

The cost and the lack of return on investment make this a poor marketing technique.

So here’s your homework. Stop and think about your traditional and digital marketing initiatives. Think about where you’re spending your money and think to yourself, “Does it make sense?”

Creating a marketing strategy without a clear understanding of your audience is a bit like setting out on a boat without navigational tools. You’re doing something, but you’re not working toward a specific goal.

You need to figure out who your audience is. Demographic profiles are somewhat limited in their potential to uncover motivations and buying patterns, but they’re a good place to start.

Once you figure out who your audience is, figure out what their most pressing issue, problem, or desire is. Whatever the issue, it’s what you’ll use to enter the discussion and make an impact in their lives.

How does your product or service solve their problem? Don’t tell them what your do or the product does, but tell them what it does for them.

You also need to figure out where your audience gets their information. Choosing the correct channels for your message is absolutely critical. See the Big Y 18-wheeler for an example of an incorrect channel.

Consumers these days are a skeptical breed who are bombarded with advertisements everywhere they go. Oftentimes, the ads are filled with outright lights. Always act with integrity, back up your claims with proof, and understand the dynamics of your market well enough to be able to identify the standard bad claims.

Trust is huge. Who do your customers trust? Hopefully, the answer to that question is you. Gaining the trust of your audience is huge. Be open, honest, and always leave the lines of communication open.

Need some help with all of this?

Give The Silent Partner Marketing a call at 866-432-6456 or e-mail Kyle Reyes at kyle@thesilentpartnermarketing.com and we can help you out.

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Erin Quinlan is the Content Marketing Manager of The Silent Partner Marketing, a boutique marketing firm focused on helping businesses grow in an age of exploding technology. You can find The Silent Partner Marketing on Google+, Facebook, and Twitter.