 |
 |
 |
           |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
Advertising Costs Getting Too High?
Everyone knows that advertising is essential to growing a business. One problem that small business owners have always faced is the high cost of marketing. Most, however don't realize that there is an effective way to reduce the cost of your advertising while - at the same time - increasing its reach. Advertising co-ops are nothing new. Usually they are a "perk" offered by major manufacturers to encourage retailers to promote their products. Because the retailer has direct access to customers that would want to buy certain products, it only makes sense that they should do joint advertising. You've seen it - McDonalds mentioning Coke in their commercials, Dell stating that you get a free Epson printer with purchase and so on. The retailer doesn't make the product the manufacturer is providing, but it IS a great match with what they DO offer. Nobody would want to eat a Big Mac without something to drink, and a computer wouldn't do a lot of good without a printer. Now you can use this same strategy to create your own advertising co-op to increase the reach of your ads and drastically reduce the cost, too. --- How It Works Generally speaking, the cost of any advertisements (bulk emailings, ezine ads, banners, newspaper, etc.) would be split equally between all participants. If you and two associates decide to purchase a solo ad, you would each receive equal mentions in the ad and you would each pay equal portions of the cost. So if the solo ad were going to a list of 200,000 and cost $150, each of the three would pay $50. You get to reach 200,000 people for 1/3 the cost you would have normally paid. And, because this ad relates you to other types of businesses, you actually expand your advertising reach. --- Getting Started So who would be qualified to enter into an ad co-op with you? It depends on the nature of your business. Think of others that reach your same target customer and make a list. If you design Web sites, you might approach hosting companies, graphic artists, copywriters or programmers. If your business is landscaping, you could invite yard maintenance companies to join you. Once you have a list of one or more business types, think of current associates you know who belong to those groups. Also, ask others if they know of any reliable businesses that fall into the categories you've outlined. --- Making the Approach When you have a list of businesses to approach, simply write or email them with your offer. Be sure to point out the benefits such as: * a win-win situation * reduced cost of advertising * expanded reach of advertising * larger, more prominent ads for a fraction of the cost Also, be sure to ask about the advertising outlets these businesses currently use. You will likely find new avenues that lead to greater exposure. --- Finalizing the Deal You'll need to work out payment arrangements with your partners prior to placing the ad(s). The best way I have found to handle the finances is for each party to pay me for their portion of the cost with a credit card. I then place the ad order with MY credit card. This way, you are assured of receiving the dollar amount due to you; and your partners have the assurance that - should you default on your end of the deal - they have recourse for getting their money back. Working in cooperation with other businesses can lead to tremendous successes with advertising. When like-minded companies pool their resources to reach one target audience, the impact is doubled while the cost is reduced by at least half. That's the best advertising bargain around today! Diane C. Hughes * ProBizTips.com FREE Report: Amazingly Simple (Yet Super Powerful) Ways To Skyrocket Your Sales And Build Your Business Into A Tower of Profits! ==>> http://madmarketer.com/diane
MORE RESOURCES:
Advertising - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Electronic Reader Board Electronic reader boards are the most efficient way to convey the information. Therefore these nowadays are widely accepted all over the world. Do Your Radio Ads Work? Most small businesses don't have a high powered advertising agency to produce selling radio commercials for them and end up with something akin to a high school play, or with the business owner reading tired copy.The radio salesperson knows that by suggesting the owner be the star, visions of Dave from Wendys or that guy with the talking dog who says "roll that beautiful bean footage" come to mind. Diamonds Are For Evil The task of executing successful advertising campaigns for products made exclusively for women is understatedly tempestuous. Any Average Joe consumer would relay the message that feminine product commercials put him under a great deal of stress and discomfort. LED Score Boards LED scoreboards can be utilized in most of the sporting event for eye-catching effects replace traditional scoreboards. This high- tech lighting system is both energy - efficient and able to produce a very bright light. Five Characteristics of Highly Successful Advertising Have you ever spent a small fortune on advertising that generated disappointment rather than sales?Many small business owners have been down the road of flat advertising results and are at a loss when it comes to developing new ideas to improve the response to their ads.Whether you run ads in your local newspaper, your industry's top periodical or on-line, you need your investment in advertising to pay for itself, and then some, in order to justify its cost. Marketing Tips For Small Business - Advertising That Works, Part I Have you ever seen an ad on television that was beautiful, slick, and stylish but didn't fit the product? How about a magazine ad that, though gorgeously photographed, didn't make it clear what was being sold? Or have you heard a catchy radio ad that neglected to give contact information? If you pay attention, you'll notice these money-wasting advertisements in all types of media.If a corporation puts out a bad advertisement, the marketing department will have the resources and budget to make a mid-course correction (sometimes). CD Business Cards- Why Use Them? CD Business cards are the electronic version of the now outdated paper business or social card. They are the smaller squared version of the CD-R family. Worn Out Brochure Design Is Keeping Small Business Owners Down I got another one of those calls the other day.. Advertising, Public Relations, Newsletters, and Newsletters for Your Small Business If you own a small business you should consider ways to promote yourself through public relations to compliment you advertising regiment and keeping your name out in the public and in front of your best customers. There are many ways to keep yourself visible on top of your typical advertising choices. Raising Funds For Your Nonprofit Using An Annual Direct Mail Program A good annual direct mail solicitation program can produce unrestrictive operating funds for your nonprofit organization year after year. And such an annual direct mail program, if done right, should produce more funding for your organization each year. LED Moving Message Displays LED's are becoming more and more popular in all kinds of lighting fixtures. For simpler, slimmer design, moving message displays utilize Light Emitting Diodes (LED's) as the display technology. The Man With The Grasshopper Mind The title of this article also happens to be one of the "20 Greatest Headlines Ever Written."Did you know, just changing the headline has been known to dramatically improve the effectiveness of an ad or sales letter by up to 1700 percent? Yes, headlines are that powerful--and that important!However, over the last few years, I've noticed a proliferation of badly written--or just plain weak headlines--both online and off!Particularly disturbing is the copycat syndrome. Driving Customers to You - Your Car as a Marketing Vehicle You can turn your vehicle into a rolling advertisement. Costs start at just a few dollars, and you can put your business name, slogan, phone number and web site URL in front of thousands of potential customers while you are driving along the freeway, stuck in traffic or even while you are parked. Seven Ways to Kick Up the Power of Your Print Advertising - More Small Business Power Tools If you're a retailer and the only kind of advertising you do is built around sales events, you don't need much in the way of advice. All your advertising needs to do is spell out as clearly as possible what's on sale, the amount to be saved and your store's name, address and phone number. How You Can Create Advertising That Sells A well-planned and properly executed marketing program should include a sufficient commitment of capital resources to an on-going, well executed advertising program. Yes, this includes your business. Advertising Through Moms Moms have a very powerful influence on what their families eat, drink, wear, do, and buy. Moms are not only the driving force behind their families, but also the economy. Secrets of Getting Free Advertising The opportunities for getting free advertising for your product or services are limited only by your own imagination and energies. There are so many proven ways of promoting your own objectives without cost that it literally boggles the mind just to think of listing them. Online Advertising: 10 High Impact Psychological Triggers To Super-Charge Your Ad If you knew these 10 high impact insider's hidden psychological triggers and plug them into your Ad and website content, you can empower them and ignite a tornado of sales at your website.Read, understand and use them and burst open the floodgate of sales. How to Write Ads that Pull Orders If your ads aren't paying off then you need this quick method in writing ads that get orders. Step 1 - Write a headline that will draw attention to your product or service. Promotional Vehicles It is difficult to miss a Hummer, but how many companies could afford to run one to promote their business? The answer is, of course, very few and it is doubtful whether GM's overgrown offspring would be the most suitable promotional vehicle for many of them. What then are the alternatives and how could businesses benefit from using a vehicle as an advertising medium?What is a promotional vehicle?A promotional vehicle is a car, truck or SUV with purpose-designed adhesive vinyl graphics applied to its exterior, promoting a business or one of its products or services.
|
 |