Fill
in the Details
What
are the features and benefits of your product or service? When determining features,
think of automobile brochures that list engine, body and performance specifications.
Next, and more difficult, determine the benefits those features provide to your
customers. How does your product or service actually help them? For example, a powerful
engine helps a driver accelerate quickly to get onto busy freeways.
Who
is your audience? Create a profile of your best customer. Be as specific as
possible, for this will be the focus of your ads and media choices. A
restaurant may target adults who dine out frequently in the nearby city or
suburban area. A computer software manufacturer may aim at information managers
in companies with 10-100 employees. A bottled water company may try to appeal
to athletes or people over 25 who are concerned about their health.
Who
is your competition? It's important to identify your competitors and their
strengths and weaknesses. Knowing what your competition offers that you don't,
and vice versa, helps
you show prospects how
your product or service is special, or why they should do
business with you
instead of someone else. Knowing your competition will also help you
find a niche in the
marketplace.
2.
Arm
Yourself with Information
What
do you know about your industry, market and audience? There are many sources of
information to help you keep in touch with industry, market and buying trends
without conducting expensive market research. Examples include U.S. Government
materials from the Census Bureau and Department of Commerce. Public, business
or university libraries are also a good option, as are industry associations,
trade publications and professional organizations. You can quickly and easily
learn more about your customers by simply asking them about themselves, their
buying preferences and media habits. Another, more expensive, alternative is to
hire a professional market research firm to conduct your research.
3.
Build
Your Action Plan Evaluating Media Choices
Your
next step is to select the advertising vehicles you will use to carry your
message, and establish an advertising schedule. In most cases, knowing your
audience will help you choose the media that will deliver your sales message
most effectively. Use as many of the above tools as are appropriate and
affordable. You can stretch your media budget by taking advantage of co-op
advertising programs offered by manufacturers. Although programs vary,
generally the manufacturer will pay for a portion of media space and time costs,
or mailer production charges, up to a fixed amount per year. The total amount contributed
is usually based on the quantity of merchandise you purchase.
When developing your
advertising schedule, be sure to take advantage of any special editorial or
promotional coverage planned in the media you select. Newspapers, for example,
often run special sections featuring real estate, investing, home and garden improvement,
and tax advice.
Magazines also often
focus on specific themes in each issue.
For additional
information:
Read SBA's "A
Primer on Advertising"
4.
Using
Other Promotional Avenues
Advertising
extends beyond the media described above. Other options include imprinting your
company name and graphic identity on pens, paper, clocks, calendars and other giveaway
items for your customers. Put your message on billboards, inside buses and subways,
on vehicle and building signs, on point-of-sale displays and shopping bags. You
might co-sponsor events with nonprofit organizations and advertise your
participation; attend or display at consumer or business trade shows; create
tie-in promotions with allied businesses; distribute newsletters; conduct
seminars; undertake contests or sweepstakes; send advertising flyers along with
billing statements; use telemarketing to generate leads for salespeople; or
develop sales kits with brochures, product samples, or application ideas.
The
number of promotional tools used to deliver your message and repeat your name
is limited only by your imagination your budget.
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