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Improve Your Promotional Flyers And Improve Sales
Admittedly, I have not seen your advertising flyer. Then again, I probably don't have to. I have reviewed hundreds, if not thousands, of advertising flyers for small businesses. After 30 years I have found that nearly every small business ad flyer contains the same mistakes and missed opportunities. Avoid these seven common mistakes, and your advertising flyer - and your marketing in general - will be stronger for it. Advertising flyer mistake #1: A Blah Headline (Your Company's Name) Remember, your flyer is an ad. It needs to SELL. Your potential customers aren't interested in your name. They're not even interested in what you do. Sounds cruel? Well, it is but that's life. Get over it! Prospective customers are interested in their own needs and wants. So, hit them with a headline they can't ignore, because it addresses their needs. Instead of: Sheri's Pet Grooming Try: Smelly Pet Stinking Up The House? Or: We Treat Your Cat Like The Royalty They Are! Or: Man's Best Friend Deserves Something Special! You get the idea. Figure out what's important to your potential customers. Then, use your headline to immediately answer their question: "What's in it for me?" Advertising flyer mistake #2: Not Solving A Problem! Although your ad flyer copy should include your key features or services, each feature or service should be attached to a clear, customer-oriented, benefit that addresses a problem, or hassle, or pain. Also, tell - or, better, show - how those benefits prevent or solve problems for your potential customer. Think about all the problems, both real and potential, that could stem from not using your product or service. Put yourself in your customer's shoes. Talk to them. Listen to them. Learn what their problems are. Identify benefits about your product or service that make a difference to your potential customers.Emphasize in your flyer the problems and solutions that set you apart from your competition. Advertising flyer mistake #3: Be A Friend! People buy from people they like. One key thing your potential customer needs and wants is to feel good about you. Are you knowledgeable? Are you trustworthy? Do you understand my problems? Am I comfortable doing business with you? The more comfortable someone feels about buying from you, the more likely they are to do so. That's why I recommend that you have an "I" section - a section where you talk about yourself, your qualifications, your values, your personal commitment. Help them understand who you are and who they will be doing business with (hopefully). Advertising flyer mistake #4: Going Quietly Into The Night! This is the typical close to a flyer: "for more information, call 555-5555." Instead, create a "call to action". Here are three basic, proven closers: · Buy before (DATE), and receive $10 off. This closer is effective at getting immediate action, and works especially well for one-time purchases or regularly purchased items. · Act before (DATE), and get (VALUE-ADDED PRODUCT/SERVICE), FREE with your purchase! This closer offers an incentive for fast action. It also works "free" into your flyer. "Free" is a very powerful word. · Purchase before (DATE) to take advantage of our slow-season! This closer attaches a negative consequence to any delay or hesitation. Note the more believable the reason for the limit, the more powerful this closer becomes. Advertising flyer mistake #5: Forgetting There Are Two Sides! With an advertising flyer, the printing or photocopying is but a small part of the overall expense. The larger expense, in time or money or both, is distribution. So, distribute a two-sided flyer, for twice the opportunity to make a sale! Just make sure your second side doesn't compete with your main message side. The second side could be used for: · A comprehensive list of your services · A map with driving and parking directions · Customer testimonials · Relevant tips or advice · Answers to Frequently Asked Questions Use the second side to support, expand upon, or enhance the message on the main side. Advertising flyer mistake #6: One Good Shot! One-time advertising efforts are seldom effective. It is a rule of thumb among marketing professionals that you need to reach people at least eight times before they really notice you. Your prospective customers need to see the your ads over and over. So, plan a series of distributions as part of your strategy. I recommend that you plan to hit each household at least eight times with an ad flyer. Mix the message up a bit! Change the color of the paper you use. Change the headline. Keep track of which flyer drives the most business. If possible, combine your flyers with other localized advertising, so you reach those homes through a variety of media channels. At the very least, combine door-to-door distribution with posting in public areas where allowed. Community centers, schools, stores, and libraries often offer public bulletin boards. Advertising flyer mistake #7: Flyers Gone Astray! You should keep two objectives in mind when targeting neighborhoods for your flyer distribution. · It's much more cost-effective for you to have clients in convenient clusters instead of scattered all over town. Concentrate your ad distribution within and around your existing clusters of clients. · Reaching the right people within the target area is also critical. An advertising flyer for a landscaper is largely wasted if it's delivered to residents of an apartment building. The added advantage to walking your "territory" house-by-house will be giving you a better understanding for what services or mix of services you should offer. Promotional flyers are one tool in the small business' marketing arsenal. Learn to use them well and you will create customers while saving yourself time and money. Michele Schermerhorn calls herself a "Corporate Freedom Fighter" dedicated to freeing cubicle prisoners. She has over 30 years experience in the business world and over 12 years running her own successful online businesses. She is President of Online Business Institute Inc. (http://www.obinstitute.com), authors a marketing blog (http://www.imarketblog.com), and regularly conducts free online seminars. Online Business Institute Inc. exists to "Create Successful Online Business Owners One Person At A Time".
Latest News:Site: Yahoo! News Search Results for news Game news: 'GTA IV' hits 10 million, EA meets ESPN (AP via Yahoo! News) Real news from the virtual world: News and notes on the PGA Tour's top 20 golfers (USA Today) Get the latest news and notes on the top 20 golfers on the PGA Tour. These rankings are based 2006-07 PGA Tour results. UAL shares walloped by new posting of old news (Reuters via Yahoo! News) A nearly 6-year-old news story on the 2002 bankruptcy filing of UAL Corp resurfaced on the Internet on Monday, clobbering the airline's shares briefly as some traders mistook the report as current and plausible news. Asyncast delivers custom news to hands-free mobile devices (CNET) The company's Rocketron service allows users to set preferences for the kinds of news stories they want to hear, as well as filter controls for news they don't want. Young adults want less election news (UPI) EVANSTON, Ill., Sept. 8 (UPI) -- U.S. young adults say there is too much election-related news on Internet news sites, a university study indicates. CNET News Daily Podcast: The new Zune plays its tune (CNET) Microsoft lets "slip" Zune news one day before Apple's big shindig. Big ad group says Google-Yahoo is a bad idea. Who says real spies don't dig social networking? Game News: 'GTA IV' Hits 10 Million, EA Meets ESPN (CBS News) Real news from the virtual world: ABC News gets first Palin interview (Reuters via Yahoo! News) ABC News' Charles Gibson has snagged the first interview with Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin since she was named the GOP's vice presidential pick on August 29. United Airlines hit by 5-year-old news (UPI) CHICAGO, Sept. 8 (UPI) -- United Airline's stock value plunged Monday after a 5-year-old news story was posted on a Florida newspaper's Web site. UPI NewsTrack Entertainment News (UPI) Spears wins 3 MTV Video Music Awards ... 'Wrestler' wins Golden Lion in Venice ... Report: MSNBC shuffles election anchors ... Iconic Astroland park closes ... News from United Press International. Site: news - Google News New Voices in Congress Will Change the Tone of the Democratic Majority - New York Times
MORE RESOURCES: Site: Yahoo! News Search Results for advertising Ad-averse Mobile Users Will Pay to Avoid Advertising (Cellular-News.com) Mobile providers looking to boost their revenues through content downloads and advertising are in for a rough ride, according to a new study by market researchers TNS. A Web advertising dark horse goes on the offensive (Market Watch) While its rivals have been fetching multibillion-dollar acquisition offers from the likes of Google Inc. and Microsoft Corp., online-advertising firm ValueClick Inc. has been busy digging its way out of a legal mess. Intergi's Video Game & Entertainment Advertising Network Has Largest Potential Reach in U.S. According to Newest ... (Centre Daily Times) Intergi (www.intergi.com), a leading video game and entertainment site representation company and advertising network, today announced that it now has a total potential advertising reach of 52.4 million unique visitors in the United States, topping other targeted ad networks - including bellwethers such as Advertising.com Games and Yahoo! Games. Based on the latest data from the August 2008 ... Largest ever advertising billboard at London Bridge Station (London SE1) A huge advertising billboard has been unveiled at London Bridge Station to promote the NSPCC and brighten up hoardings on the concourse. Online Brokerage Sites See Increased Visitors With Ramped up Online Advertising Efforts (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance) comScore, Inc. , a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a study of the online trading and brokerage industry showing strong visitor growth to online brokerage sites coinciding with heavy online advertising efforts by several of the key brokerages. Advertising spend in Qatar crawls (MENAFN) Advertising spend in Qatar crawls Intergi's Video Game & Entertainment Advertising Network Has Largest Potential Reach in U.S. According to Newest ... (Business Wire via Yahoo! Finance) DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla.----Intergi , a leading video game and entertainment site representation company and advertising network, today announced that it now has a total potential advertising reach of 52.4 million unique visitors in the United States, topping other targeted ad networks - including bellwethers such as Advertising.com Games and Yahoo! GCC advertising expenditure rises by 23.6% (MENAFN) GCC advertising expenditure rises by 23.6% NeoMedia and Format Dynamics Join Forces to Integrate Innovations in Online & Offline Advertising (Marketwire via Yahoo! Finance) NeoMedia Technologies, Inc. (OTC.BB: NEOM), and Format Dynamics, Inc., today announced a strategic alliance designed to accelerate innovation in both online and offline advertising. Bald Is Beautiful (Advertising Space) (CBS News) New Zealand's national airline is offering to pay bald travelers to use their heads - literally - in a new advertising campaign. Site: advertising - Google News US court upholds LA ban on billboards - Los Angeles Times
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