Advertising
A term which conjures up pictures of anything from our current flashing banner advertising and pop up ads, to Leonard Rossiter and Joan Collins doing their bit to promote Vermouth products on television station advertising in the 1970's.
Whatever it says to you - it has been a multi-billion-money spinner for advertising agencies and media advertising publishers like Sky TV and Google for many years - the latter now enjoys a massive market share for Online advertising and who knows where this will go.
There is no doubt that advertising sales have increased as a whole over the last ten years, but it is Online advertising and other formats that seem to be stealing the show, in terms of lead generation, value for money and monitoring. More and more publishers now seem to be going down the freelance advertising route, employing writers, copyrighters and even advertising sales people on a freelance basis - proving there is money to be made without the associated short-term risks of salaried positions.
Where to start with your own advertising campaign is the big question and this is where most companies just dive straight into the ocean without testing the temperature of the water first. One thing you have to do right from the start is look at who your potential audience is and more importantly, where they are looking to find products and services like yours.
There are so many choices today and so little time and money to create effective campaigns that work from the very start. So, do your homework and assess the key target markets for your products and services before anything else.
Once you have established the best forms of advertising to concentrate on, you can now search for appropriate vendors and start to do some media planning. Let's take a look at some of the options:
Web advertising
Sometimes know as Internet Advertising or even mixed in with online advertising - this is a format that requires a great deal of thought. The term web advertising covers any advertising format that is available on the web and not only on websites themselves. This can include ppc advertising (or pay per click advertising) through networks like Google, or a form of graphic, image or text based advertisement on a website
Magazine advertising
Placing magazine advertisements in relevant publications can be a very worthwhile exercise, but must be monitored effectively. With the huge increase in online spend, it seems that most magazines are now regarded as 'brand awareness' vehicles, as most people seem to be searching on the web for everything these days. However, magazines can certainly provide a great platform and should be used for much than building your brand and credibility.
Radio Station Advertising
There are now excellent packages available on a whole host of radio stations around the world and this format is certainly one to take a close look at. Most advertising seems to be targeting consumers, but more and more B2B companies now use the flexible time slot system to reach their own audience. Prices are usually based on the time taken and the time of day the slot will appear in. If you book more slots, you should get a better price and the stations will even help you with the production of the ad for you.
Television Advertising
Well. The list here is endless and sometimes the budgets of most advertisers have to be too! However, there is no doubt that TV advertising can generate tremendous responses - just look at how many ads you see for home loans and gyms on daytime television.
One thing you have to do is work out if a TV audience are the people that will want your product. If they are, look at not only the cost of placing the ad, but also the production costs associated with it. There are a number of companies who can help and you can always find an advertising agency that specialises in TV placement and also the production of the adverts.
National Newspaper Advertising
From small classifieds to full-page displays, newspaper advertising can be extremely rewarding for small and large businesses alike. It seems that the casual read element puts the reader in a relaxed frame of mind and more open to respond to products and services. Some of the biggest names in internet marketing online swear by it - regional newspaper advertising can also bring great results on a lower level to National Newspaper advertising.
Outdoor Advertising
There are many options to choose from here and a whole host of outdoor advertising companies that will be willing to help. Why not try ambient advertising formats like billboard advertising on the side of roads, or even mobile billboards on scooters and other vehicles. This format can offer specific venue/location ads too, like on golf courses or at concert halls and theatres. Take a look at some examples in our advertising trends in out of home media section.
The word Advertising is a general one and we have included many links to other more specific pages on this particular web page. Please explore the site and take advantage of the many resources open to you. Why not register and enjoy all of the free tools we offer the advertising industry.
See our full list of Advertising guide pages