Test the Offer-Not the Medium

This is the best advice I can give you about advertising: Test the Offer, NOT the Medium.

So many times I have heard clients say, "I tried newspaper, radio, tv, print.....and it didn't work. There must have been no one listening/reading/watching".

My first response is to gently remind them that every medium has an audience or it wouldn't exist and then I ask, "What were you trying to accomplish?" and "What was the offer"?

There are just 2 types of advertising: POTUA and Branding. POTUA is a formula for "Immediate Traffic" advertising. It stands for Price, Offer, Theme, Urgency, Action. Branding is a formula for long term, consistent, slow-and-easy-wins-the-race, Top of Mind Awareness, you will see results over time advertising.

If you are expecting (or needing) instant results with your advertising, you must run a POTUA campaign. And with POTUA, you need an offer. A good one.

I recently helped a client sell $14,000 in gift certifcates in one day as the result of a radio campaign. This client has a small spa business that typically does $10,000-$20,000 in sales in a week. How did I get her a week's worth of revenue in one day? With a good offer.

Here is the formula we used:

Price: A $100 Spa Treatment for $50 (She covered her costs in the hopes that the offer would prompt additional purchases....it did)

Offer: Downloadable half-off gift certificates

Theme: Target busy, working women. The ad highlighted the fact that women take care of everyone but themselves. The spa offered woman a chance to remedy that, affordably

Urgency: The ads ran with high frequency on a female targeted radio station Monday to Friday with a purchase deadline of that Friday at 6:00pm

Action: Log on to a website, purchase a half price certificate with a credit card and print it out (make it as easy as possible for people to follow through with your offer)

In one day, the client sold 302 certificates and surpassed her wildest expectations.

Had any part of the above formula not been followed, the promotion would not have been as succesful.

Use this formula yourself when you need a little instant gratification advertising. When combined with good frequency/repeptition, it works every time.

Just remember to put every offer through the filter of, "Would I do this"..."Would this offer be enticing to me"..."How many people need this product or service right now"...."Is this offer good enough to get a noticeable response"?

Also remember that the higher the price tag of the item or the longer your product cycle (how often people need your product or service), the more shallow your response pool will be. For example, you can offer me a $10 King Sized Mattress set but unless I am the Princess and the Pea or currently in the market for a mattress, I will not respond.

Lastly! POTUA should not be abused. Too much of anything is...too much. Offering a sale every week, even every month, is the fastest way to deminish the perceived value of your product or service. Reserve this type of advertising for once-max twice-per year.

Now go on...get some results!