About Advertising a Business

There's truth in all the old saws about advertising, such as "Advertising doesn't cost ... it pays," "Advertising lets people know you're in business" and "If you don't advertise while you're in business, you'll eventually advertise that you're going out of business." Whether you're running a small mom-and-pop shop or a huge corporation, marketing a business is an important part of its success.

Create An Advertising Budget

Decide on a budget for advertising, be generous in the funds you earmark for this purpose, and don't cave in to using that money for other expenses. When business is slow, it's tempting to pull back on advertising, but this is exactly when you need to stimulate more business. Businesses that have advertised during economic downturns have often fared better than those that didn't.

Advertise In Multiple Media

Use a media mix of advertising. There are dozens of ways to advertise your business, and you should try them all at one time or another. Some will be fruitful and others will not, so it's important to track results. Newspapers, radio and TV are the most predominant media for advertising local businesses, with weekly tabloid newspapers generally being the most cost-effective while providing high visibility. Also try billboards, flyers, church bulletins, newsletters, signs and spots on supermarket shopping carts.

Use the Web

Web sites are another way to advertise, especially if the product or service you sell extends beyond your local community. Even if you only serve a local area, there are search directories and Web sites that cater to specific regions. If you have a Web site, be sure to include the address on all of your printed material, including business cards, flyers and newspaper ads. Register your site with as many search engines and directories as you can to ensure that you will come up in search-result listings when people look for your type of product or service online.

Newsletters and E-newsletters

Send a periodic newsletter to your customers. This can be done by mail or e-mail and keeps your business in the forefront of the minds of previous customers. A newsletter or e-newsletter should not just be a piece of sales literature, although it can certainly include notices of upcoming sales and coupons for discounts on specific items. To ensure that people will read your newsletter, include useful information. For example, if you are a music store, include articles on how to string a classical guitar, how to tune a guitar or the features of different musical keyboards.

Be Consistent With Advertising

Consistency is key to successful advertising. Running a small ad in a newspaper one time will have a slim chance of producing a lot of results, unless it's for a spectacular one-day sale or some other dated event. Otherwise, plan on running media ads multiple times. Experts say that, on average, a person needs to see or hear an ad three or four times before they take action (such as ordering a product, picking up the phone to initiate a call or visiting a Web site). Also, keeping the name of your business in front of people is important in building the confidence of both current and potential customers.