Measure it… Manage it! The first thing I have to say is that you may not realize the magnitude of difference between one advertisement (marketing strategy) and another. Make sure you read the following statement by John Caples, the doyen of direct response copywriters. Now read it at least 3 times: ‘I have seen one advertisement actually sell not twice as much, not three times as much, but 191/2 times as much as another. Both advertisements occupied the same space. Both were run in the same publication. Both had photographic illustrations. Both had carefully written copy. The difference was that one used the right appeal and the other used the wrong appeal.’  Now do you want to know the secret of becoming an advertising genius. Here it is: Write 12 different advertisements. Use them all and measure them meticulously. At the end of this process you’ll know what works and what doesn’t. The best ad will most likely produce a significant increase from the least producing ad. Making you more money for doing less… more importantly it’s sustainable. How much is this knowledge going to be worth to you? It depends? Lets say you invest $30,000 a year in advertising. If your new ad produces 3 times the results, you can either reduce your advertising budget by $20,000 or keep it the same and you’ll increase your sales from advertising by 300% over the next 12 months. Now have I got your attention? I recently saved a company over $42,000 in advertising costs by measuring their advertising, and eliminating anything which wasn’t bringing in sales. We also modified their ads, so they’re receiving increased sales and saving $42,000. ‘But the advertising sales representative said that it’s getting my name out there’ He is lying!! Ask yourself this question, the next time you hear this. What is the salesperson’s commission based on? It’s based on how much you advertise. That’s why they never recommend you test and measure your results – because you might just find out it’s not working. This is your money. Please use it wisely. If you hired a salesperson and they said to you, “I know I’m not making sales I’m getting your name out there” would this be enough for you to keep him even if he hadn’t generated any sales for 3, 6, 12 or 24 months. Advertising is salesmanship in print. Treat it that way! TOP |