Continued from the last post…
While these may not be popular or “sexy”, they are important and will fast track your success.
Rarely is success as glamorous as pitched in the hype filled emails. It doesn’t happen with the click of a button and overnight riches. It is a precess you must go through on your own pace… sometimes you can speed things up if you listen to others who have been down the same path before.
A few more tidbits that will keep you on the right path…
5) All your marketing and advertising MUST contain some form of direct response measurement device. If you have no way of measuring the effectiveness of your marketing and advertising – then you are wasting your money. Use ext. 123 for people phoning in for information to track. Use ext. 123 to campaign A that runs in newspaper B, ext. 234 for Campaign B that runs in magazine C. Use dept numbers, extensions, studio numbers, program references, and different product names – find a way to track everything – then measure one against another.
6) Do not fall for the ad sales flap. Almost all of the advertising reps out there will hate this but its true. Most of them have no clue on what makes advertising effective – ask them – you’ll see. They will say things like exposure, repeatability, memorable – etc. That is what they were taught in their training classes – taught by others who have no clue about effective marketing. All they are concerned with is getting you to buy an ad – and the bigger the ad the better.
They will say your ad needs to run 7 times to get a sale.
Bull.
They will see that running your ad for 12 months will double your brand recognition.
Partially bull – it may increase your recognition but will do nothing to help sales. Your advertising must pay for itself (break even can be a good thing initially) on the FIRST time the ad is run. If it doesn’t – test a new one.
If it makes money the first time, it will the second, and the third time. If it loses money the first time, it’ll lose money the second time and the third time as well. Your advertising must make money the first time – and the only way to tell is through the tracking you do.
7) Make it as irresistible as possible for your customers to try you out. Offer risk-free propositions, trial periods, long guarantee times, extra bonuses – whatever it takes. Make it so they are better off in the end for at least giving you a try – if it doesn’t deliver, they walk away with all their money in hand and an extra bonus for their time invested in giving you a try.
Always remember – your marketing is the ultimate financial leverage in your business. If you place an ad that costs you $XXX. No matter if it generates you 1 lead, 100 leads or even 1,000 leads – your investment is the same. Testing different headlines, body copy, subheads, offers, bonuses and guarantees can significantly increase your bottom line returns – and the difference can be staggering.
Side note: A famous marketer Jay Abraham tells the story of a financial publication company that was running a full page ad that was generating $50,000 per month in sales. A 3-word change in the headline turned it into $250,000 per month in sales! 3 words changed and 5,000% increase in sales. So testing can pay enormous dividends.
Recent Comments