Guide to Good Advertising

WHICH MEDIA DO I CHOOSE? We’ll explore some of the pros and cons of different media formats in this section. Deciding on which media you should use is always tricky; as well as cost implications you’ll need to consider your target audience, the reasons why you’re advertising and what you expect to achieve from that advertising.

Most often, the best approach is to use as many formats as you can afford (which is what ALL of the major companies do), but affordability is often the main factor that decides on how a smaller business will spend its advertising budget.

The best media format for you is always going to depend on what type of business you run, and you should carefully examine how your potential customers will react to your advertisement. For example: As a plumber you decide to embark on a local radio advertising campaign: You need to ask yourself these questions; When your advert is played on the radio, do you think listeners will rush for pen and paper to jot down your number?

In the event of an emergency, do you expect a customer to turn on the radio and wait for your advertisement?

Of course, the answer to both of these questions would normally be a firm ‘No!’. Radio advertising would not be suitable for most plumbing services. However, if you were a nationwide chain of plumbers with a branded identity, then radio advertising could be just the medium you require to increase awareness of your brand. Branding itself is a powerful advertising tool, albeit unsuitable for many smaller businesses.

If you do consider that you have a branded identity, then you need to ask yourself whether you are advertising for custom or advertising to increase the awareness of your brand amongst your target audience.