Depending on how new your business is, your time may be better spent on sales instead. What we are talking about is a new start-up company, who have very few clients/customers if any.

If this is the case you are in, then you should start pounding the pavement and trying your hand at sales. This is definitely the fastest way to gain new customers. Marketing is intended to keep your sales pipeline full of potential leads and new contacts. However the process can take longer to generate the right leads. And you as the business owner will probably have to do the in person sales yourself, at least in the beginning.

There are some interesting discussions on selling start-up ideas and products to early adopters. Even before the products or business exists, the real storytellers are the sales people that can get people excited about new ideas. Only you have the vision of what your new business is about and can satisfy the naysayers who are apprehensive of working with a new and unproven company or vendor.

You can read more at “Selling the Startup” for ideas on how to sell your new business to potential buyers.

The key take away is you need to create “Believers”, people who believe in what you are doing and want to help you succeed. Whether they are early investors, or existing contacts, colleagues or family and friends. In the beginning you need someone who will help you refine your sales pitch or provided early feedback on your product. And where they might use such a product or service.

Once you have your first couple of clients you will have material to start your marketing program. Including case studies, referrals, testimonials and the like.

After you sign your new client, or sell your first product. You will be ready to start marketing, and you will find a lot of marketing ideas on this site for marketing your newly opened business.

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Developing your ads is no walk in the park. You need to ensure  your newly created advertisement will  attract your target market.

How many ad’s have you seen on TV that were designed to appeal to a demographic other than the market group/segment that took notice of the advertisement’s content? Part of the reason this happens is advertisers are trying to stand out from other TV commercials by being edgy or innovative.  Sometimes they will even have a great ad that people enjoy watching but can not remember what company or product the commercial was promoting. According to Ipsos Research, only half of the consumers who can recall an ad can also correctly name the advertising sponsor.

You know the ones I am talking about the Ads we can’t get out of our head. Those Super Bowl ads that are entertaining to watch but don’t cause us to open up our wallets and run out and buy the product being advertised after the football game.

So how do you craft an advertising message that will speak and relate to your target audience, if creating an ad is so darn hard. When building your ad you need to consciously de-emphasize how your business is better than everyone else in your industry. And instead speak to your customers about their own needs. However this is rather counter intuitive because as a business owner, you probably spend every waking hour talking about how your business is providing the best service and at the best price, and is superior to your competitors. But thinking from a consumer perspective this is not what speaks to them. They want to know how your product is going to solve one of their immediate problems.

Real example of a consumer brand that focuses on their product benefits:

So for example if you are looking to change your shaving razor and that night you happen to see a Gillette commercial. Would you change razors if you saw an advertisement for a  new one that has new features and benefits? Selling more razors with more blades is big business. The key point is the Gillette commercials we see are more about their product which may be the Mach 3 or the Fusion razors, and less about the company advertising the product. Sure they may use celebrity endorsement to grab your attention and build credibility but they always focus on the product first.

How to focus and create an ad that will lift sales for your Small Business

You are on a fixed budget and are trying to reach just a small portion of your potential market with your ads. I am talking about local advertising and and ads you may insert in the weekly local newspaper for example. Don’t spend money trying to get your name out there; that is what big advertising budgets are designed to do. Instead focus on how you can get the best reach and speak to your ideal new customer. What would you say to close the sale if they were standing in your store now? Likely not how great your store is because they have already taken an interest. This is precisely what you need to accomplish when designing your next advertisement.

1. Determine who you are trying to send the message to (also called target audience)
   Maybe you are advertising to a local community or even a union association trying to send offers to their members. The more targeted you can make your message the more effective it will be at speaking to that new customer. Perhaps you could highlight a recent community sponsorship and how your business gave back to the community through holding an event or donating to a local cause. These tactics will help get your business noticed first, and then you can sell your offer.
2. Always provide value in your offer
   There must be a what is in it for me. If I act now, within a limited time I receive more value which will increase the perceived value by your customer. Think about the last paid advertising spot you saw, “but wait” if you call within the next 30 minutes we will throw in something extra.
3. Build a relationship and credibility
   Sometimes it is important to establish trust and familiarity before just trying to close a sale. For example you could use an ad to promote a customer’s recent success using your services to get the attention of similar business owners. In some sales situations the purchase price is high and it may take some time to build rapport before a customer will entertain signing a check. It is always important to understand how much a new customer means to your business’ bottom line. Consider if you were selling a monthly subscription with a one year term. One single new customer could result in new revenue for the next year and thereafter.

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