Have you been watching TV commercials lately? How about Super Bowl commercials? They’re right around the corner. I used to enjoy watching these but as of the last few years even they are a letdown. Think back to last year’s commercials: Pepsi Twist and Diet Pepsi Twist featured Ozzy Osbourne in a nightmare. Can you say, “overdone?” Well you can’t argue with success. That Pepsi Twist really took the country by Storm this year, huh? Not! Reebok featured linebacker Terry Tate helping managers of a fictional company improve their performance by tackling them and yelling like a drill sergeant. Oh yea it’s really funny seeing office workers getting tackled. Duh? Can anybody tell me what that has to do with Reebok? Quiznos spotlighted one of their employees who only think about making the best sub sandwich, leaving his bird to die in a cage and making a sandwich without his pants on. Now do you really want a sandwich from a guy that forgot to put his pants on? He probably forgot to wash his hands too. Yuck! Remember, these are supposedly the best of the best in advertising today. These beauties cost a cool mil or more to air! Is this really the finest Madison Avenue has to offer? I don’t know about you, but I’d rather have my 12 year old nephew put together my next batch of ads than these “hotshot” creative geniuses. The Problem with Marketing Materials Let’s face it, most marketing or advertising, even professionally prepared ads, are poorly done. The message is rarely clear, concise, compelling, credible, relevant, interesting or unique. In addition, it miserably fails in four other key areas: Wrong Orientation – focused on what we do rather thanwhat they get Weak Content – Not enough information to persuade, contains poor or no evidence Tasteless Layout or Design – creates the wrong image and difficult to read Typos and Grammatical Errors – damages credibility Creating Headlines The first step is creating the headline. We establish our position with headlines in our marketing. Most marketing or advertising communications have a headline. The headline is typically designed to “get attention.” In some cases, a compelling visual is used to get attention and the headline draws the reader into the copy text.  Approaches Problem – Focuses on the problem that the prospect is facing thereby increasing their pain. Solution – Focuses on the solutions or benefits that the company, product or service provides. Motive – Focuses on not so much what the customer wants but why they want it. Analogies – A clever or creative way of explaining the problem, solution, or motive which the marketing device is attempting to communicate. Combination – These headlines use a combination of strategies such as a problem/solution ad or an analogy that explains the problem or a motive that uses an analogy. ApplicationLet’s put aside the big budget wacko Super Bowl ads and focus on a typical ad for a small business. Say, a yellow page ad. The best way for me to demonstrate what works versus what doesn’t is to actually show you two versions of the same ad. This one is for a day care center. It is a very compelling example of a yellow page ad that works as compared to one that is rather ineffective.  This ad adheres to none of the rules we’ve discussed. The focus of the ad is “Established in 1970.” Who cares? It says day care center but I already know that since that’s the section in which the ad appears. This ad clearly focuses on the solution to the biggest problem: “Will I be comfortable with my baby there?” It is targeted, compelling, obvious, concise and uses a striking visual that hits an emotional chord. What is most powerful about this re-design is that it certainly boosted response and it didn’t cost one more penny to run! I hope this demonstrates the principles of effective marketing in a practical way for you. In my “Attract More Business” program I tear apart dozens of ads, brochures, commercials and other marketing and advertising. I show you how to critique them and re-assemble them in a powerful and compelling way. To read more about it, go to www.attractmorebusiness.com. Have a great week! I hope that this “Business Update” has been helpful in assisting you to improve the performance of your organization. For more information on how the Small Business Advisory Network assists companies in improving their performance, please feel free to contact us at 310-320-8190 or email mark@markdeo.com  Mark Deo

From time to time I will allow accomplished marketing or management experts to contribute an article that has value. This article was particularly beneficial to me and I hope it is for you as well. It was authored by David Frey, the senior editor of the Marketing Best Practices Newsletter, a free weekly newsletter featuring small business marketing techniques. If you feel you may have an article that is educational for small business owners and entrepreneurs please let me know.

“Something for Nothing” or “How to Get Free Publicity for Your Small Business”
By David FreyThe other day I picked up the newspaper and read the headline, “Ex-High School Teacher Helps Struggling Students Improve Their Grades.” The headline immediately caught my eye because I recently developed a system for high school and college students to improve their academic performance.In the article it talked about a Houston woman who retired from high school teaching and now holds study skills workshops around town for high school students that need academic help. It included her contact information and website address.It was a quarter page article in the Houston Chronicle with over one million circulation. When I saw the article I wondered to myself how much that same article would have cost her if she had paid for it.LOTS!The Power of the Humble News ArticleThere are only two ways to land the name of your business in the local newspaper, by paying for an advertisement or by having a newsworthy event that is covered by the local press. Both can be very effective but the all-mighty news release can provide the level of credibility and respect that can spark on-the-spot sales for your business.Advertisements contain information that people know are biased. Surveys have shown that the vast majority of people believe that all advertisements contain false or misleading information.News articles, on the other hand, are written by third-party news organizations that have nothing to gain by endorsing your business. Hence, their believability is high. That’s exactly why your print ads should use an editorial style format. People read editorial style (news article format) seven times more than an advertisement!Why Are Some News Releases Chosen and Other Not?Knowing how the press chooses one news release over another will give you an advantage in getting the coverage you’re looking for. Most large pressrooms get hundreds of news releases a day. When yours comes in, it competes with all the others that come in with it.Typically, an “Assignment Editor” is the person who has the responsibility to determine what is “news” and what isn’t. This person is in charge of reviewing the incoming releases and either assigning them to editors or trashing them. Typically, an Assignment Editor will sift through press releases like you go through your mail…over a wastebasket.If a news release doesn’t catch their eye they immediately trash it. The first item on the press release that is read is the headline. If you don’t have a catchy headline that grabs the editor’s attention then it won’t stand much of a chance making it to the next step, which is the first paragraph.Your first paragraph should tell what your news is, whom it’s about, where it will be, why it’s important, and when it will be held. The opening paragraph needs to get to the point fast with no fluff. If it’s as compelling as the headline, you have a good chance of having the entire release read.What News Stories Get Covered?To give your business the best chance of being covered by the local news media give them what they are looking for. Generally speaking, each of the different media is looking for specific types of news events.Newspapers want information that is interesting and informative. Newspapers like to educate their readers with timely news and articles that people will find interesting and educational.Radio is a bit more loose and has an “anything goes” type of style. Radio stations like information that is controversial, funny, or weird. One of the most popular five minutes of a local radio station here in Houston is the “Birthday Scam,” in which the DJ’s call up an unsuspecting person (on their birthday) and proceed to create a combative and hostile conversation full of accusations and lies. The sparks start to fly and so do the ratings.Television gets excited about anything that can provide great visuals. Sponsoring a local high school reading contest in which the principal gets dunked in a tub of kool aid will get the T.V. station’s attention.All media love human-interest stories. They know that people like to know about other people. In fact, the number one topic of talk radio is relationships. If you have a good human-interest story that others would find interesting you’re on your way to getting lots of free publicity.Lastly, the biggest mistake that most PR novices make is to pitch an advertisement for their business. The media publishes news…they are not your personal marketing department! You must be newsworthy!How Muhammad Ali Landed In Life Magazine (I love this story!)Getting free publicity is more about making yourself newsworthy than being newsworthy. As George MacKenzie, a publicity expert, once told me, “There is no boring stories, just boring approaches to interesting stories.” With creativity and a little effort you can make almost any situation newsworthy. The following story is a perfect example of what I mean. It’s a story about how Muhammad Ali received massive amounts of free press in Life magazine, the biggest magazine in the country in those days.After Muhammad Ali turned pro, Sports Illustrated did an editorial piece on him. During the photo shoot with the Sports Illustrated photographer, Ali asked whom else the photographer did work for. He replied, Life magazine. But quickly told Muhammad that he didn’t have a chance of being covered in the popular magazine.Muhammad knew that if he made himself stand out somehow, that the magazine might write him up. After a few minutes of consideration Ali asked the photographer what other kinds of photos he took? The photographer responded, “All kinds, but my specialty is underwater photography.”So the quick-thinking Muhammad Ali said, “Did you know that I’m the only fighter in the world who trains underwater?” The photographer immediately got interested. Ali then told him that he’d do an exclusive if Life wanted to do a story about him.Before you knew it, Ali was in a pool up to his neck in water dancing and throwing punches with the photographer reeling off pictures. It wasn’t long after that Life did a huge spread on Muhammad Ali. He gave the photographer and Life magazine what they wanted, and in turn, received massive free publicity.20 Ways to Make Your Small Business NewsworthyAs I previously mentioned, the key to getting publicity for your business is to make yourself newsworthy. The Muhammad Ali story is a good example of how one man made his own publicity opportunity by being creative and interesting.To get your creative juices flowing let me suggest 20 ways you can make your business newsworthy.

1. Do a customer survey and include controversial questions. Write articles about the results of the survey. The media loves survey results.
2. Create a top ten list about something in your business. If you’re a beautician, write an article titled, “Top Ten Most Popular Hairstyles for Women.” Top ten lists are very popular, just ask David Letterman.
3. Develop an annual award that you give out to someone in the community or a business in your industry. For instance, give an award to a local outstanding teacher that has gone above and beyond the call of duty. Or if you’re a supplier you can give an award to the “Best” business (customer) in the industry your service.
4. Offer surprising facts about your industry or business. For instance, if you’re a recruitment firm write an article titled, “The Average Starting Salary of An MBA Graduate is 40% Higher Than Their Pre-MBA Earnings.”
5. Piggyback off a national story. For example, when the rumors of a recession hit one business wrote a story about how their business actually improved as a result of the recession (It was a utility expense auditing firm).
6. Tie your business in with holidays or special days. For example, tell the media how your massage therapy business helps to reduce stress during the Christmas season and provides gift certificates for welcome relief.
7. Give a rags-to-riches story about yourself as a high school nobody that starts her own business and becomes successful. Remember, the media loves human-interest stories.
8. Tie your business into something that took place in the past. Go to your local library and find articles from 50 years ago that may somehow tie into the product or services you provide.
9. Be first. Be the first to offer a 200% double your money back guarantee. Be the first to offer an on-site car wash with every sale. Be the first to give your employees ownership in your business. Think of something at which you can claim to be the first.
10. Host a “Kids are the Boss Day!” Hand your business over to your 14-year-old kid or one of your employee’s young children for the day.
11. Run a “silliest thing” or “dumb mistakes” contest with your customers. For instance, if you’re a shoe repair shop, ask your customers for the silliest things they’ve ever done with their shoes. If you’re a sport goods retailer ask your customers for the dumbest mistakes they’ve made while camping. These are great human-interest stories that the press will love.
12. Sponsor a local community service project. For example, if you’re a dry cleaner, clean the clothes for all the visitors of the local food shelter. If you’re a fast food retailer, hold a free lunch day for disabled children. If you’re a car repair shop, offer oil and lubes to the parents of boy scouts and donate all the proceeds to the Boy Scouts of America.
13. Throw a one-of-a-kind customer appreciation theme party such as a luau with Polynesian cultural dancers or a magical theme party in which customers can bring their children to watch a magician do incredible tricks.
14. Do you have a customer that uses your products in an unusual way or uses your product to become a high achiever? If you run a gym is one of your customers a bodybuilding champion? If you own a bike shop is one of your customers a champion trial racer? If you manage an electronics store do you have a customer who has invented a whiz-bang contraption?
15. Take on the sacred cows of your industry and challenge them. If you’re a human resource consultant, give employee-of-the-month programs a severe drubbing. If you’re a Taco Bell manager, tell consumers how “real” Mexican food actually tastes bland and boring. If you’re a home-based businessperson, write about how corporate America is suffocating good people.
16. Close down your business for one day a year and have your entire staff do a day of charity work. Headlines would read, “Local Print Shop Closes Doors to Help the Needy!”
17. Recently I had a client whose business burnt down last year. He built it back up and is doing more business than ever. Has your business survived a tragic incident (like the recession) and made is through with flying colors?
18. Write a general interest story about the problem that your product or service solves. If you’re a car detailer you could write about how oxidation and rust destroys the integrity of your car and makes it unsafe to drive. If you sell website services write about hosting problems or the effects of poor website design and how to solve it.
19. Why did you start your business? If you started your business because you were dissatisfied with the provider you were using (or the employer you worked for), let the press know. For instance, you went into the Italian restaurant business because the Italian food in the local area wasn’t authentic. Maybe you started pool-cleaning service because of the lousy job service providers were doing on your own pool.
20. Prove a myth or stereotype in your industry wrong. For instance, if you’re a hot tub dealer, show a man who sits in his hot tub every night and has 12 children (meaning the hot water really doesn’t kill your sperm!).

How you make your business newsworthy is only limited by your creativity and ingenuity. Remember, there are no boring stories, just boring approaches to interesting stories.Money can’t buy what the press can give you.# # #David Frey is a collaborating member of the Small Business Advisory Network and is the President of Marketing Best Practices Inc., a Houston-based small business marketing consulting firm. David is the senior editor of the Marketing Best Practices Newsletter featuring small business marketing best practices. Contact him at:
http://www.MarketingBestPractices.com or David@MarketingBestPractices.com

Nobody can guarantee a winning ad. The only way to know for sure is to test it. But there are several elements that you can incorporate into your ad or sales letter to give it a better chance of being a winner. Use these elements as your own personal “winning ad checklist.”

Element #1 – Smart Ad Placement 
The first step in positioning your ad for success is increasing its chance of being seen by your target market. Running the world’s best radio ad for your retirement planning services on a local hip-hop station wouldn’t be a good idea. Find out what your target market watches (i.e. sports, cooking, business), where they watch it (i.e. car, home, airport), and how they watch it (i.e. newspaper, magazine, radio). Until you know this information, you cannot make smart choices about ad placement and you’ll likely end up wasting a lot of your hard-earned dollars on an ad that didn’t even get seen by your target market.Element #2 – Focus on Your Objective 
You’ll never get what you want if you don’t know what you want. This is true in your personal goals and also your advertising efforts. You must have a specific objective for your ad if you want people to act. Is it to call your office, come to your store, or go to your website? Whatever your objective is, gear all the elements of your ad to persuade consumers to fulfill your objective. Suppose you want readers to call your toll-free telephone number, then your call-to-action should be, “call our toll-free number now!” If you include a testimonial, have your endorser say something like, “when I made a call to your toll-free number…” or you might include copy that says, “one toll-free phone call can change your life forever.” Multiple objectives will confuse your prospect and when people get confused, they usually do nothing.Element #3 – Irresistible Offer 
If you have ever seen the ginsu knife infomercial you have witnessed the anatomy of an irresistible offer. Not only do you get the set of ginsu knives, but also you get the “magic shredder”, the “never-dull chopper”, and the “easy egg slicer.” BUT that’s not all – you also get the “2-in-1 blade sharpener” and if you order in the next 10 minutes you’ll also receive a second set of ginsu knives! Now that’s an irresistible offer. Who could resist all these bonuses for the price of one set of ginsu knives? The secret to constructing an irresistible offer is to add valuable bonuses and extend risk-free, easy-to-pay terms. Continue heaping valuable bonuses on your customer until they throw up their hands and say, “Okay, I give!” One last thought about your irresistible offer. Sometimes you can make your offer so irresistible that it appears to good to be true. Always tell the reason why you can make such a great offer. This will add credibility to an incredulous ad. For example, you might be having a sale that advertises 70% off retail price. When people see “70% off” many will think that all you have done is boost your price 50% just so that you can advertise a 70% off price. But if you tell them you can offer 70% off because the recent hailstorm caused some very slight damage to your product and you need to liquidate. People can now reconcile you great offer in their minds so that it makes sense and is believable. 

Element #4 – Unique Competitive Advantage 
Why should your prospect do business with you over any of your competitors. Even those that have lower prices! Do you have a “wider selection than anybody in the tri-county area” or do you “deliver within eight hours after the purchase”? Often your unique competitive advantage is the biggest benefit you can offer your prospects so consider including it in your headline, bulleted copy, or your guarantee. If by chance, you don’t have a unique competitive advantage(s) then you better get one fast. Not having a unique competitive advantage with which to show value, results in competing solely on price – – and that’s a losing proposition (unless you have a significant cost advantage).Element #5 – Advertorial Style 
Studies have shown that consumers read new articles seven times more than they do advertisements. It is said that the average consumer is presented with over 3,500 ad impressions per day. We have become jaded to promotions and commercials. Cloaking your ad in a news style editorial format will not only pull more attention, but also instill credibility, which is one of the major roadblocks to consumer response. “Advertorial” (advertisement – editorial) type ads include compelling headlines, lots of informative, interesting text, quotes, and a judicious use of graphics. The reason advertorial ads are so compelling is that people are tired of in-your-face sales ads and would prefer the silent, soft sell of an authoritative news article.Element #6 – Compelling Headline 
Your headline is the most important part of all the technical aspects of your ad. 80% of the success of the headline can be attributed to its headline. A powerful headline is either, (1) benefit driven, (2) news oriented, (3) curiosity driven, or (4) how-to oriented. The following is an example of each: Benefit Driven Example: “You Too Can Have a Slimmer Figure Without Dieting” News Oriented Example: “Amazing New Formula Cures Arthritis Pain” Curiosity Driven: “Are You Making These Deadly Hair Care Mistakes?” How-to Oriented: “How to Flood Your Business with New Customers for Under $50” It’s a good practice to develop a minimum of 30 variations of your headline before you select the one you’ll use. Readers satisfy their interests by scanning headlines. If your headline doesn’t grab attention your ad will never be read, let alone noticed.Element #7 – Sell the Benefits 
Your prospects don’t care about you. They don’t care about your awards, the name of your business, how much you sell, or how good you think you are. They only care about how you, and what you offer, can benefit them. So leave out all of “me” copy and sell the benefits. Ultimately people only want two things, to (1) gain pleasure, or to (2) avoid pain. Tell people how your offering will help them either gain pleasure or avoid pain by expressing them in the form of benefits. Don’t confuse this with listing the features of your product or service. People aren’t concerned as much with features as they are with what the features will do for them personally. To do this, list each of the features of your product and then determine the benefits, both the potential of gain or the avoidance of pain, your prospects will receive as a result of each feature. Hint: Studies have shown people respond better to the fear of loss (pain) then they do to the promise of gain.Element #8 – Make it Risk-Free 
Consumers are naturally skeptical. With all the scams, rip-offs, and untruthful ads consumers have experienced, who knows what to believe anymore? You must make your ad credible and risk-free. The good news is that it’s easy to do. Using a combination of these three strategies will provide a powerful risk-free offer.1 – Use Testimonials 
Testimonials from real people are powerful. People don’t like to be guinea pigs. If they’ve seen that someone else has received the promised benefits, it provides instant credibility. Hint: Including pictures of the endorser will double the effectiveness of your testimonial. 
 2 – Offer a Strong Guarantee 
Provide as strong a guaranteed as absolutely possible. If you can’t provide a strong guarantee for your product, perhaps you shouldn’t be selling it. Unfortunately, too many small business people fear that customers will take them up on it. Let me ask you, when was the last time your took somebody up on their guarantee? Seldom do guarantees get exercised. Use a powerful guarantee.3 – Include Facts and Statistics 
Use facts and statistics from reliable sources to bolster your claims. People find comfort in positive, scientific proof. Each of these strategies will build credibility and reduce the risk prospects naturally feel when contemplating an offer. Above all, be truthful and honest!Element #9 – Call to Action 
When someone tells you that they don’t like being told what to do – – don’t believe it. People do want to be told what to do. In fact, people need to be told what to do and when to do it. Phrases such as, “call now”, “come in today”, “sign up right now” trigger emotional response mechanisms that get your prospect to take action on an offer that secretly you want to take advantage of anyway. Make your call-to-action explicit and clear, so your prospect knows exactly what to do.Element #10 – Urgency 
Admit it, the vast majority of people are naturally lazy and like to procrastinate. Without a real or perceived sense of urgency your prospects will drag their feet. To compel your prospect to act immediately you must inject a feeling of “scarcity.” Scarcity is felt when the supply of either time or product quantity is limited. For instance, placing a deadline on your offer makes your prospect feel as though they have to take advantage of your offer before they lose the opportunity. An example of this tactic could be rescinding a discount offer or a special additional bonus within a specified period of time. Another tactic is to limit the quantity available so that people will feel the need to take advantage of your offer before your product runs out. It’s not unusual to see offers stating, “while supplies last”, or “only 50 available, first come, first serve.” If you use scarcity tactics (and you should), make sure that you hold true and keep your word by rescinding the offer when you say you will. If not, you will lose credibility and the tactic will backfire on you.Element #11 – Simple to Respond 
Most people buy on impulse rather than logic. If your prospect finds it difficult to take advantage of your offer during their moment of impulse, you will lose the sale. Make it easy to do business with you. Many people communicate in different ways. Some like to call on the phone, others like to go to the Internet, and yet others will only fax you their order. It’s important to offer multiple ways to be contacted such as telephone, fax, website, cell phone, pager, or any other communication method. Studies have shown that the vast majority of people take advantage of impulse buying using the telephone more than any other method. The same studies show that when you offer a toll-free number, response rates increase. Finally, if you offer a recorded message with a toll-free number in which people can hear a message and leave their contact information, response rates increase even more.Element #12 – Graphics 
Using a graphic is the first step in a three-step system for getting your audience to read your ad. The first step is to attract your reader’s attention with an exciting graphic, step two is to pull them into your ad with a gripping headline, and the third step is to persuade them to take action with your copy. A good graphic can attract the attention of your prospect and draw them in to your message. However, a common mistake advertisers make is to add graphics that overpower the copy, leaving little space to tell their story. Although a picture is worth a thousand words, it can also be interpreted a thousand different ways, sometimes causing confusion. Graphics should draw attention and add to your message. Exciting graphics showing action are always an eye pleaser. Including someone in your graphic from the target market you’re trying to reach, actively using your product or service, is also a good choice that will add to your message.Element #13 – Accountability 
Small businesses don’t have a lot of money to spend on advertising and; therefore, must hold their advertising dollars accountable. Without knowing what ads are pulling better than others, you could be wasting a lot of money. To avoid this, you need to track the response rates of your ads. Instead of asking your customers where they heard about you, get definitive proof by implementing a process by which you can track your ads. For instance, using a separate phone line or extension number for specific ads can help you determine the source of the inquiry. Another tactic may be to use a unique landing page on your website for different promotions. If you’re using lead generation by direct mail, tell the recipient that they need to bring the mailer in to take advantage of your offer. If you are using radio or television as your primary medium, offer the audience a special report whether it is a paper report, audiocassette, or a video. This not only helps you track your response rate but give your prospect a good reason to respond.Conclusion 
As you track your ads, keep the best pulling ads as your “control” piece. Vary the different elements of the ad to determine if your new ad pulls better than your control ad. If it does, make that ad your new control ad. Although, none of these elements alone can guarantee a successful ad, the combination of these elements will increase the potential for your ad to be a solid winner.Our thanks to David Frey for contributing this article. David is the senior editor of the Marketing Best Practices Newsletter, a free weekly newsletter featuring small business marketing best practices. Check out his stuff at http://www.MarketingBestPractices.com orDavid@MarketingBestPractices.com

I recently received a mailer that was quite impressive. It contained 2 DVDs, 4 packages of material sealed in plastic with an “Evidence” tag on each of them and a brochure. It was obviously hand assembled. Great care went into putting all of these items into each of the plastic bags. Everything was beautifully designed with 4 color graphics. It was packed in a sturdy 9×12, padded shipping envelope. I also noticed that it had first class postage. The stamp showed that the sender had paid over $2.00 for the postage. Wow! I was impressed. This must be important. Strangely, it had an “evidence” tag affixed to the corner. I opened the package thinking this would be a great mailer and perhaps it would inspire us to do something creative for one of our clients.

I opened it and spread the contents out on my desk as I examined each item and read every word of the copy. My face screwed-up in confusion as I realized that it was very professionally prepared but there was only one problem. I had no idea of the purpose of the mailer. What were they trying to sell me? What was the meaning of this message? This was a great mystery. I examined each item carefully and read every word again. I had “no idea” what they were trying to communicate. Maybe it was just me. 

I decided to show it to our top designer. Surely, he would understand the purpose of this very expensive and professional mailer. Perhaps I was too “thick!” I showed it to Max. Now remember Max has 20 plus years of commercial design experience. He has written and designed thousands of advertisements and mailers during his career. Alas even Max could not decipher the mystery mailer. He did however agree that the package cost well over $15 each to assemble, print and mail even at a very high quantity! Too bad we couldn’t understand the message. It must be important! Clearly, someone spent a great deal of time and money on its development.

We decided to send it around the office to several of our designers, production and marketing staff members. Surely, someone would be able to solve this mystery. Yet not one person could figure out the meaning of this mailer! Now remember we are all “professional” advertising, design and marketing people! What was wrong with this picture? Suddenly, I had a brainstorm. Let’s contact the people that sent this to us and ask them to explain the meaning of the mailer! “Great idea,” Max said! We scoured the copy for more information. Maybe we could find a phone number or an address. No luck!

We got out our magnifying glass and finally discovered a web site written in 8-point type and buried in some obscure copy on the back of the brochure. We went to the site that looked very similar to the mailer and took several seconds to load. We read the home page to no avail. Just about ready to give-up we scrolled through the various pages and finally there it was – the meaning of the mystery! That’s it! That’s what this mailer is all about? What a disappointment!

Not only did we waste our time, but the marketer was wasting their money. Can you discover the meaning of the mailer? Check out the image below and e-mail me what you think it’s all about. If you’re right, I’ll send you our CD set on how to develop “killer direct mail campaigns!”
The lesson for all of us?
Create your marketing material so that a 7-year-old can understand it. In addition, make sure people know what you want them to do. I have seen some great marketing messages that leave the customer hanging not knowing where or how to purchase the product or service but this one really wins the prize. Just because it’s expensive doesn’t mean it’s good. 

Have a great week!

There’s a lot to be said for simplicity, especially when it comes to advertising. Let’s face it- most people just don’t pay attention to ads. I guess that’s because we are inundated with advertising. Wherever we go we encounter ads – complicated ads, tasteless ads, self-centered ads, ads that yammer on. So why should we pay attention? 

This just proves that most marketing materials, even professionally prepared materials, are very poorly done. The message is rarely clear, concise, compelling, credible, relevant, unique or even SIMPLE. Saying MORE in our ads and marketing does not make the message better. In fact the more information an ad tries to communicate the less effective it is. Most ads try so hard to state their competitive claims that they push more people away then they attract. 

Most ads fail miserably in four key areas:

1. Wrong Orientation – focused on what we do (the logical side) rather than what they get (the emotional side).
2. Weak Content – not enough relevant information to persuade and they contain poor or no evidence.
3. Tasteless Layout or Design – creates the wrong image, difficult to read and too cluttered to be effective.
4. Overstating or Overcomplicating the Message – damages credibility and impedes comprehension.

Here is a great example that demonstrates before and after yellow page ads for a veterinary hospital. The first ad focuses on all the LOGICAL reasons to buy and the second ad focuses on the EMOTIONAL reasons. Which do you think is more powerful?
This is a typical ad that demonstrates why MORE is NOT better. It communicates almost No benefits, yet it does not use negative space at all. And is that supposed to be an ark? Compare this with the ad below and it’s obvious why it doesn’t work. Additionally, this ad cost a fortune because it has 6 “spot” colors which are used very poorly. It’s only saving grace is the fact that the phone number is very apparent. Yet it does not give us a reason to dial it.

Have you seen the recent Carl’s Junior ad featuring the schoolteacher who does a dirty dance for the class?

I guarantee she would never pass for MY homeroom teacher. Apparently this is the burger chain’s latest promotion for their new Patty Melt (a patty with two flat buns) featuring the rap song “I Like Flat Buns.” This isn’t the first racy exposure from Carl’s. Remember Paris Hilton? If getting attention is the goal of this campaign, I’d have to give them a passing grade. The Tennessee Education Association demanded that they pull the ads and they have raised the ire of many in the advertising community.Let’s be honest, alienating the people outside of your target audience is a byproduct of controversial ads Often times campaigns such as these are aimed at highly profitable market segments such as teens. We may not realize it but teens spent $139 billion on consumer products just last year. So in essence this is just an ad campaign that is highly targeted to a very affluent, albeit young, audience. Carl’s is just practicing well crafted market segmentation. Or is that market sexmentation?Wikipedia defines “market segmentation” as the process in marketing of dividing a market into distinct subsets (segments) that behave in the same way or have similar needs. Because each segment is fairly homogeneous in their needs and attitudes, they are likely to respond similarly to a given marketing strategy. That is, they are likely to have similar feelings and ideas about a marketing mix comprised of a given product or service, sold at a given price, distributed in a certain way and promoted in a certain way.Oh yes, these teens have similar feelings alright!So what do you think? Did Carl’s go too far with this ad? Should teachers be offended? Or is it just a funny commercial?Take a look at the video here and give us your comments.

Listen to our LIVE radio show this Friday at 4 pm PST at: www.smallbusinesshour.com. Call in to speak with us at (323) 443-6878 code: 226287Have a great week!-Mark Deo

If you’re like most small businesses or entrepreneurs you may have already learned that typical marketing, particularly direct response advertising is a waste of time.