Small Business Marketing Strategies - How To Write A Yellow Pages Or Newspaper Ad

Just a glance through any local newspaper will reveal a wide variety of ads for varied types of business all vying for the same customers - and the vast majority doing a bad job of it! Reason being that most companies (of all sizes) and ad designers tend to use brand advertising to promote their products or services. The idea is to raise awareness of the company, present its features and hope that the consumer will remember them when it comes to making a purchase.

Though this may work for large companies or corporations, who make the products at our local supermarket or high street, it doesn't for small businesses whose potential customers are looking for someone who can solve their problem, whether its a blocked drain or a broken down car, and normally aren't prepared to wait.

Its common sense really. Just imagine if you had a serious electrical problem at your house. Would you ring the guy whose ad says '30 years experience, great service' or the one that says 'We're there within an hour and guarantee all work for a year' ?

Your ad must stand out from the crowd, offer your customer exactly what they want or more and make it appear almost stupid to choose anyone else before you.

You should first think about your potential customer - who they are, what they want, what they don't want and what they fear (e.g. dishonest tradesmen overcharging, timewasting etc.)

Then consider what you have to offer, how you can improve it to beat your competitors and how you can tailor it to meet your clients exact needs.

You should also choose your graphics carefully. Cheap clipart just looks unprofessional whilst a photo can be off putting if done incorrectly.

Once you have worked that out, your ad should ideally

1. catch the readers attention before all others on the page

2. offer them exactly what they are looking for and more

3. belay all their fears

4. prompt them to call you NOW!

Of course there are many other factors that will influence the effectiveness of your ad, such as size and placement, and this list is just a basic guide.

The location of your business and how far your customers are prepared to travel wil also have an effect e.g. if you are the only emergency plumber in town then youll probably get all the business even with a bad ad. People will travel further for a good lawyer than they would a beauty therapist (I imagine) so you should also consider the nature of your business, your location and your local competition when deciding how much to invest in an ad campaign.

This is just the tip of the iceberg more next time!

For your free, 7 part small business marketing strategies course by email simply visit http://www.webfixer.co.uk and sign up for the free newsletter. If your ads are not performing for you simply contact us and we'll rewrite them for you to give them that boost you so want. We can also optimize your website and make it work for you. Just visit http://www.webfixer.co.uk for the lowdown.