Charlie Cook's MArketing for Success Insider's Club

Advertising

How Often Should I Advertise My Small Business?

By Charlie Cook   |   June 13, 2005

“What is the critical frequency for running ads? My own opinion is that a prospect needs to be exposed to the ad at least 3 times per month. Is that right?” – Samuel Bernard

While frequency is important in advertising the first step is to make sure the ad you are using is written correctly to get prospects to contact you and buy from you. Most ads miss the mark and don’t do what they are supposed to do. It doesn’t matter how frequently you run them. Secondly timing, is everything. Run a B-to-B ad on Saturday or Sunday and you’d be wasting your money.

1. Start with an ad written to generate a lead and then a sale.

2. Run it when your target audience is paying attention.

3. Run it at least six to ten times. Better yet, run it twice a week all year long.

Find out how to write ads that sell and use them to generate leads and grow your business with More Sales with Less Selling. Better yet, have an expert write an add for you that sells. – Charlie Cook

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Why Don’t You Discount Your Manuals? or Why You Should Sell Value?

By Charlie Cook   |   January 12, 2005

Its true that you can find others who regularly offer large discounts on their manuals, especially when business is slow. I don’t do this for a number of reasons.

1. The manuals are worth full price, yesterday, today and tomorrow. Past customers certainly thought so and after they’ve paid full price I doubt they’d be happy to discover the item they paid $129 for is now selling for much less. Each year I update the manuals and rather than discounting them I usually raise the price while providing past customers with free upgrades. Overtime they become worth more not less.

2. You’ll find some marketers offering thousands of dollars of bonuses to motivate people to buy their products, in some cases the manuals they are trying to sell only cost $20-50 dollars. I don”t do this either.

You have to wonder too, if the bonuses are really worth hundreds or thousands of dollars why they are giving them away free. Usually the answer is that no one would pay full price for them. If a product isn’t worth buying on its own merit, its rarely worth buying. My suggestion is approach these offers with caution.

3. You are better off providing and marketing high value products and services. If you have a top notch product or service it should generate results that vastly outweigh the cost. Help prospects understand the value inherent in your products and services and you won’t have to resort to essentially begging people to buy your product by bribing them with additional offers.

– Charlie Cook

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Do Auto Dealerships Outsource Their Marketing?

By Charlie Cook   |   January 12, 2005

“Do you know if any car dealerships outsource their marketing, promotions, and advertising? I am writing a business plan for my Marketing Management class and have chosen to research if a marketing/Promo agency that targets dealerships would be successful.” – Jared Brandon

Great question. Pick up the phone and call 20 dealerships, ask for the VP responsible for marketing, explain that you are a student doing a research project, promise to share the results with them. Then ask them a couple of questions about outsourcing. Tabulate the results, write your report and send it to everyone you want to impress in the auto industry. You’ll help them and in the process position yourself as an expert. – Charlie Cook

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