Local Advertising

For decades, local mom and pop businesses could rely on word of mouth and
traditional print services to garner customers. If the local businesses had
a good or service that they wanted to promote, they could just call up the
local newspaper and ask for an advertisement. However, as media has evolved
towards more sophisticated routes such as the Internet, it has become
increasingly more difficult (and oftentimes prohibitively expensive) for
local businesses to stand-out against the crowd by advertising in both newer
and older types of media.

Yet, local businesses continually find themselves facing a problem. As
potential customers become more Internet savvy, local companies could be
doing themselves a great disservice by not having some sort of exposure on
the Internet.

According to Kelsey Research, 70% of US households now use the internet when
searching for local products and services. In fact, it is projected that
over 20 billion searches for local information will be made in 2007. 75% of
Internet users have looked for services and products within an area close to
their home or business. Moreover, recent Internet studies have found that
some of the most searched queries in search engines such as Google or Yahoo
are words such as local business, free, discount, cheap, and other terms
bearing the connotation that the searcher is looking for something to
purchase.

Although many may be trying to look for cheap electronics that can be
shipped to their homes, it is also extremely apparent that consumers are
searching for businesses in their local area that they can patronize. Most
consumption on a day to day basis is not on items such as electronics that
can be purchased online. People need automotive services, tutors, daycare,
lawn care, restaurants, grocery stores, salons, plumbers, and much, much
more within a few miles of their house. These daily rituals that we all
engage in are all predicated on knowing where to find business. And as
mentioned above, with an abundance of people turning to the Internet to find
out where well priced, convenient goods and services are located, even a
small Internet presence can skyrocket a business.

Unfortunately, the typical local business doesn\’t have a lot of money to
spend on Internet exposure. Even if they do have the finances to build a
website, the process can be cumbersome and somewhat daunting for the
generations of small business that aren?t well-read in the ways of
cyberspace. If the typical website can run anywhere from hundreds to
thousands of dollars, is it still worth creating? Even if you get the
website up and running, how will people find you? How high will you be
ranked on search engines? If you are like me, all the worry involved takes
away time from all the daily customer service issues that come with the
territory of owning a business. Why should you spend an inordinate amount of
money when there is no guarantee of getting more customers for your trouble?
Many are pushed away because the return on investment just doesn\’t seem
worth it.

If this is what you think, perhaps you can consider many other low cost
options for your small business to get attention and some exposure on the
web. Something as simple as a Facebook or Myspace account can be used to
garner advertisement for your business. The Internet is all about content
and link popularity, and having even a little bit can help. However, there
are services that are beginning to expand the range of possibilities for
local businesses and cater explicitly to them. Websites such as
www.Cityslick.net and www.Merchantcircle.com allow companies to create local
listings whereby customers can put basic contact information, slogans,
product descriptions and photos, customizable coupons, appointment
generators, documents, social bookmarking, and much more. The terrific part
about websites like these is that they are not static; companies do not
simply post a listing and hope for customers to show up. Consumers can
browse, request deals, request appointments, chat with other consumers and
businesses in the forums, and leave reviews.

If you decide to list on a business directory website, make sure that they
are doing their best to get you the most exposure possible. According to
www.webworkshop.net, Link text (the text that is clicked on when clicking on
a link) is singly the most important factor when Google determines the
rankings for any given search-term. To help a small local business website
grow in this fashion, it is critical that business owners submit to local
directories that can provide custom back links.

www.Cityslick.net in particular is proactive in its approach to ensure that
these sorts of interactions occur. By using the latest search engine
optimization (SEO) techniques, they are drawing customers to the website not
only by promoting it as a way to find cheap, local deals, but they are also
making it so that listings, just by themselves, have the same sort of
visibility as traditional websites.

Local and small business owners have a multitude of things to worry about
including how to best promote their venture. By using the internet to post
to sophisticated business directories, companies can get all the benefits of
having a website without having to pay a lot of money for their own website.
Take a look. Your customers and business will thank you for it.

Mark E. Moebius
636-300-9000

Radio Advertising: A Long History Of Excellence

For years people have tuned into radio talk shows, radio morning shows as well as all those broadcasters and their funky styles. If you are like many, you flip on the radio as well. While many say that your marketing dollars should be split into various categories, you will find that this is an excellence place to start. What does radio advertising have to offer you?

Consider first, the amount of people who are listening to the radio at any given moment. In the morning, as people get dressed for work or school, the radio is on. When they get into their cars to head to work, the radio is on. The radio is playing in the office, on the way home again and maybe they turn it on before bed as well. It is the first thing that people wake up to. Radio advertising is a powerful medium.

You can put just about anything on it as well. You can fill your marketing dollar tightly by putting it on a number of various types of radio advertising markets. Young adults tend to be one of the largest radio listeners in the afternoon hours. Market your product effectively to them during those hours. Adults love to tune in on their way to and home from work. Market your radio advertising dollars to them during this time. In fact, you can even market your product to young children on various radio stations geared towards them.

Radio is very versatile and allows you to tell your story for a smaller amount of your budget with excellent results. You will see that there are many reasons to head to the radio advertising market with your next product. The downside to radio is lack of talented programming. Prior to the Corporate takeover of radio stations, they had to compete for the number one spot. Now many stations are owned by the same company in the same market. The result  has been a watered down version of an amazing medium, stations no longer feel the need to hire qualified talented professionals, many listeners have even forgotten what real talented radio broadcasters sound like. Eventually it will be the death of this type of advertising. Already listenership is down and the next generation has turned to internet based radio such as Pandora.

My suggestion for radio is to stick to traffic and weather sponsorship for branding purposes and never spend money to be the 3rd commercial in a spot break. If you happen to have a talented and popular Drive time personality, someone who still works the community and is one of those well-known fixtures, try live spots. Live spots are not just an endorsement of your product or service but a much more casual and indirect way to advertise on the radio. Very few “personalities” are good at this type of advertising and it can be a higher dollar amount for your commercial. Be smart on how you structure the deal. Trade for advertising if you can 1st so your risk is low.

I’m a big fan of radio and radio advertising, but with the current management of the medium, you have to be cautious. Fortunately for you the advertiser you can beat them down quite a bit on ad rates because they know the decreasing value of what they are offering.

Mark E. Moebius
MILJONAIR
636-300-9000

The Power of Words in Advertising

In most promotional material, aside from the attractive colors and images, the content serves as the primary enticing factor that lures customers to visit your store or give you a call.

Words are important in expressing your ideas. The shortest words are the best and the briefest sentences are best. You should remember that in creating ads a distinct and clear-cut impression is best expressed by short words and short sentences. A good ad and a good salesman both show appreciation of words and their effect. Neither says too little and both are interesting and business-like in their remarks. Take a look at the most successful business man. Analyze his style of dealing his customers. You would note that the great charm of spontaneity and off handedness accompanies his remarks. He is intelligent, satisfactory and specific.

Now, note that the language of your advertisement should be like the successful business man. It should be specific to the degree that it gives necessary information in a business-like style. Keep in mind that a good ad is original because it tells the tale of your values in a manner peculiar to itself. If you have real interest in your products and can write exactly what you feel regarding their qualities, you will find no difficulty in investing your ads with sufficient originality to make them interesting. But originality for originality’s sake does not amount to so much in advertising. It is second to genuineness, brevity and clearness.  

So let’s say you want to produce that winning poster or brochure. Your focus should not only be the design but the content as well. You must carefully choose the words that you will use. It does not really matter if you only have a few words as long as you are able to effectively carry your message across to your customers. With a good headline and content, chances are you will encourage your prospects to take a second look at your goods. Understand that a good headline possesses a distinct financial value. Its commercial importance is proven by the increased business it influences as compared with the trade brought by the ordinary advertisement capped with the ordinary headline.

Remember also that there is a very slim line between knowing too much and knowing too little about the products to be advertised. The right kind of advertising writer sees the goods through the eyes of the public. Seeing the goods thus, he speaks the arguments best designed to influence the public. Hence, most of the time a good headline and content is not enough. You have to also make sure that the content can effectively influence your prospects.

Mark E. Moebius
MILJONAIR
636-300-9000

The Four Sins of Advertising

Advertising is a very precise science. It finds its bases in many different fields including copywriting, psychology and even math. In recent decades, we have observed a slow but steady beautification of advertising.

For marketing experts this can work. For less savvy advertisers, it is a huge pitfall that draws attention away from the much more important aspects of a successful selling proposition. Faulty advertising costs its makers billions of dollars a year, and almost all are guilty of it, even the huge corporations.

You will see many of today’s internet marketing “gurus” recommending volumes several decades old. There is a good reason for this. Many of those volumes were written by direct marketers that engaged in extremely costly mailings.

These ads have to produce optimal results or they produce losses. The upside is that results can be measured and broken down to a ridiculously precise extent. In fact very small fluctuations in these figures separate success from failure.

First and foremost is the written word. Nothing replaces a captivating headline and solid advertising copy. For headlines, the goal is to grab attention and qualify. Prospects must immediately recognize that the ad is addressed to them and they must also be drawn into the main copy. Ad copy should be as abundant as needed to tell the whole story, or however much of the story is needed to lead to the action you are soliciting.

Here are the four biggest mistakes you can make in advertising.

1) Being pretty instead of selling. This is really deadly. You don’t need to impress with your design, you need to make a sale, and words sell.

2) Not following a formula. Formulas exist because they work. Use them.

3) Forgetting, even for a single instant, to concentrate on your MDA, Most Desired Action.

4) Not testing different models. This is one of the most painful shortcomings of many marketers. They try an ad and if it’s not profitable the first time, they drop it entirely. If it is profitable, they continue to run it. Here, there is usually an enormous amount of room for improvement. Fluctuations in sales of the order of 500 to 800% are not uncommon…

Advertising comes in many shapes and sizes, with different costs associated to them. Do your research. The results you get will far outweigh any effort you expend or money you invest.

Mark E. Moebius
MILJONAIR
636-300-9000

New Outdoor Advertising Targets Market Directly

With a shifting technological landscape that has relegated television to background noise, advertisers are re-evaluating their needs and looking for new ways to bring their message to the public. Rather than creating entirely new ad campaigns, it’s becoming increasingly important to make the method as memorable as the message.

Wheels America Advertising (WAA) uses mobile billboards to catch the eye of drivers and passersby alike. Vinyl 8-by-14-foot billboards are mounted on specially designed vehicles and backlit for maximum visual impact.

Unlike a typical billboard, WAA vehicles with their patented backlit images are able to go directly to their target audience. They can be placed wherever there is heavy foot traffic due to an event – including convention centers, train stations, airports and sports arenas. They can repeat routes, ensuring that an advertiser’s message is not only noticed, but that information is retained through repetition.

Outdoor advertising, such as a billboard, is effective because it’s hard to ignore. According to a national survey, it’s also memorable. Capitol Communications Group found that 81.7 percent of those polled recalled images they saw on a moving multi-image sign. This is compared to a 19 percent retention rate for static signs.The most effective outdoor advertising is Digital Out Of Home Advertising. DOOH is a growing marketplace. Easy to update, change and deliver advertising makes DOOH a giant in the advertising world. Unfortunately Advertising Agencies are slow to realise the potential. What that means is in a devistated economy Your Ad Agency is playing it safe and by playing it safe I mean protecting their revenue. Meanwhile your current advertising is less and less effective.

One of my most recent investments is into a company called “INsync Advertising”…Hate the name, love the conecpt. It’s a 7″ WIFI enabled, HD quality, Digital Sign, incorporated into an IR Faucet. Its a patented device that delivers advertising in the washroom away from distractions. The cost of advertising is very reasonable and can not only be targeted but tracked. Call us at 636-300-9000 to find out how your business can benefit from DOOH.

Mark Moebius
MILJONAIR
3009000.com

636-300-9000

Free Advertising For Your Online Business

You have finished building your own website. You have introduced your company and presented your products and services. You have added propositions and promos to catch your target audience’s attention. You think you are doing everything “right”, but all your promotions have failed to produce growth in your new internet business.

There are many ways for your web site to be promoted, but maybe you’re missing the “key” to the “best” promotion. Here are some things to consider:

- If you have started to promote your web site, keep it constant. If you promote your site with persistence, it will catch your audience’s attention.

- Be patient. Try each different promotion until you find the best.

- Free promotions such as search engines and directories would give your web site the deserved traffic you always wanted. Make sure to check your web site’s ranking to know whether or not this type of free promotion is right for you.

- Make a deal with other web sites on trading links which could help both web sites. Make sure to use words that could easily interest the audience.

- Find free classified ads web sites that could boost the promotion of your web site. Most of these classified ads web sites provide powerful marketing features and are an extremely fast way of getting your products or services on line.

- Free and low-cost internet banners are spread all through out the World Wide Web. Banners that pop-up at the top of a page or in a separate window would automatically catch your target audience’s attention.

Free internet advertising is a perfect way to make your products or services known to millions of prospective Internet customers. The probability of someone needing your services or wanting to buy your products is very high. There are free services out there that may suit your services, products and web site…you just need to find them! Go to work – Browse the internet for the best free internet advertising and learn how to take advantage of what you are able to find.

If at first you don’t succeed…try, try again! Analyze your techniques, keep track of your customers and learn what works. Then be ready to try new methods and repeat those methods that are already working.

It has been said that the best things in life are free and this saying also applies to the many forms of free advertising that are available on the internet. Give this form of advertising a try and you also may become a true believer in the power of free internet advertising.

Mark E. Moebius
MILJONAIR
636-300-9000

Putting Some Individuality in Your Advertising

The selection of the right marketing medium is often the most baffling question that businesses must confront. In order to generate greater sales the business must use the appropriate marketing materials with which to showcase the products. But after deciding on which advertising material to use, creating and designing the material is your next concern. It should be clean, crisp and professional looking.

Consider this situation: when a stranger enters your place you consider his appearance at once. If he is well dressed, well groomed, easy in manner and conversation you are generally favorably impressed with him until you know him better to his credit or discredit. Same way with a poster. If it has a happy, healthy, well-fed appearance — if its content are convincing, bright and written by writers who understand their subjects, if its paper, typographical appearance and general get-up impress you favorably then it is a safe assumption that the poster has character, weight and circulation.

You have read some posters that somehow fail to interest you. It lacks individuality, life and meaning. It fails to catch your attention rightly because it has a dull, negative, sullen influence. The matter of putting individuality in poster advertising is very important.

Let’s say a salesman enters your office to talk about his goods. There may be nothing extraordinary in the man’s manner, conversation or appearance, but in such a short time he was able to fill your office with his individuality and when he left there is a large hole in the atmosphere which he just vacated. Another salesman enters with equally attractive products and prices but because of his lifeless, dull manner he failed to make an impression.

For this reason, individuality is important in advertising as a whole, not only in your posters. Individuality is a comprehensive expression of one’s own self without fear or favor at all times and under all circumstances. In order to fill advertising or any other literature with individuality one must have the creative power in order to fill advertising or any other material with individuality. This creative power should be cultivated, and is absolutely necessary in preparing a good advertising copy.

Even a small sparkle of individuality is enough to lift a single ad above every other ad in a paper, and when this is done a positive result is achieved. Keep in mind that oftentimes there is too little thought put into advertising. So, do some thinking on your own account—let some of the results of this thinking be boldly put in your advertising. Keep right at it, and in the course of events you will find it will pay you in hard cash besides giving you a pleasing fame as an advertiser whose ads are read and remembered, because they are above the ordinary.

 Mark Moebius
MILJONAIR
636-300-9000

http://3009000.com