How important is the layout of a print ad? Well, considering that most small businesses spend the majority of their marketing budget on display ads (aka print ads), the layout is critical. This is especially important because display ads almost never bring the anticipated and much needed results desired by business owners and marketers. There are many "industry secrets" you need to know to get the response you need to make a profit from a display ad.
What does that mean to you? It means if you are going to run an ad in newspapers, magazines, event programs, or anywhere else, you want to know how to maximize your opportunity and investment by designing the ad for maximum response. You also need to know how to place an ad for maximum response.
The following tips will prove VERY valuable to you...
ALWAYS use a dark black thick border around your ad. It will draw the reader's eye to your ad without the expense of two colors and without paying for larger ads
Whenever possible, on the outside of the thick dark black border, use dashed lines like those typically seen around coupons. At the psychological level, this border implies a value or savings in your display ad.
And speaking of coupons, use a coupon or other direct offer (free special report, free consultation, etc.) in every display ad; this is active, direct marketing - USE IT EVERY TIME!
DON'T LET THE PUBLICATION'S STAFF DESIGN YOUR DISPLAY AD OR WRITE YOUR COPY! Typically they have sales people do this work -- and let's face it, they are sales people, not Brilliant Marketers. Use the ad layout you create in this course.
Commit to running the ad a MINIMUM of seven times - in the same place... and don't change it up much. That is the most effective way to get the maximum number of new customers and return on your investment. IF YOU CAN'T AFFORD TO RUN THE DISPLAY AD SEVEN TIMES... DON'T RUN IT AT ALL... use your marketing dollars on other activities.
Although larger ads statistically pull better response rates, if you design your display ad as recommended in this lesson, you can get the higher response rates using the smaller, less expensive ads
Run your ads on the days you are open and/or the days that will target your market; for example, Wednesdays are typically the day food is featured, Monday is sports, and Fridays are entertainment focused
Every ad should contain your benefits and features, a coupon or other direct call to action (yes, I know I am repeating that - but it is important), borders (same), contact information, a map or major crossroads, your URL, headlines, testimonials, picture or graphic (if space allows), and rapport messages
INSIST that you ad is placed in the front section of the newspaper on the right-hand side, on the top half; for the same money this statistically pulls a higher response
Do not use ALL CAPS in your ad; they are hard to read. If you absolutely have - and I mean just have to - use them, do so sparingly
Ads with people in them typically pull a higher readership rate; photographs are statistically more effective than drawings or clipart graphics and photographs of babies pull the absolute highest readership rates
Okay - there you have it... a good number of really valuable tips to immediately improve your response rates when using print (display) ads.
Alex Barrington, author of Brilliant Marketing! specializes in providing micro-businesses and start-ups the most practical, valuable marketing information available. To maximize this opportunity for all, Alex has created The Brilliant Marketing! System; to get a copy of the free ebook by the same title, click into http://www.brilliant-marketing-for-small-business.com/brilliant-marketing-free-download.html