It’s a mobile advertising world. With Facebook and Google ads and apps, it’s easier than ever to reach out. You may even be struggling with contemplating building a social media presence – a good idea if you want to connect with your online audience. But, Internet marketing isn’t the only game in town.
Mixing online marketing with traditional marketing means getting the best of both worlds. Traditional advertising may seem less important, but the truth is that most people will visit your social media site based on a print, banner, or car wrap ad seen outside of the virtual world. In short, you can’t skip out on advertising from any angle.
The Power Of The Banner Ad
Advertising on a banner is a wise, cost-effective idea that brings the online advertising concept to the real world. These ads let you manage consistency across all advertising channels – try designing your banner to resemble your website banner, only include your web address and what social media channels you can be found on. You can use these just about anywhere, and work well around trade show time to get new attendees to check it out.
Even if you aren’t advertising for a trade show, banner ads placed throughout town and on your car will catch the eye of a passer-by, who will probably turn to Google when they get home to see what you’re all about. To make your banner advertising effective, be sure you place them in areas they’ll be noticed.
Video Didn’t Quite Kill The Radio Star
Contrary to popular belief, 98% of people still enjoy listening to their local radio station, according to the http://stateofthemedia.org/2012/audio-how-far-will-digital-go/audio-by-the-numbers/ 2012 State of the News Media report put out by the Pew Research Center. This is good news, as radio advertising is highly affordable. All you need to pay attention to is the target audience. For example, you aren’t going to sell a lot of mobility scooters on an alternative radio channel, just as you aren’t going to convince the younger crowd to visit your hip clothing store when you’re reaching out on AM radio. The ad for your new e-book might be better run on NPR than the classic rock station. Get the idea here? Know your market and target accordingly.
Another great benefit of radio advertising is additional opportunities that open up after a relationship has been established. For example, radio personalities frequently do live broadcasts from select locations, offering prizes or running special contests, which entice listeners to stop in and say hello. People really love this, especially because they have the chance to appear on the radio, giving them celebrity status in their area for a short while.
To ignore radio advertising is to ignore a highly effective way to get business, especially around trade show time.
The Print Ad
This is more than just an advertisement in a newspaper, or including a special flier in the Sunday paper. It is everything you can imagine – brochures left at convenience stores; postcards sent out to residents in your area; door hangers left on residences’ doorknobs from the local pizza place; and coupons handed out with purchases or sent to targeted residents. If potential customers can see that you offer more than just online ads, it will offer a level of credibility to your marketing campaign and create a lucrative sense of trust.
All of the advertising methods listed above can be incorporated into your website and social media channels, and are especially handy leading up to a trade show. There may come a day when all of these methods are futile, but for now, they are just as viable as Internet advertising. It’s a good idea (every once in a while) to step back from the virtual world and remember the physical one. Advertising in the print world is far from dead – it’s just sharing the space with the Internet now.
If you need help getting your ads to look right offline, let us know. When it comes to trade shows, we have the skills you need to succeed both online and offline. Give us a call today!
What have you found to be effective advertising techniques? Is there anything that does not work well? Share your tips with us!