Advertising will likely form the backbone of your marketing strategy, so it’s important you concentrate on getting your advert right.
As with anything you put out in the public domain, a print or online advert needs to reflect an accurate image of your business.
Get it right and it can significantly boost your business, getting it wrong can done more harm than good.
Whichever media channel you choose to place your business adverts on, the chances are you may be offered a free design service.
In most cases, you should take advantage of this as the design team are professionals, who know what works and what doesn’t.
But, they do not know your business like you do, so it’s down to you to give them the direction they need to create something that works for you.
Make sure no business advert “goes live” until you are 100 per cent happy with it.
What makes an effective business advert?
There are several aspects to consider when creating a killer advert:
Your advert needs to grab attention
● It needs to have a bold, attention grabbing headline. Striking images, illustrations or artwork add further impact. Bright colours will also draw the eye, but make their use fits in with your brand.
Design needs to be clear
● Make use of white space. A cluttered advert is very off-putting and will turn people off to what you are trying to say.
Answer primary question
● The key to successful business adverts is to move the focus away from the features of your product or service and firmly on to the benefits it offers. People want to know “What’s in it for me?”, so make sure your advert answers that question
Build up interest
● The headline should grab the reader’s attention while the main copy of the advert needs to build up interest. Make sure it includes all the key benefits. Emphasise the important information in bold or bright text.

Typeface
● Give full consideration to the typeface used in your business advert. It obviously needs to be clear and legible, but different fonts can convey different images. Serif fonts (the ones with the twiddly bits) can convey “classy”, while sans serif can be seen as more modern. Fun fonts should be used carefully, unless of course it fits in with your business ethos.
Call to action
● Every advert should encourage the reader to “do something”. Visit your shop, call you, go to your website, act quickly to take advantage of an offer etc.
Online extras
● Online advertising can include extra elements such as video or sound. They can be an effective tool, but use carefully as if they are too obtrusive it may turn off potential customers.
Check, and check again
● It doesn’t matter how good your business adverts look and how effective the message they convey is if they are littered with spelling and grammar mistakes. Make sure you use capital letters appropriately and that apostrophes are in the right place. Poor use of punctuation can mean your key message becomes ambiguous and unclear. Check and double check everything – then check again.
Once you are happy with your advert, you can sit back and wait for the response.
It’s always worth asking new customers where they heard about you, as it can give you an idea of which marketing channels are working.
If you are not happy with the response your advert receives, do not give up on advertising just yet.
Your chosen advertising channel, be it online or in print, is a business just like yours and they advertising sales rep will be keen to ensure your advertising is working for you.
They will know what works and will be keen to find the right solution for you to ensure you advertise with them again.
And if your advertising is still not working, there are many other marketing strategies worth considering.
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