We all know what advertising is, and the myriad forms it comes in — from banner ads on websites, to billboards along the highway, to promoted posts on Facebook. Many of us think of advertising as a push-button way to drive revenues, until we actually look at what it means, costs, and gives us for a return on investment.

So as a small business owner, you have to be asking: is it worth it? And if so: how do I do it?

What Will Advertising Do — And Not Do 

An ad campaign, directed to your core audience, can help you establish your brand identity, and start to build name recognition. It can encourage your existing customers to come back, and help to attract new ones. Advertising can also help you slowly increase your profits (more on that later).

You might be wondering: what about creating a sharp increase in sales, or a large increase in my customer base- will advertising do that for me? The answer is (more often than not): no. This is the big misconception that people have when the first start considering ads.

A good ad campaign is done over a longer period of time, and is used to build your brand identity and distinguish your product or service. The reason? It’s impossible for every customer to see every ad you run, so the more ads you run, over a longer stretch of time, the more effective your messaging. Taking out a one-time ad to drive revenues simply does not work. As a small business owner with limited funds at your disposal, this is an important distinction to make before you consider different forms of advertising.

 Advertising And Your Target Market 

Now that we have done the hard work of identifying your customer, creating your message, and getting your website optimized, you’re ready for a campaign. That means your next step is to figure out where your target customers reside.

For a small business like yours, it’s a good idea to explore local options first. Consider ad opportunities on:

• Websites or blogs that report on local interest
• Local radio stations
• Local television stations
• Local newspapers

Spend time thinking about who your customers are, and where in your community they go for news and media. For example, your core customers may not watch local news on TV, but get their news from NPR. Or, a blog about your city might get more of your target customers than the largest newspaper in town.

You might also consider online options that let you set the amount of ad dollars you spend daily or weekly, such as Google AdWords, Facebook, Bing, and Yahoo. Remember to start small: there’s a lot to learn with all of these online ad services. You might want to watch some video tutorials about a basic Google AdWords campaign, set one up, observe and learn from it for a month or two before expanding what you are doing. Each one of these channels takes time, on a daily basis, to manage and get right. Remember to figure that commitment in when you are making the decision to advertise or not.

 Setting The Groundwork 

Advertising well takes serious planning. The SBA reminds small business owners that, “Advertising works best and costs the least when the planning and preparation are done in advance. For example, you’ll pay less per ad in newspapers and magazines by agreeing to run several ads over time rather than deciding on an issue-by-issue basis. Likewise, you can save money by preparing a number of ads at once.”

Start by asking yourself a simple question: What do I want to get out of this advertising campaign?

Think through what you want from your advertising campaign, and how that fits into your company’s goals for the year. Then, set a goal for your campaign: what does success look like? After your campaign has run, you’re going to want to learn from it for future campaigns. Then, think about the costs. And not just the costs of placing the ad. Do you need a designer or copywriter to help build the ad? How much of your own time will it take?

Next, reference your market research. Make sure your ad campaign aligns to your market as well as your company’s goals. Since you know your customer, and you’ve worked out the messaging for your product or service, you are a step ahead of the game.

 Decide Where To Place Your Ads 

Choose the advertising media that is the best fit for reaching your target market. And remember to take advantage of any special editorial sections that you see in the media kits from perspective ad venues.  Online magazines, for example, have monthly themes planned out in advance. If your business is landscaping, and they have a home improvement section coming up in three months, you might want to aim for that.

Advertising is not something to dabble in causally, but with the right perspective and proper planning you can achieve greater brand recognition, a more solid customer base, and make your business more sustainable over time. When you’re ready, give these advertising basics a try. They’re a step in the right direction that will help you build a solid foundation from which you can market your small businesses for years to come.

Stay tuned for more marketing advice as the series develops. Is there a specific topic you’d like to see us cover? Let us know in the comments! And if you’re interested in being matched with a marketing advisor that can provide customized guidance to help grow your small business, check out our advising program at businessadvising.pcv.wpengine.com.

(image from North Carolina Digital Heritage Center: “Newspaper advertisement for W.L. Douglas shoes, 1892”)