North Americans are exposed to over 3000 different ad messages a day. Even if you don’t spend a lot of time watching television, listening to the radio or reading the newspaper, your senses are assaulted every waking moment with advertising.On gas pumps, in the washroom stall, during sporting events, on bumper stickers, on elevator walls, park benches, bus backs, over loudspeakers, on matchbooks,
T-shirts, sidewalks, outdoor boards and just about every page we view on the Internet. If you happen to be one of those individuals who has plunked down $200,000. to be one of the first to take a space voyage, don’t be surprised to see a Pizza Hut logo on a Russian space rocket as you zip into the heavens. Is it any wonder that reaching your target market with a cost effective message has become a Herculean challenge? The bad news is…it’s not going to get any easier.
The good news is…you can break through the ad clutter and ad fatigue of modern life by adhering to a few proven principles.
Sink the hook early. If you have a powerful persuader in your ad message, such as a specific discount on a vehicle, get that message out in the first line of copy or in the headline. Don’t pussy foot around. You have only a few seconds to capture the attention of a potential target customer. Research has shown that many people decide whether they will listen, view or read an ad in its entirety within the first THREE seconds of exposure.
Follow the hook with a line on the value rationale of your proposition. Explain why the ‘hook’ you are offering is so amazing. “You might see cars like this on area USED CAR LOTS for this price. But you can buy it BRAND NEW this week during our sale!”
Appeal to the THINKER.. “With a price like this, imagine how low your payment can go!” Or, “You might be surprised to find out how much your present vehicle is worth with our higher than market trade allowances!” Or, “Find out how good your credit is right now by filling out a free credit application at our website!” Or, “With the great gas mileage this car gets, who knows how much money you’ll save at the pump!”
Some other ways to maximize your ad dollar effectiveness:
Insist on NO-NONSENSE creative. Leave the humor and drama to Hollywood. Make sure your creative message conveys a clear selling proposition that can easily be understood by those ‘half-listening’ or scanning the headlines.
Understand the difference between ADVERTISING and DONATIONS. Little league uniforms may do a lot for your ego and for the success of your local team, but lumping this donation in with advertising doesn’t give you a true picture of your advertising R.O.I. If you do decide to put certain ‘donations’ into the ad column in order to qualify them as a legitimate tax deduction, be sure you sub-categorize these items as ‘promotion’ so you can accurately calculate your ‘hard’ ad dollar expenditures. This also makes it easier for you to know where to cut expenses if revenues are down. Taking dollars from the ‘promotion-donation’ column allows you to maintain the muscle of your advertising program.
Stay away from Ambient Advertising. Unless you have big bucks to throw away, avoid matchbooks, and toilet stall ads, and blimps and sandwich boards. Put your ad dollars (or at least 95% of your ad dollars) into mediums you know will reach your targeted audience. Television, Radio, Print, Direct Mail, Email are still your greatest opportunity for delivering an cost effective ad message.
Stay away from celebrities as product hucksters. It’s not worth the investment and celebrity spokesperson effectiveness continues to trend down. It has the LOWEST effect on the youngest markets.
Bring potential customers TO YOUR WEBSITE AND COLLECT EMAIL ADDRESSES! With every passing tick and tock of the clock more and more people are going to the Internet to do research. Latest research says around 70% of shoppers do some research on the Internet prior to purchase. Devote at least part of your advertising to your website. Entice potential customers to your site with pictures of new models, pictures of a recent car show, credit applications, on-line service appointments, etc. Make an offer on your site to collect information including an email address. Maybe a weekly drawing from all new emails registered during that week. A discount coupon to be used in parts or service. (Stay away from sales discount coupons unless you fully understand your state’s motor vehicle rules/laws.) One dealer friend told me he collected over 5000 email addresses in one week by offering a free gallon of windshield washer fluid. Once the customer completed the information request, they could print out a coupon. DON’T USE AN EMAIL ADDRESS in a promotion unless you have the recipient’s permission. If you do have permission DON’T OVER-EMAIL anyone in your database at the risk of an unsubscribe request.
RESEARCH…RESEARCH…RESEARCH! With the inundation of 3000 messages a day, we need to pay careful attention to the prime motivators of our customers. There are no longer 3 or 4 AM radio stations …there are 30 or 40 stations. There are no longer 3 television networks. Some of our customers get up to 500 channels.
A program to collect and analyze media habits of customers is essential in defining the best ways to channel ad dollars effectively and efficiently.
Advertising is probably one of the largest line items on your P&L. Paying more attention to the details is the easiest way to make your ad dollars attract more customers… hook, line and thinker.
Do you have questions or comments about this or past AdTalk articles? Feel free to email them to CBC.
This issue of AdTalk is brought to you by Research Partners. Serving dealers for nearly 20 years to help reduce advertising cost: Research Partners
