Promote It

Advertising Basics

Set a Budget

One way to develop an advertising budget is to set aside a percentage of estimated annual sales. As a brand new business owner, research your industry to find out what other businesses are producing annually in sales. Ask local business owners operating similar firms that are not in direct competition with yours or speak with owners in the same business that are located outside your service area. When you arrive at an estimate, multiply that figure by the percentage of sales you plan to put toward advertising, which might be as low as 2% if your business is well-established with a loyal customer base or as high as 10% if you’re brand new and eager to let customers know you exist. Keep in mind that this percentage can vary from month to month depending on cash flow, actual sales and changing market conditions. In a traditionally slow sales month, for example, you might want to boost advertising expenditures in order to increase sales.

Decide WHAT to Promote

Some products and services have greater promotional appeal (money-making power) than others or lend themselves to being promoted during a particular month of the year. To determine which products to promote and when, check the month’s heavy traffic items and seasonal sales charts; give extra emphasis to new and expanded departments; take advantage of cooperative (co-op) advertising programs that divide advertising costs with the manufacturer under certain guidelines.

Decide WHEN to Promote

The most effective advertising offers customers what they want, when they want it. With that in mind, your advertising schedule should allow plenty of time for you to order stock, prepare copy and layout for ads and coordinate in-store display materials before the ad appears in any media. This typically means deciding a month or more in advance of the date your ad will run and working backwards from there to ensure that all materials are ready to go in plenty of time.

Decide HOW to Promote

Incorporate as many types as possible: paid advertising, public relations, social media, personal sales, telemarketing. Regardless of the promotional vehicle you use, keep in mind that frequency and continuity are more important than size/length of the ad or the amount you spend on it.

Tags: Florida Small Business, Growing Your Business