The Ad Guys' Podcast: Recent Episodes
The Ad Guys
Chances are you didn't start your business to be an advertiser. More than likely you had a passion for a product or you felt a natural talent and calling to provide a service. We would bet you feel that marketing is a necessary evil that’s becoming more complicated every day. Many business owners are overwhelmed by the options and the number of channels, platforms, and formats available for their message.
We get it. We've been there. We work with business owners like you every day. We would bet that you generally lump all advertising into a big category, “an expense” you pour money into every month but have a hard time figuring out what is working and what's a waste. You get twenty, thirty, maybe fifty calls a week from some company with a magic cure or silver bullet to solve all your marketing worries.
We get that too. We don't have magic cures or silver bullets that you can plug in and play. The truth? Marketing is work. You cannot just hand it off to a friend or family member, trusted employee, or hired hand. You've got to be involved. It's your money. It’s your business and you should be vested in it if you expect it to work for you.
You need to have a clear idea of the message you want presented. You should have a basic understanding of how the different advertising channels work.
John and Tim Bob give you their predictions for the coming year and recap the basic advertising principles for the Insider's Guide to Effective Advertising
If people can't easily find you on the web - well... they won't visit your web site and if they don't visit your web site, well...
Radio is everywhere, it's targetable, it's free and it's still affordable and viable in this changing advertising landscape. This is how to buy radio, what to ask for, trends in radio and much, much more.
10 Ways to Wreck Your Ad
- Outline your newspaper/magazine ad with Buy Now, Buy Now, Buy Now
- Have nine tiny images
- Layer an image over an image over an image
- Have 2 or more paragraphs
- Voice your own radio commercial with your odd voice - or have your son or daughter do it
- Star in your own TV ad and don't rehearse
- Put 3 or 4 graphs in your magazine or newspaper ad
- Place your company name, real big at the top of the ad
- For direct mail, have 9 focuses of interest 10 . Have your IT guy or gal write your ad copy for your website
There is a process your customer goes through to arrive at the conversion or purchase decision for your product or service. It is called… The Buying Funnel From bottom to top, the layers are Awareness, Consideration, Conversion, Loyalty, and Advocacy. John and Tim Bob talk top of the FUnnel starting with Television
John and Tim Bob cover a number of fun and important topics in a short amount of time. Good tips to help small businesses be more successful with their advertising.
John and Tim Bob talk about things they've heard and seen over the years from advertisers about why their ads don't work. These are hot-button topics for the Ad Guys, give it a listen.
Business Owner Chances are you didn't start your business to be an advertiser. More than likely you had a passion for a product or you felt a natural talent and calling to provide a service. We would bet you feel that marketing is a necessary evil that’s becoming more complicated every day. Many business owners are overwhelmed by the options and the number of channels, platforms, and formats available for their message. Before you commit dollars to any marketing and advertising, you need to evaluate - who is your customer? We’re not talking about everyone. We assume you’ll sell to everyone, but everyone is not a marketing segment you can advertise to. You must be more specific if you’re going to be effective with the message and the offer. You need to identify your target audience. Know who you are and what you offer that is unique or special and appealing to your customers. And know who your competition is and why people shop/buy there.