Question

Topic: Advertising/PR

What Medium Is Best For Small Businesses To Use

Posted by Anonymous on1/22/2005 at 10:53 PM ET 250 Points
I am in the direct marketing business, and just started a new division dedicated to the success of small businesses (restaurants, dry cleaners, florist, insurance agents, health clubs, etc)

The question is: "what is the best way for small businesses to attract new consumers on a consistant basis?"

Let me know what you think and WHY?
Advertising in local papers
Billboards in town
Radio
TV
Direct Marketing/ Direct Mail
other: __________________________ be specific

Thank you in advance
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RESPONSES

  • Posted byPepper Blueon1/23/2005 at 12:02 AM Member
    Hi Bob.

    I think that the best way(s) are those that allow you to measure your ROI on the advertising, both short-term and long-term.

    If there is not a visible tracking mechanism in place, find a way to create one. As the saying goes " I know half my money on advertising is wasted, I just don't know which half".

    This will vary greatly from business to business. Most small businesses have a very small marketing budget so a lot of your suggestions are probably not practical. I'm thinking more along the lines of joining network events and buying a copy of "Guerrilla Marketing", tell-a-friend promos, loyalty punch cards, local "geotargeting" & pay-per-click on Google to name a few.

    Getting every customer possible to sign up a for an e-newsletter is also cheap and effective. I have small business retailer customers that have done very well with this tool as it is an excellent way to retain customers.

    I hope that helps!
  • Posted bymgoodmanon1/23/2005 at 8:59 PM Member
    It obviously depends on your target audience, your business/industry, and what works best in your market.

    Each of those is a different consideration. There are some markets, for example, where coupons have very high redemption, while other markets have low redemption. Some audiences are newspaper readers, some ignore newspapers and use the Internet as their primary source of news. And in some industries the media environment is key. Radio is really efficient (i.e., low CPM) in some markets, while local cable TV is more efficient in others. Etc. Etc.

    I'd start by defining your prime target audience and your company's positioning. Once you have those, it should be pretty straightforward to look at alternatives for each area of the marketing mix and select those that best support the positioning and meet some basic budgetary requirements.

    I know this isn't a direct response to the question, but it's the best I can do with the limited amount of information you've provided.
  • Posted bydarcy.moenon1/24/2005 at 10:27 PM Accepted
    鲍勃,我不得不warn you, trying to sell marketing to dry cleaners is a tough slog. After 20 years of it, most dry cleaners can't find their assets with both hands at high noon, let alone be willing to pay for marketing advice. Half the dry cleaners know everything, and the other half could care less.

    If you are going to be selling marketing expertise, I would hope that you would know the answers already and not have to ask such questions in a forum like this.

    Now that I've probably miffed you with my bluntness, I may as well submit my answer to your question.

    My answer is: find, capture and keep customers using all available cost effective media. Those media are, direct mail, marriage mail, flyers and newspaper inserts, web site with an effective e-mail address capture/administration/emarketing system, and capturing contact information with a POS system, then asking for referals from satisfied customers.

    Darcy
    Customer Loyalty Network
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