Offline Marketing Using Newspaper Ads

Most business ventures rely on the Internet in administering their marketing efforts these days. This is fine, since no one can deny that the web is a powerful marketing tool, especially now that we're living in the Information Age. However, those who rely solely on the Internet are limiting their reach as far as acquiring customers is concerned. Contrary to what they think, offline marketing is still as effective as it was before. And if want to run a successful offline marketing campaign, publishing newspaper ads is a good way to start.

To help you get the best results in running a newspaper ad campaign, here are a few key points that need to be addressed.

Where Do We Begin?
Before we can pick a newspaper to publish our ads, we need a list that can help us decide. The website newspaper.com can provide you a good list of newspaper publications to choose from. Of course, the cost of publication will depend on the newspaper and you will have to pick according to your budget and goals. What you need to do is make a short list of newspapers that are circulated in wealthy towns and in large populated areas. Aside from population size, the culture and the rate of population growth should be taken into account as well.

Make Your Choice
Each newspaper publication charges different rates. Before you pick a newspaper and pay your hard-earned money in exchange for having your ad published, get to know the volume of copies that are to be distributed by that newspaper and see to it that it gives justice to the advertising fee. Good newspapers should produce 30k-250k copies in circulation, with the price ranging from $15 to $50.

Maximize Your ROI
It's entirely up to you, but the best day to have your ad published is on Sundays. Let's face it: people don't read newspapers as frequently as before since the Internet became popular. But on a Sunday morning, it's always nice to sit back and relax on the breakfast table while reading a newspaper.

What You Say In Your Ad Is Important
The general rule of thumb when writing an ad is to keep it simple. The biggest mistake one can make is to use fluffy and unnecessary words. Remember, your ad is not meant to be a piece of literature. It's meant to inform the readers about your product and its benefits. At best, three to four lines should be enough, with the important words and numbers typed in bold (emphasize this action to the sales rep). And of course, the ad should display your company's contact information, preferably an 800 number.

Keep Tabs
Newspaper ads do take some time to reel in potential customers. Calls will be scarce during the first few weeks after the publication of the ad. Don't fret, since this is pretty normal. Remember that an ad has a cumulative effect on people. But if a reader gets to see an ad week in and week out, there's a big chance that he'll finally take notice. In case the amount of leads leaves much to be desired even after a month, take time to consider the adjustments that have to be made in the ad.

If these offline marketing procedures are handled with the utmost precision, people will eventually take notice of your newspaper ads.