How about Newspaper Ads

[UFRich]

How affective is newspaper advertising?

How often should the ad be placed?

Just wondering since the phonebook is not a good place.

UFRICH

[hcjilson]

Just curious..........
Many people don't believe in the phone books adveritising value, but if I asked them to locate the names of at least 2 stamp dealers in their town, the first thing they would do is reach for the yellow pages!

hj

[CME4SPECS]

I run a column that talks about products that are available. It seems to be effective. The main thing is to keep your name in front of people. You have to run ads often, once in awhile will be a waste. It seems as though direct mail to your own customer base is the most effective...something I'm working on.

[Jeff Trail]

Rich,

A lot will depend on what return you get on your advertisment. The circulation of the paper, the location of the ad and pric per col. inch and the extent of your run, the longer the run period they most often discount the price per col. inch.. you can also change the shape of the ad, it is the total col. inches you are paying for so if the ad is 2x3 or 1x6 it is the same price..
Most often they will try to sell you some place in the paper where you may get lost like the inside gutter lower side..YIKES what a pit.. say upper outside is more expensive per. col inch than an inside gutter ad so it's up to you if you want to save money and get not as much traffic or notice..
Myself when I had my retail stores I found that the local penny saver was a LOT less expensive and it reached more people than the local paper.. I also used the penny saver to do direct flyer inserts, check to see if you have that in your area you can choose the exact area you want to run the inserts so you reached your target area in a better way..
I also used to use cheap labor (realatives) and take my nephew and a couple of his friends and I would drop them off at a end of a street and we hit every door with a hanger.. that worked pretty well get local people into the store.. since in the area we had a lot of older people I offered a service where I went to the house as well and delivered around the store.. if I had to go very far I charged a delivery price..
I also set of a referral program where people got a fist full of business cards and I put thier name on the first 10 or so and when they passed the card on and someone came in and bought a pair of glasses I took a hole puch and clicked a hole in the card in thier file and after a certian amount of clicks they got things like money off the next purchase and so forth.. or one of the fav's was I sold the second pair and did not charge xtra if they up graded to polarized.. now most people will say "what you gave away polarized?" ..well I charged the basic price on both lens..say FT28's and got money for both frames.. and the nice thing about polarized once you get someone to try it in an RX they will never go back.. so the next time they came in..tada sold two pair of lens.. clear and a polarized..plus they tell everyone how great polarized is.. marketing is the key if you want to grow.. no matter how great an optician you are if no one KNOWS where you are it won't do you much good..
Those give aways for the puches included things like UV, tints and so forth.. so you are not out much in money (cost) and gained in goodwill.

The easiest way is to look at your paper.. where do you notice the ads? What grabs your eye? ..and where do you look for ads? .. think outside the box.. also get involved with local things to get your name out there.. I used golf tourn. a lot since I play.. I also started a local deal with other people in business where we swapped out stuff..you got credit on your glasses and I got the same credit in your store.. that network worked well if someone asked about something you had people to refer them to and the others returned the favor back your way..

Isn't owning great? :)

Jeff "been there, learn from our mistakes" Trail

[CME4SPECS]

I think if I'd be looking for a stamp dealer I'd look in the yellow pages. I don't know any stamp collectors, that I could get a referral from. I go to the yellow pages quite frequently myself. I always talk to my neighbors, friends and even customers about different businesses before I patronize them. I've pretty much decided where I'm going before I go there or even call them.

[Cowboy]

The only truly effective newspaper advertising comes in the form of a purchased or sponsored article. Having a simple ad will not gain the attention you will desire. However, using your local town free paper may be more effective than the more largely distributed paper. The local paper will be the one people pick up to see whats happening around town and will most likely be observing your ad. But, to get more bang for your buck, try to get an article printed about your location based on some special offering (not sales), more along the line product release and why it would be beneficial to the public. If the local paper won't do an article, try purchasing the space to put in your own.

Hope I was of help to you. Good Luck.

Cowboy

[wmcdonald]

It is not possible to answer your questions, either about the yellow pages or the newspaper, without knowing much more about you market area. You need to find someone who can provide assistance in developing a marketing program that meets the needs or your practice environment. For example, if you live in a large metro area, one method may be superior. If you live in a small community the media may need to be different. All media work, but you need to know what is the best media for you! Let me know if I can help.

[Traci]

The effectiveness of the newspaper will be directly proportionate to what you put into it. Be consistent and repetitive. Just placing an ad here and there without rhyme or reason will be completely ineffective.

Plan carefully if you want to place ads daily or weekly and choose the section of the paper that will reach your target audience. Don't expect an immediate response unless you are giving something away. Advertising takes time.

[hip chic]

WMcdonald~

Yes!!!!! I couldn't agree with you more..there is no simple answer to these advertising questions....but, whatever the answer... for each individual business, it comes from knowing that businesses market (and as you pointed out, knowing their market area). Jeesh, I love it when someone thinks the same way I do!

hip chic