I’m going to guess that you’ve seen the local advertisers like Super Shopper, Reach Magazine and Val Pak. I’ve seen a lot of companies use them to generate a lot of new business.

The general weaknesses I’ve seen have more to to with the ad selection, layout and offer. Most business are unaware that there is a science to advertising. There are formulas to creating headlines, layout, copy and content.If you’ve read books such as Scientific Advertising by Claude Hopkins, How to Write Advertising that Sells by Clyde Bedell or Oglivy on Advertising by David Oglivy, you know what I’m writing about.

Unfortunately, few business owners are aware of this and, from what I’ve seen (at least locally) few of the local ad circular companies know about them either.

Local Advertising shouldn't be a guessing game

Open up a local circular and it can be like looking at a Grateful Dead album cover. They’re very colorful and visually appealing but trying to cut through the crap to see the core selling message can be a major challenge.

The other beef I have with them is that all the ads for similar businesses are virtually identical. Change the logo and address and they are interchangeable.  When I ask a business owner why he or she runs the same ad as their competitor, the response is,” That’s what the rep recommended.”

Think about this. Even if your business is similar to others, do you say to clients, Buy from me because I’m identical to the guy or gal down the street?”

Of course not!

If that’s the case, why do people follow the leader like sheep when creating ads? Be different. Be bold!  Be unique and stand out from the crowd. When you look at competitive ads, it’s not really that hard to do.

Want to stand out from the crowd and generate more sales from ads you ever thought possible? Then make a decision to put results ahead of creativity and use proven, scientific methods to creating ads. You will be amazed at the dramatic increases in response you can generate with truly good advertising.