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Preparing for Advertisements

Media Planning

Preparing for Advertisements

Written by Nidhi Ann Raj for Gaebler Ventures

As advertising plays a vital role in the success of your product's sales, this marketing strategy should be well planned and implemented on time.

Advertising is a major phase in the marketing management of your product. These activities communicate your product to the outside world.

Advertising helps in buying people's attention to the product, creating awareness and indirectly encouraging people to buy the product. Hence it is necessary that you plan well in advance on how to successfully implement this strategy.

Begin by preparing an advertising plan. For this, you need to get you research right. This means identifying your target audience and their needs, wants and responses to offers or ads. Then decide how much money you would want to put into ads to get the required sales. This money may vary depending on the life cycle of the product. For example:- during the launch of the product, you may want to spend more on advertisements. So you should be clear on questions like how much you want to spend per ad, when and where the ads should be displayed etc.

Once you have your knowledge base and money ready, spend considerable time to prepare the content of the ad. Understand the key objectives, you plan to achieve with the ad. The advertising's objective should not be dependent on the success of other marketing strategies that may precede it. Write the ad keeping your target audience and the product you have to offer them, in mind. State you unique selling proposition without trying to sound desperate. The ad should clearly describe the features and benefits of the product in a manner, which appeals to the target audience. For this, you should be aware of what communication strategies ticks on your target. For example:- an ad trying to sell a product for kids should be shown on TV channels for kids or in magazines that mothers would read. It would have no value if it appears on a Teens magazine.

Before you begin to market your ad, it would be a good idea to check on the advertising laws in the regions you plan to advertise. Some ads can (unintentionally of course), hurt the sentiments of various people or communities. Make sure your ad is as generic as possible and does not offend anyone, including your competitors. Also ensure that the promotions are well advertised too. It is not enough to make and market a creative ad. The timing of the ad needs to be right. It should synchronize with the stage at which you are, with marketing your product. Furthermore, you should evaluate the response of the viewers of your ad and improvise on it, if needed. Remember the success of an ad does not depend on its creativity alone, but is a combination of the media, timing and proper planning.

Nidhi Ann Raj is a gifted writer who is currently pursuing post-graduate studies at George Brown College in Toronto Canada, where she is specializing in Marketing and Finance.