Baton Rouge Business Owners: Advertising Doesn’t Work

A successful home project needs to have an organized plan and a capable person to carry out the details correctly. When my husband and I were still in the “honeymoon stage” of our marriage, we decided to build a fence for our newly purchased home. A hammer, some nails, and a shovel were all we really needed to carry out the project, right? With the excitement of a seventh-grader at his first dance, my husband launched his efforts of creating the best fence on the block. The project took up the entire weekend and consisted of many unplanned trips to the hardware store.

When he was finally done, he confidently asked me to review the finished product. The instant I laid eyes on the fence; I knew something was not right. It took me no time to pinpoint the issue, and I knew that this was not going to be the words my husband wanted to hear. Unfortunately, the boards gradually increased in height as the fence line moved towards the back of the yard which caused the boards on one side of the fence to be distinctively higher than the boards on the back of the fence. 48 hours after the start of the project, we realized that there was more to constructing a fence than just a few nails and a hammer. While we had the best intentions, we had no business trying to build a fence. We’ve personally learned to leave some projects and jobs to the experts.

This story can apply to local advertising for business owners. I can’t tell you how many times in my career, I’ve heard this statement, “Advertising doesn’t work for my business." To break it down further, business owners have provided me with many different comments related to advertising – advertising on TV is hard to track, print ads do not work, or direct mail is too expensive. While my background is in print advertising, I prided myself on knowing about other advertising options. I wanted to be viewed as an expert in the field of media; not just print.

All forms of advertising work, and they can be effective. However, if you attack your advertising plan like my husband approached our fence project, you’re setting your business up for failure. In order to be successful in advertising, you need to get two things right: the message and the medium. If you get either of these two wrong, your advertising will not be as effective. In order to get these two items right, you must have extensive experience and a rich aptitude for local advertising. You also need a plan.

As I’ve begun my journey at BlinkJar Media as the traditional media buyer, in just three short weeks, I’ve probably had over 100 media packages and opportunities cross my desk. Even with my 17 years of advertising experience, this is overwhelming to me. I can’t imagine being a business owner and receiving this many packages. Because of this scenario, business owners typically rely on their media representatives to guide them in the right direction. The good media reps are phenomenal at balancing out the interest of their medium with what is valid for the client. Unfortunately, this type of media rep is the exception and not the rule in today’s world. Most of the time, business owners are placing media with reps who have one thing in mind, their sales goal. With this predicament, the plan of getting the right message and the right medium is already set up to fail. This is ultimately why advertising does not work for local businesses. Just like building a fence, if you have the wrong person representing your company or the incorrect plan in place, the results will be frustrating, expensive, and time-consuming.

I often pass by our first home and look at the fence that was correctly re-installed by a professional. Years later, it is solid and in-tact. The same should be true with your advertising. It should be the gift that keeps on giving for your business.

Business owners, I encourage you not to approach your advertising in the same way that my husband tackled the fence project. When you are considering an investment in advertising, place this project with someone who knows what they are doing. If you are looking for someone to build a fence for your business, we are certainly not the right company. However, if you are looking for advice or help with your advertising, please click on the free advertising consultation for Baton Rouge business owners button below or call us. We’d love to put together a plan for you, so you can concentrate on what you do best – running your business.