Without customers or consumers, any good business idea is left as simply an idea and nothing more. A company can research, develop, produce, and perfect a product end over end but without sustainable revenue said product will have an incredibly short lifespan. This begs the question; how does a company drive attention and potential customers to itself? The answer is paid advertising. Your company must stand out as attractive to those who are looking for a service or to buy a specific product. Throwing money at generic, cookie cutter advertising may not get you very far. Brian Halligan, the founder, and CEO of HubSpot, summed up a business’ ad endeavor well, “People shop and learn in a whole new way compared to just a few years ago, so marketers need to adapt or risk extinction.”
We have connected with business executives who have experience in this realm and have paid ad strategies to help crush your monthly goals.
Utilize influencers
Jeff Meeks is the VP of Sales and Marketing for EnergyFit, a company which specializes in full-body workout equipment. He advises companies to associate their product or company with a social media influencer as a way of getting human eyes on their product.
“Social media is a daily, sometimes hourly, use of technology for numerous people in our society at this point. They want to regularly know what their favorite celebrity or social media account is up to. It’s common practice for companies to pay these people or accounts to promote their product through some form of a post. Some research in this area can be helpful as you can find target audiences easier this way. For example, an account related to cooking would have a great audience for a meal-prep service.”
Pay-per-click advertising
Swoopt is a sports ticketing website where they compare all the top ticket sales sites on behalf of the consumer. Their co-founder and president, Schuyler Hoversten, believes that every company should take advantage of per-per-click advertising.
“Pay-per-click advertising is wonderful for identifying and connecting with consumers who are already interested in products identical or like your own. Let’s say you’re a company selling winter hats and a customer searches Google for winter clothing brands. They will now receive ads for your company because of their search history. It essentially seeks out the active consumer and displays your product to them.”
Social media
Dylan Arthur Garber is the co-founder of Audien Hearing, which focuses on affordable, quality hearing aids. He suggests that companies take advantage of the advertising space available on social media.
“Have you ever been scrolling down your Instagram feed, and you come across a post that isn’t from an account you follow but instead is from a company or product you’re interested in? This is a prime example of social media advertising. Often, these ads for specific products will appear to people who follow specific types of accounts. So, someone who follows sports accounts will receive ads for sports memorabilia or something similar. If you’re seeking a target audience, this should be a route to consider.”
Focus on the visuals
Western Rise is a men’s clothing brand dedicated to versatility and sustainability. Their co-founder and creative director, Will Watters, recommends those tasked with advertising to pay close attention to the display and artwork associated with the ads they produce.
“Nothing grabs a consumer’s attention more than a high-quality graphic or picture. Generally, this is the first thing they see when their attention is grabbed by an ad. If, at first glance, the product seems cheap or sketchy, it’s an immediate no for the customer. It’s worth any company’s time to dedicate the necessary resources to digital design. An alluring showcase of your product can rapidly develop into a sale.”
Use multiple platforms
Shaun Price is the head of customer acquisition for MitoQ, a company specializing in mitochondria-powered health supplements. He advises the person in charge of marketing or social media for a company to utilize a variety of social media platforms to better reach customers.
“Online consumers are people of many interests who spend their time differently. It’s normal for a person to dedicate more of their time to one social media app or a couple. Not every person is present on every platform. You’ll find that you can reach a wider audience by expanding your potential audience through a presence on multiple social media sites. This will involve learning to make the most of every platform as they’re all unique. However, it’s well worth your time as your goal with any marketing or advertising should be to reach as many potential customers as possible.”
Design a high-quality website
Emjay is a service dedicated to high-quality cannabis delivery. Their CEO, Chris Vaughn, suggests that companies ensure that their website is of the highest quality to keep customers engaged and interested in your product or service.
“In an ideal world, a potential customer will click on one of your ads and then be redirected to your beautiful website which is easy to navigate where they have the opportunity to make a purchase. For many companies, this is not the reality. Anyone can make a free website at this point. But not everyone can create a quality website. If yours appears rapidly thrown together or is difficult to navigate you’re likely to lose sales.”
Search engine optimization
Remon Aziz is the chief operating officer of Advantage, a car rental, sale, and purchase service. He recommends that marketers take advantage of search engine optimization or SEO, a process where your website is enhanced to be displayed more frequently within web searches.
“Online search engines show you what you search for. If one were to search for wine glasses, there would be a laundry list of results. But if you narrow that search to high-quality crystal wine glasses, the results would be more refined. By utilizing SEO within your website, essentially keyword placement throughout the site, your company and products are more likely to appear within search results which would bring in new customers.”
Retargeting ads
Hightouch is a business data platform used to sync customer data with a business’ existing tools. Their founder and CEO, Kanish Gupta, believes that companies should take advantage of a practice called retargeting ads, where a consumer receives ads from a website they have previously visited.
“The beauty of retargeting advertising is that you’re pitching to people who are already interested in your product as evidenced by the fact that they have already been to your website. Essentially, this style of advertising acts as a reminder or a suggestion based on previous interest. It can also be used to target previous customers when your company revamps a product or releases a new line.”
Informational marketing
Finn offers pet supplement products. It’s co-founder, James Shalhoub, advises companies to present their product or service via a variety of platforms which offer more information than a traditional graphic ad would.
“So, you’ve piqued the interest of a customer but they’re looking to find out more about what your company does or what your product is. This is where web content can fill in the gap. Infographics can provide a great snapshot of any relevant details while blog posts or videos can go into much greater detail covering all the ins and outs of any product. If you’re working with a product that is radical or intricate these can be very helpful tools.”
Banner ads
Daniel Osman is the head of sales for Balance Homes, a company specializing in home equity and co-investing. He suggests that companies utilize the banner ads that you commonly see along the side or top of a web page.
“This is one of the most common ad strategies for various companies and there’s good reason for this; they’re dependable. I’ve seen companies do so much with what may seem like a limited space. Sometimes it’s as simple as a picture displaying a product. But you can get creative with this space. Video is becoming more commonplace and even interactive banner ads have begun to take hold within the industry. The aim of the game is to keep the customer engaged and this is very achievable here.”
These are just a few of the paid ad strategies available to anyone running a business or in charge of marketing. One of the keys to being successful in this space is to be unique and engaging. The internet is filled with bright colors and shiny things which are easy to click on so it can be easy to get lost in the shuffle. Do not be afraid to take a bit of a risk with how your ads appear. You may just find something that works well for your company or brand. Tom Fishburne is the founder and CEO of marketoonist, a company that specializes in advertising through cartoons. When it comes to marketing, he put it best, “The best marketing doesn’t feel like marketing.”