Ad Strategy: Hey, you in front...

I learned something new, today. I used to think ads in the first half of a magazine got much better results than ads in the last half. But in reviewing a report from Adams Business Media's Automotive Group, I saw the error of my ways.

According to the report, ads in the front half of the magazine scored only incrementally better than ads in the back. The difference was less than 10%. And adjusting for differences in size, color, brand, and product the results may be even closer.

I still believe, if you’re not paying for a preferred placement (like one of the covers or opposite the table of contents), it’s best to ask the publication to rotate your ads from front to back. This takes advantage of different reading habits. Some people read magazines front to back, others back to front, and still others (like me) just jump around almost randomly. Hope you learned something new today, too.

- Phil Sasso

Web Strategy: When Life hands you lemons...

The best marketing is proactive. Usually. Sometimes, however, a quick reaction can save the day. For example, a few months ago a prominent trade journal ran a short article about one of my clients. They even mentioned the client's website. The problem? They misspelled the website. Since the publication was already in the mail we had great publicity -- but the wrong contact information. The solution? We bought the misspelled web site name!

That little story generated thousands of hits to the web site that would have been lost if not for our quick response. Often a quick, creative solution can turn lemons into lemonade.

In our experience, it's usually a good idea to buy multiple domain names and point them all to your site. For instance buying a common typo or misspelling is a good idea. (Misspell hotbot.com as htobot.com and you'll get someone else's search engine.) Also, buying the .net and .org extension for your domain can save mistaken identity. (For instance, yahoo.net and yahoo.org both point back to yahoo.com).

- Phil Sasso

Dig Deeper...

In my Tip Remix last week, I said that using opinion polls as behavior research is fraught with problems. By asking a prospect what they MIGHT do you can't always assess what they WILL do. We don't always know what we'd do until we are in the actual situation.

For example I was the perfect parent. That is before I had a child. Somehow what I thought I'd do isn't exactly what I do. Turns out I'm a little less patient in reality than I was in my imagination.

The other side of opinion polls as behavior research is even if you ask what people DO, they are not honest. Not that they're lying to you. The real problem is often we aren't honest with ourselves.

For instance, if my dentist asked how often I flossed, I'd say a couple times a week. But the year-old spool of dental floss in my medicine chest might tell you differently. (Maybe it just FELT like I flossed a couple times a week!)

A better way to get the answer in a survey might be to ask me how often I buy dental floss. You could check that against a question about my flossing habits. If the answers don't jibe, you need to dig a little deeper. (Perhaps asking Beth how often she thinks I floss might be more accurate!)

Another option is to track my dental floss purchases on my grocery store rewards account. The problem? Aside from privacy issues, you don't know if I buy floss at another store or if I share the container with six others in my home.

Moral: True research isn't always easy. And easy research isn't always true.

- Phil Sasso

Paying The Way...

Some leads cost more than others. Here are costs per sales lead: Trade Shows ($200), Print Ads ($20), and Web Sites ($10), according to the Delhaye Group. So a smart marketer will pour money into the company website, right? Maybe. Maybe not.

On the other hand, trade show leads close better and therefore cost less, according to CEIR. Closing a trade show lead cost only $625 and took 1.3 follow-up calls compared to $1,117 and 3.7 calls for other leads. So it's wiser to spend more on tradeshows? Maybe. Maybe not.

CEIR is the Center for Exhibition Industry Research. And as far as I can tell, the Delhaye Group are Internet consultants. In both cases, the research findings seem a little slanted in the favor of their marketing niche. My point? When looking at marketing research findings, it's a good idea to look at who's paying the bill. It may tell you why the results seem slightly biased.

In my experience, the value of various marketing tools is very individual. I've had clients in the same industry -- some in the same product category that found success in two different vehicles. Why? Marketing is much more complicated than a cookbook recipe. Marketing success is very dependent on a mix of your product, place, price and promotion. No one element stands alone. You need to study your own marketing results and make judgements based on your individual findings.

My advice? Get unbiased advice from an objective expert who does everything: tradeshows, ads, PR and websites. Look for someone who knows your industry and has been around for a while. And most importantly, be sure it's someone you can trust. Someone like, well, uh, someone like me. ; )

- Phil Sasso