An advertising campaign can give your startup just that one push to break through with the target group and thus boost your brand awareness. Such a campaign does not have to be as expensive as you might expect.
In this article, we first introduce the different forms of advertising for startups. Do you want to go straight to the tips? Then click on the link below:
Advertising for startups: different forms
No matter how good your product or service is, customers have to notice your company first. Time to get started with your marketing strategy. Advertising is an important part of this strategy.
There are many different ways to promote and reach your target audience. We will highlight a few for you.
- Direct marketing
As a company you send a direct message to your customers. For example, you can create advertisements for newspapers and magazines or place them online on websites and social media. You can also apply search engine marketing (also known as SEA, not to be confused with SEO) and produce commercials for radio and/or television. - Content marking
In content marketing you do not directly promote your product or service, but you give the customer bits of knowledge or entertainment related to it. - Guerilla marketing
Finally, from a budget point of view, guerrilla marketing is interesting for startups. Here you try to make a huge impact with as little costs as possible in an original way.
Set concrete goals
Before you enthusiastically set up an advertising campaign, you must first find out what you want and can achieve with advertising. As a starter, don’t think too big and stay realistic.
It is unlikely that by promoting a spectacular discount promotion you will wipe the floor with the established competition in one go. It is better to carry out several small marketing actions.
Examples of advertising targets
The following objectives are generally realistic spearheads for a starting entrepreneur:
- Attracting new customers or clients.
- Retaining your existing customer base and encouraging this group to make new purchases.
- Determine the existence of your company and increase brand awareness.
- Make it clear to (potential) customers that they should come to you (and not the competitor) for the best deals.
You can then write down how you think you can achieve these goals. Keep these four tips in mind:
Tip 1: What message do you want to convey?
Make your message as specific as possible. What do you want to make clear to your (potential) customers with the campaign? Try to summarize this message in a single sentence. Less is more in this case.
Many professional startups make the mistake of trying to achieve multiple goals by cramming them into one message. It works much better to focus each message on a specific goal.
Original advertising message
At the same time, the advertising must be stimulating and distinctive. Note: Thinking outside the box is good, but it shouldn’t be too far-fetched.
Coming up with a strong advertising message is an art in itself. Consider hiring a professional agency for this.
Always test a self-designed campaign first in your environment and professional network. If they don’t understand the punch line of a witty slogan, chances are it won’t reach potential customers either.
Step 2: Determine the right target group
Advertising is an extremely effective tool to reach the right target group. It is therefore essential that you get to know your target group well and then tailor the advertisements to it.
The more concretely you define the target group, the better your advertising campaign will be.
So first try to form a good picture of your target group. It is smart to make a customer analysis for this. This way you discover who your potential customers are and how you can reach them.
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Step 3: Stand out from the crowd
Advertising is everywhere. Every day we are bombarded with countless commercials that we skillfully ignore. So it is not easy to get real attention from your target group.
Dare to be original and choose channels that are not used that much yet. Guerilla marketing is a good method for this. Content marketing can also be effective.
Step 4: What does advertising cost?
The costs for advertising campaigns vary considerably. You will spend a lot more money for an advertisement in the newspaper (5×9 centimeters for € 900) than for an online campaign on Facebook, for example.
On Facebook you can indicate how much money you want to spend and which target group you want to focus on.
Content marketing is on average 62% cheaper than traditional marketing (source: demand metric)
Divide your budget
Your budget also determines the channels on which you will use the campaign. It is simply a lot more expensive to broadcast a commercial on the radio or TV.
In that case, it is often smarter to choose a medium that gives you the space to draw attention to the campaign more often (and cheaper), such as social media and other online channels.
