Ten Ways to Waste
Your Marketing Dollars

1. Big Ad, Tiny Text

First, let me say I'm all for plenty of white space to make a print ad more eye-appealing. But that white space should work with the copy (text) and graphics for an overall appeal. A huge ad with copy so small it's barely readable is a waste of marketing dollars.

I recently saw such a newspaper ad for a local BBQ restaurant. It was a quarter page ad in the Sunday paper, meaning they had to sell quite a few BBQ platters to pay for it. Hidden with the copy was a little logo, which is sad. This restaurant has a wonderful, well-recognized logo of a cartoonish pig. I would have made this logo a dominant element. Since the ad targeted parents of graduating seniors, it also had a barely noticeable, poor quality photo of some graduates. I really had to study the ad to determine the advertiser and what they were advertising.

If you're going to invest in a quarter page ad, use the space wisely to make an impact. Make your logo large enough to immediately jump out. Copy should be large enough to be readable. Use quality photos. The BBQ restaurant had so much white space, they should have enlarged the most important elements, or saved the cost with a smaller ad. They could have gone slightly smaller, enlarged the logo and text, eliminated the fuzzy graduation photo and simply put a graduation cap on the pig.

2. Invisible Sponsor

You've donated $200, $500 or even $1,000 to sponsor a little league team, charity walk or school function. You send the check and forget about it. What a waste of marketing dollars. Make sure your business receives the full marketing benefit of your generosity. Provide a clean logo (one that will reproduce well) to be placed on brochures, t-shirts, signs -- any materials associated with the event. Ask to put up a banner at the function or brochures in any participant packets. Most importantly, if you're invited to the function to be recognized or to make a presentation -- SHOW UP! When you take time to attend, or at least send a representative, you'll earn major marketing points from those in attendance. Read more about making community involvement part of your marketing effort.

3. Saggy Banner Syndrome

You've paid $100 or more to have a banner professionally made. Then, you tie it to a few leaning poles. It sags down, making it impossible to read. It's worth the investment to pay someone to install a solid banner holder -- consisting of poles and a frame. I've paid individuals and banner companies to do this. You'll know the exact dimensions you need to keep banners taut and readable. Do check on city or county ordinances before installing such a holder.

4. Direct Mail for All

Before sending direct mail, take time to determine your target audience. Think about age, lifestyle, income and proximity to your business. Should you be targeting families with children or empty nesters? My parents, who are in their 70's, repeatedly receive a post card for a pediatric dentist on the other side of town. When you purchase a mailing list, work closely with the mail house to target your direct mail. Don't waste dollars on printing, postage and manpower mailing to people who have no use for your products. Do smaller, targeted mailings to your most likely prospects.

5. Donald Duck Radio

Radio spots typically come in :30 and :60 segments. On occasion they may be :10 or :15. If the copy for your ad doesn't fit in the time you've purchased, don't just speed up the reading to make it fit. Your listener won't understand what the announcer is saying anyway (or will tune it out because it's so annoying). You're throwing radio dollars out the window. Instead, make the decision to edit your copy, buy a longer spot or divide the copy into two spots. Just don't take the Donald Duck approach.

6. Speed Read Outdoor Boards

Outdoor boards aren't meant to convey the same amount of information you would put in a print ad or direct mail. A motorist driving past a board has only about 5 seconds to view it. That means too many, small words can't even be seen. Limit the number of words on an outdoor board to no more than 8. In fact, I saw a wonderful poster-sized board (the smallest size) a few days ago with no words other than a logo and phone number. It was for a local water park. The entire board was a photo of a little girl with water splashing up over her. It made me want to go jump in. The logo was large enough, that I knew exactly where I needed to go. Sometimes, with outdoor, it's difficult to judge if what you have on paper will work well once up on a board. Lamar Outdoor provides guidance on their web site with this letter height guide. One last outdoor thought. Before signing a contract, drive by a board to make sure it's close enough to the road to be seen and not obstructed by trees or other signs. Drive by it on occasion to make sure trees haven't leafed out over it or spotlights for night viewing aren't burned out.

7. Radio Cheap Seats

A radio or TV salesperson makes you a "deal." Since you bought radio on a popular station during a peak listening time, he or she will throw in some dirt cheap spots from 3 a.m to 6 a.m. It doesn't matter how cheap the spots are, if nobody is listening. Also, beware of offers for inexpensive spots on a "sister station." Again, if this station has few listeners, you're wasting money. Even if the per spot price seems low, it all adds up to funds you can put toward more effective advertising.

8. Gotta Be First -- At All Costs

A salesperson contacts you about the latest, greatest marketing concept. Through the years these "new concepts" have included advertising on movie theater screens, public restroom stalls, grocery carts and the bottom of golf holes. Sometimes, new concepts are great. Advertising in an unexpected place can grab attention. Just make sure to look before you leap. Ask for references from other companies who have used the same type of advertising. If it's a new concept for your area, ask about references from other markets. If there are no references, I personally take a "wait and see attitude" and let someone else test the waters for a few months. I've discovered that being first doesn't always pay.

9. Find Us If You Can

I'm amazed at the number of ads I see with NO contact information. No matter how great someone's offer is, if I have to hunt them down, I'll probably just forget it. All marketing, no matter what it is, should include some type of contact information. Preferably, you should include address, phone and web site. If space or time doesn't allow for all, make sure to always include your phone number.

10. We Guess It's Working

If you hired a plumber who couldn't fix your leak, would you keep hiring and paying him? Most likely not. You would see it as a waste of money. Think of marketing in the same way. If something isn't giving you a return on investment, why keep doing it and paying for it? Make sure to track the effectiveness of your advertising. My Measure Your Marketing Success page gives you some ideas for tracking and measuring.

Effective marketing boils down to what I call "smart marketing." Invest the time, and sometimes additional money, to ensure you're getting the greatest impact from your marketing. These ten tips can give you a great start.