It’s a common problem among young entrepreneurs. You’ve got this great product/service, everyone should be using it – but you just can’t seem to get the word out there. However, you’re probably wondering, “where should I advertise my business?”
Don’t worry, you’re not alone. There’s no shortage of small businesses that have trouble staying afloat because they’re not advertising – or at least not advertising correctly.
Where Should I Advertise My Business?
Advertising is a huge part of running a successful business. Think of McDonald’s – how many advertisements would you say you see a day? Five? Ten?
McDonald’s – and other large, successful businesses – invest so much into advertising for a reason: it works. If it didn’t, that’s not where they would spend their money.
In fact, Statista reported that in 2019 over 240 billion dollars were spent on advertising in the United States. The previous year roughly 223 billion dollars were spent. The United States commands the largest advertising expense and revenue in the world.
But even if your budget is smaller and your company isn’t some giant conglomeration, you still need to be advertising. If no one knows your product exists, it will be hard to sell.
If you’re a smart entrepreneur, you already knew this and are working on advertising your business. Learning about how advertising works best is a great start. You can also contact trusted professionals like bMedia Group to help get started on your advertising campaign.
How, where, and through which medium you advertise will all have a giant effect on sales.
Though each type of advertising has its pros and cons, there are many forms of advertising you might want to consider, as well as location.
Let’s start with types of advertising mediums.
Types of Advertising Media
There is a large collection of ways to advertise your product – the hard part is picking the right ones. Read through this list and think about which will work best for your business.
Broadcast Advertising
By far the most easily recognizable, broadcasted advertisements reach a humungous audience. If you’ve got a TV, you’re aware of the number of commercials. Statista reported that 69.6 billion dollars were spent on television ads in North America in 2019. The number dropped slightly in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Another form of broadcast advertising is through radio ads. Though the times of the radio being the main source of entertainment and information are long gone, radio ads still have their place in the advertising world. Radio ad spending is expected to pass 18 billion dollars by 2023.
Depending on the audience you want and the product you have, broadcast advertising can be a great way to advertise – but there are some downsides.
Television commercials are generally short and often require the complete attention of the viewer. It’s also quite costly when compared to other advertising mediums and runs the risk of being too repetitive.
As for radio advertisements, the issue is that fewer and fewer people are listening to the radio.
Reasons for this include the multitude of audio options in modern vehicles, music streaming services, podcasts, and – you guessed it – the number of advertisements on radio stations.
Print Advertising
One of the oldest forms of advertisements, print advertising has been an option for entrepreneurs for centuries. In fact, one of the first print advertisements can be dated back to 1477.
The print ads back then were certainly different than what we have now – generally speaking, print advertisements are those in newspapers and magazines. Other examples include flyers and brochures.
Print advertisements have been the most popular form of advertising for some time – though that trend seems to be changing. Still, though, print ads have their place.
For example, ads in the local paper can really help drive local business. Conversely, advertisements of your product in a magazine with a specific target audience can help drive business as well.
The main issue in advertising through print is this – fewer people are reading the printed word.
Through advancements in technology, newspaper and magazine subscriptions have been in a steady decline, and it doesn’t seem as though that will change.
Online Advertising
This type of advertising has just recently exploded. As the Internet is now integral in the lives of most citizens, businesses and advertising agencies have seen the market for online ads. There are several different types of online ads, including:
- Banner advertisements
- E-mail marketing
- Social media ads
- Playable video advertisements
These are just some examples of online advertising.
The pros – it’s relatively cheap and very easy to track.
The cons – some people fear sharing their data on the Internet and people have become less susceptible to online ads.
Online advertising is a market that will continue to grow exponentially as new technological advancements come into play.
Outdoor Advertising
Outdoor advertisements are all around us. You’ll find them on bus stops, cabs, and – most notably – billboards.
The budget for outdoor advertising reached over 39 billion dollars worldwide in 2019. Though there are some that worry about the decline of out-of-home (OOH) advertisements, their efficacy still remains.
Outdoor ads are on 24/7. They are always working, always seen, help create a captive audience. They can’t be turned off by the consumer.
The Outdoor Advertising Association of America reported that people spend nearly 70 percent of their day away from home. This makes outdoor advertising a great way to reach people where other ads won’t.
Take a look at some of the pros of advertising on a billboard:
- OOH advertising is generally cheaper than other forms.
- Billboards help drive local business – the location of the billboard is key.
- Consumers can’t turn off a billboard as they can a television or radio.
- Billboards don’t need any other form of action – the consumer doesn’t have to watch television or buy a magazine – the ad is always there.
- The Return-On-Investment (ROI) is generally very high for billboard advertisements.
OOH advertising is a great way to showcase your business. It allows for creativity in the message, location, and appearance.
Why Should I Advertise In Puerto Rico?
For those who don’t know, Puerto Rico is an unincorporated territory of the United States.
It’s a great market to introduce your product where others likely aren’t.
There are over three million citizens living in Puerto Rico, so the market is there. With a smart, successful advertising campaign, a business could have the lion’s share of sales in Puerto Rico.
Contact bMedia group to get started on your new advertising campaign.
787 792 4113
