[...]... waste your advertising dollars very easily by using the wrong media for your advertising goals Mass media advertising is affordable (turn to the chapters in Part III for more information on costs) But so-called “affordable” advertising in the wrong Chapter 1: Advertising: Mastering the Art of Promotion A spectacularly ineffective advertising vehicle One of the other tenants in our office building —... to find your way through the weird and wonderful world of advertising You can begin your journey in the beginning, or you can dive right into the middle — whichever works best for you 5 6 Advertising For Dummies, 2nd Edition Part I Advertising 101 A In this part dvertising: It’s here, it’s there, it’s everywhere! Everyone is assailed with advertising messages every waking moment The obvious media... genius into your own advertising — and come out ahead of the competition Making Advertising Work Effective advertising sells a product or a service that fulfills all the promises made about it On the other hand, effective advertising also sells inferior products or services, but only once! So what makes advertising effective? Effective advertising is: ߜ Creative: It delivers the advertising message... cash for media buys Instead, this book is for entrepreneurs, owners of small to midsize businesses, and professionals selling important services — in other words, anyone who’s trying to drum up business and create a successful company with the help of advertising This book is for the rest of us — the people for whom an advertising budget represents an important percentage of gross income and, therefore,... need for some surplus advertising brainpower) Some information also appears in gray boxes known as sidebars These sidebars are asides and not critical to the text, so you don’t have to read them — though you may miss out on some interesting information or anecdote if you skip them entirely! Foolish Assumptions This book is not for the CEO of a major corporation with virtually unlimited funds for slick,... 18 Chapter 2: Setting and Working within Your Advertising Budget 19 Determining How Much You Can Afford to Spend .20 Developing an Advertising Strategy and a Tactical Plan 22 Researching and evaluating your competition .22 Identifying your target market 23 Knowing your product’s appeal 24 xii Advertising For Dummies, 2nd Edition Maximizing Your Budget .24... 181 Placing your online ads yourself 182 Online advertising via affiliate programs 182 Finding out whether your banner is working 183 Assessing the Cost-Effectiveness of E-Mail Advertising 184 xv xvi Advertising For Dummies, 2nd Edition Chapter 13: Buying Ad Space in Print Media 187 Choosing the Right Publication for Your Print Ad 188 Calculating Your Print Ad’s... this part, I share the fundamentals of advertising, help you develop (and stick to!) a budget for your advertising needs, and show you how to boost that budget by partnering with others via co-op advertising I also offer guidelines on defining and positioning your message and aid you in developing an ad campaign that can be effective for your business Chapter 1 Advertising: Mastering the Art of Promotion... 275 xvii xviii Advertising For Dummies, 2nd Edition Participating in Sponsored Events 275 Determining whether you can staff the event 276 Calculating the costs: A valuable investment? .277 Deciding which events are worthwhile 277 Finding sponsored events that work for your business 278 Part V: The Part of Tens .279 Chapter 19: Ten Secrets for Writing Memorable Advertising ... consumers — to a great advantage Hey, if this dairy is good enough for the cows, then it must be good enough for you! And this spot can undoubtedly inspire me to think of a fresh pointof-view for some retail commercial I write in the future When you sit down to write advertising for your business, using ideas and techniques from other advertising to help you find your own “creative hook” is perfectly . Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies. com and related trade dress. class="bi x0 y0 w0 h0" alt="" Advertising FOR DUMmIES ‰ 2ND EDITION 01_045833 ffirs.qxp 11/22/06 3:40 PM Page i 01_045833 ffirs.qxp 11/22/06 3:40 PM Page ii Advertising FOR DUMmIES ‰ 2ND EDITION by. No such thing? 142 Advertising For Dummies, 2nd Edition xiv 02_045833 ftoc.qxp 11/22/06 3:40 PM Page xiv Designing the Best Collateral Ads for Your Business 145 Striving for a simple design