If you want to get ahead in this world, you’ll need to get busy. If you’re a small business, you need to be advertising locally, effectively, and immediately. Depending on your business, it may feel difficult to design a new campaign from scratch. If you have a previous idea to build off of or a template you’re dying to repurpose, the path will be even easier. However, if you’re really starting from square one or just think it’s time for a serious coupon remodel — we’re here to help.
Print vs. Online
Many coupon builders today will only help companies design online ads. While some of the framework and formatting can be transferred to print ads, it’s rarely worth it. Online coupons are presented on a bright screen and forced to compete with content and other advertisers. Embedded with flashing calls to action, online advertisers will have to focus on design elements that print advertisers won’t.
Moreover, if you’re struggling to decide whether to build a print or online ad, ask yourself whether you want to advertise locally. Online retailers seem to be able to flood your daily searches with targeted advertisements, but this will never be as helpful for a small business. Without being able to ship products around the country, there’s no reason to be in the banner of every consumer’s search bar.
Targeting & Repetition
Instead, try to focus on getting ahead of local competitors. Where are they advertising, and why aren’t you doing the same? By “targeting” your consumer base, you can examine where your customers live, work, and play. One way to do this is to collect your customers’ information when they shop with you. Offer a rewards program, or collect a phone number and address to ensure their garment can find its way home.
With a few zip codes, you can plan an entire mailer campaign. Keep in mind, this can quickly get expensive, as you’ll need to hit every house in the zip code at least three times to ensure your campaign is effective. This is because of a concept called “repetition.” Today, many advertisers believe that shoppers must see a campaign at least three times just to recognize it because of how oversaturated their daily lives are. With advertisements and flashing media everywhere, it can be difficult to get a shopper’s attention.
This is part of why online advertisers spend millions to bug you with the same advertisement multiple times. To cut through the fat, you’ll need one strong, incentivized promotion.
Know Your Strengths
To create the best coupon campaign possible, you’ll need to know exactly what to put on your advertisement. Once you finalize the basic components like your logo, contact info, and images, you can move onto the big question: what to give away.
On the one hand, if your incentive is too weak, you might fail to attract any new customers and waste your advertising dollars. While this could ultimately promote brand familiarity, it will lead to a frustrating conversation when you’re analyzing your return on investment (ROI).
Conversely, if you select a campaign that allows too great a discount, customers may take advantage of you. Giving away your most popular service for free will mean losing money, which will be even more frustrating. This is why it’s important to think critically about what you want to advertise and then go all-in on your campaign.
Advertise Specials on Home Goods
While many dry cleaning coupons offer a free clean on a pair of slacks or 30% off winter coat cleans, you may be able to take advantage of another market. Consider advertising specials on home goods like blankets or rugs, which may pique customers’ interest more than other dry cleaning specials. They’ll be able to assume you can handle clothing as well, but offering “25% off Duvet Cleaning” could introduce a need they didn’t even know they had.
It’s important to anticipate or create new needs in your customers with seasonal promotions. Offer discounted services on kids’ bedding, and emphasize the convenience of your process. If you can offer home delivery, highlight it. Many parents will snatch up this deal immediately.
First Time Discounts
If you’re looking into a local mailer campaign, consider running a promotion that introduces your business to the neighborhood. Print a friendly “hello neighbor” message to promise a discounted visit for new neighbors. This will at once promote brand familiarity, incentivize new visits, and promote your locality. Customers will be all the happier to come by once they know just how close your business is and will likely recommend you to their friends.
Where to Advertise
Another way to hit locally is to look into grocery store advertising. Grocery stores often pull customers in from a three-mile radius of the store, so you can count on hyper-local advertising. Find a store near you and look into coupon receipt advertising. This process allows you to print your coupons on the back of every shopper’s receipt so you can reach thousands of customers every day without any extra work. Also, you’ll save a ton in ink and printing costs, which is part of what makes grocery store advertising so affordable for small businesses.
Best of all, it means unmatched repetition and targeting for your business. Every time a customer returns to the store, they’ll see your supermarket advertisement and begin to recognize your brand. Because of the local targeting aspect, you can run a “locals only” promotion similar to a “new neighbor” design. This familiarity will get customers in the door and ensure that you keep building new relationships in your community.
The best part of these supermarket advertisements is they’re completely up to you to customize. Once you finalize all the components you want to include, you can send them onto the race track and watch your business gain impression after impression. Once you submit your coupon, grocery store advertising does all the work for you so you can sit back and watch your business grow.
