What is the definition of advertising?

Advertising is a marketing technique that can help you grow your business by presenting your products or services to potential customers. Your company can place ads on various media channels, including websites, billboards, newspapers, magazines, TV commercials and radio programs.

Benefits of advertising

As you’re planning an advertising budget, it’s helpful to understand the potential benefits of paid ads, including:

• Education: Advertising campaigns can help customers understand how to use your products or when they might need your services. For example, an ad for a cleaning product could demonstrate which surfaces it cleans and how to apply it.
• Competitive positioning: Ads can give customers a specific reason to choose your business over a competitor. For example, a repair company could highlight its evening appointments to appeal to customers who can’t schedule service during the workday.
• Brand awareness: Advertising puts your brand in front of potential customers, which can increase familiarity and brand recognition. When customers recognize your brand, they may be more likely to consider you when they’re ready to make a purchase.
• Tracking: Some advertising channels provide performance data that can help you make ad adjustments. Tracking key performance indicators (KPIs), such as return on ad spend (ROAS), can help you identify effective channels and refine your advertising strategy.

Considerations for advertising

When planning advertising, consider these potential challenges:

• Costs: Depending on the methods you choose, advertising can be costly. If your business has a small budget, you could explore free options.
• Uncertainty: Advertising results can vary. An ad campaign may generate sales or attract new customers, but results depend on factors such as your audience, message and advertising channel.
• Time: Creating effective ads can be time-consuming, especially if you’re new to advertising.
• Competition: Review competitors’ ads for repeated claims, such as low prices or fast service. Then identify a benefit your business can deliver that those ads overlook, rather than repeating the same selling points.
• Message clarity: Before publishing, ask someone unfamiliar with the campaign to explain what the ad offers and any conditions that apply. Use their response to identify unclear wording or missing details, such as whether an advertised discount applies only to certain products.

Types of advertising

There are many types of advertising you can use to promote your business, including both traditional and digital media channels. Here are some common options:

• Print advertising: Print advertising may suit a business whose customers read a particular local newspaper or specialty magazine. Ask the publication about its readership to assess whether it matches your target audience. Pricing varies by publication, distribution and the space your ad takes up on the page.
• Broadcast advertising: Consider television when showing your product in use is central to the message, or radio when you can communicate the offer through sound alone. Compare each station’s audience and available time slots with the customers you want to reach.
• Outdoor advertising: Consider billboards or transit ads when your goal is to build recognition among people who travel through a particular area. Choose placements based on your customers’ likely routes and keep the message short enough to understand at a glance.
• Direct mail advertising: Choose direct mail when you want to deliver an offer to selected addresses or neighborhoods. For example, a home services business could send postcards to households within its service area. Include printing and postage when comparing costs.
• Social media advertising: You can pay to place ads on social media platforms such as Facebook and TikTok. Consider these channels when your message benefits from product photos or short demonstrations, and choose a platform your customers already use.
• Online advertising: Search ads can reach people looking for products or services like yours, while display ads can introduce your brand as people browse websites or apps. For mobile placements, check that both the ad and the page it links to are easy to read and use on a phone.
• Email advertising: Consider email when you already have subscribers who have asked to hear from your business. Match the message to your goal, such as announcing a new product or encouraging a repeat purchase with a relevant offer.
• Audio advertising: Reach customers with audio ads on podcasts, music streaming platforms and audiobook platforms. Consider this option when your offer can be explained without visuals, and evaluate whether the show or platform reaches your intended audience.

How to start advertising

When you’re ready to run an advertising campaign, use the following steps to get started.

1. Decide who will handle advertising

Based on your budget, available time and experience, decide whether to handle advertising yourself, assign it to an existing employee or bring in a freelancer, agency or new hire. Clarify who will create the ads, approve spending and monitor results so each task has someone responsible for it.

If you choose to hire, consider the following:

• Marketing coordinators can organize campaign materials and timelines.
• Advertising managers can oversee campaign strategy and budgets.
• Marketing assistants can support research and performance reporting.

2. Identify your target audience

Determine which groups of people are likely to purchase your products or services. Use sales data and market research to create a buyer persona, or a profile of your typical customer, for each group. Include details such as age, occupation, location, income, hobbies, habits and common pain points.

3. Choose the ideal platform

Compare potential advertising channels based on your campaign goal, budget and the ad formats you can produce. For example, if you want to demonstrate how a product works, compare video options and factor in both production and ad placement costs.

Once you’ve identified the channels your audience uses, refine your strategy for each one. For example, research which social media platforms your audience prefers. If many of your customers use TikTok, test in-feed video ads to determine whether they provide a strong return on investment (ROI).

4. Develop an effective ad

Choose a purpose or a goal for your ad. For example:

• Are you trying to raise awareness about a new product?
• Do you want to increase sales of an existing product?

Identify one benefit to emphasize and a specific detail that supports it. For example, a meal delivery business could emphasize convenience and support that message with the actual preparation time for its meals.

Use the headline to state the main benefit, then use the supporting copy to explain the offer and any conditions that affect it. Finish with a call to action (CTA) that names one next step aligned with your goal, such as “View this week’s menu” for an ad introducing the meal delivery service.

5. Track ad performance

Monitor the performance of each ad. The metrics you track will vary by ad type, goal and channel, but may include:

• Ad impressions
• Ad reach
• Click-through rate
• Conversion rate
• Increase in sales
• Change in social media followers
• Social media likes, comments, saves and shares

Use this data to create a more effective advertising strategy. If your goal is sales and Facebook ads generate more purchases at a lower cost per purchase than YouTube ads, you might increase your Facebook ad budget for the next campaign.

How can I advertise my business locally?

If your business offers in-person service or if most of your customers are located in your area, consider local advertising. Start by defining the area you serve, then use these approaches to reach customers within it:

• Sponsor local groups. Choose organizations whose participants or attendees match your potential customers. For example, a sporting goods store could sponsor a neighborhood youth league to introduce its products to local players and their families.
• Check geographic reach. Before paying for a billboard ad or another placement, ask where its audience lives, works or travels. Compare that reach with your service area to avoid spending on exposure to people you can’t realistically serve.
• Make the message locally relevant. Name the neighborhoods you serve or include your store’s location so customers can tell whether the offer applies to them. For example, a delivery business could specify the area eligible for free delivery.
• Track local response. Ask new customers how they heard about your business or use an offer code specific to the local campaign. Review the resulting inquiries or purchases to help decide which community placements to continue.