This isn’t a new topic, but it is one we need to consider when choosing advertising options. Let’s start by defining these:
Awareness Advertising: Simply put, Awareness Advertising builds brand awareness: it builds trust, recognition, as well as “awareness” that your product or service is available. Think of this as your billboards, tv and radio, magazines, sponsorships, vehicle wraps, as well as much of your online social media and display advertising.
Direct Advertising: Is being there when someone needs your item or service. This used to be Yellow Pages, you had to have a Yellow Page ad, because when the person needed your product or service, they found you in the Yellow Pages. Well, the internet came along and opened-up a whole new way of finding you. Now, we are always working to find the best way to be in front of potential customers when the want/need/service becomes a priority for our potential customers.
So, what does the mean to us?
It is easy to think you just want direct advertising: be where your customer is looking when the want becomes a need or an emergency has occurred.
But, it is far better to have a mix. Just because you come up first on Google, if the person isn’t aware of your brand, they’ll scroll to find someone they have heard of… someone who has started building trust with them. The next time your “consumer hat” is on, pay attention to your actions: do you just pick the top result in your google search? Or do you scroll and look for a name or location that you have heard of? Recommendations from friends, seeing a truck for a company on the road (not calling that one, they cut me off on the road! Hay, that company actually stopped when I was trying to get across the street the other day), or what about that banner you saw at the neighborhood baseball game, or the sponsorship in the program at an event. These add up, whether we realize it or not, to brand awareness that drives our decision making when we are ready to buy.
Do you have a good mix of awareness and direct advertising in your marketing plan? All of us at Strategy 3 are here to help find the right mix for your business.
