I was reminded yesterday during our weekly staff sales meeting of a simple formula that helps put a different light on why some ad campaigns work and others don't. I borrowed the knowledge from one of The Leadership Institute training modules (I figured it was OK to do so...I'm on the faculty, after all). Whether you're an advertiser or an ad marketing person, this is a necessary piece of your pie:
I x C x C = V
I stands for IMPACT. How big is the ad, especially in relation to what everyone else is doing? How big is the offer, both in terms of the physical size of the text in the ad, and in the size of value that it offers? 10% off a bagel isn't worth starting your car over...25% off interior satin paint is worth remodeling your home for.
C stands for CIRCULATION. How many homes, how many readers are you reaching? If you're selling pizza, you need homes close to your store. If you're selling life insurance you need a wider coverage area in that there are fewer prospects per neighborhood for a long term, bigger ticket purchase.
C number two stands for CONSISTENCY. How often do you grace the marketplace with your message? Are you consistent in the manner and method in which you grace it? Consistency builds recognition and top of mind awareness.
V is VALUE, value for the advertiser. Results equals value.
Here is where the math comes in. This is a multiplication equation. The more you stress each of the three variables, the greater your results will be. Let's use a 1 to 10 scale. If you run a big ad with a great offer (that's a 10) and you hit 50% of the homes in your market (that's a 5), but you run the ad only once (a 1) you get this:
10 x 5 x 1 = 50
Remember, the best you can do is 10 x 10 x 10...that equals 1000. Fifty isn't very good, is it? Increase the consistency to a 3 (run the ad two more times) and you get a 150...three times the results or value.
The most important thing to remember is to not fail completely at any one of the three...that would be a zero. Zero times anything is zero and there is no value in zero.
We're full of good ideas at the Scotsman...drop us a note at info@scotsmanmediagroup.com and see what we can do to add value to your business. Thanks!
