Preface

Profit minded businessmen use advertising because it is a cheaper, quicker, and more convincing way to increase sales than alternate methods. Advertising deals with the presentation of a message particular groups impersonally or through mass media. Although advertising has been referred to as an area in which big business has many advantages, it can be a powerful tool for the small businessman too. Because the same message is presented to the entire membership of certain groups, each detail of advertisement is magnified in importance. One of the basic rule of the effective advertising is to recognize the importance of details.

Basic to Consider

* These are several basic factors a small businessmen particular should bear in mind about advertising:

- Advertising is much more than simply laying out an effective advertisement or writing a clever sales talk.
- The kind of advertising that is the best for some types of businesses may not be right for the others.
- Money can be wasted in advertising by failing to have adequate of information about potential customers, by lack of experience or judgment, by spending too high a proportion of gross income, by lack of adequate planning, etc.
- Finally, the purpose of advertising is to sell or help to sell. Advertising that doesn’t do this, directly or indirectly, should be avoided.

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How Much to Advertise

* The first step in advertising, as in anything else, is to do the groundwork. A businessman can begin asking himself these questions :

Determining the right amount to spend for advertising is important because this expend often ranks among the highest. For the small business is especially important that limited funds be used to the best possible advantage. Once the amount available for advertising is decided upon, a more intelligent campaign can be planned covering such factors as items to promote, prospects to seek, media to use, and frequency for releases.

For a business in an established field, operating ratios are valuable guides in determining how much to spend. However, these are guides, not absolute standards. Many profitable stores and shop spend more than the standard for they fields. The correct amount of money to budget for advertising will depend upon the job to be done and the funds available. A compromise is the usual result. The following nine factors for a retail store, which can be modified for other small business, should be considered in most cases:
* Age of the store
* Merchandising and services policies
* Size of business
* Location
* Size of trading area
* Competition
* Media
* Business condition
* Past experience

Outside Staff Assistance

* Since advertising one of the most highest developed fields of business, these are specialists in every division in the world. Many sources of assistance are available even to the very small business. These services are referred to in this text as the outside staff. An understanding of the fields organization is necessary to make the most effective use of modern advertising.

Free lance specialists or independent small businessmen specializing in copywriting, layout, commercial art of illustration, photography, research, and display work will be found in many cities. Their services may be secured for a fee as needed. This groups form important segment of the outside staff for the small businessmen, providing services similar to those of public accountants, bookkeeping firms, etc. For certain types of advertising such a signs, handbills, and circulars and other direct mail pieces, additional agencies stand ready to help the advertiser.

One of the valuable aids in may cases consists of the various mat services. A mat is a heavy-paper impression of an advertisement or of some such element as illustration, headline, or copy from which the local printer can make the stereo type or metal plate from which the advertisement is printed.

Mats are prepared by two types of concerns, manufactures and commercial mat services. Producers often help dealers who handle their products by furnishing them with mats to use in local advertising. These are may be distributed direct to the retailer or through the wholesalers, trade association, or resident buying office. Usually they valuable to the local merchant free of charge. Since they prepared centrally for nation-wide distribution, advertising specialists may be employed and information about the products and its selling features incorporated in the advertisement much more effectively than the local advertiser could do it. Mats are flexible, permitting the local advertiser to make such changes as he needs or desires. Even when the little or none of the actual mat is used, valuable suggestions for advertising themes, copy, illustrations, and layout may be obtained from it. Trade journal and the publications of merchants service bureaus often present suggested advertisements based on centrally prepared mats that may be obtained by the retailer on request.