One of the most important things to remember when you’re putting together an advertising strategy is that “most [people] are exposed to around 4,000 to 10,000 ads each day” (Simpson, 2017, par. 3). 

For example, if you were to drive down the street just a few miles from where you live, you’d likely be bombarded by messages from various restaurants, grocery stores, car repair shops, and so forth. 

Because so many marketing messages exist, many people have learned to ignore or despise a marketing message when they encounter it. If you own a business, this situation puts you in a difficult position. Either you do “something different from [your] competition” to attract more attention to your brand, or you let your business die (Van de Putte, 2009, p. 672). 

Basically, you’ll need to consider implementing several different tactics if you want to cut through multiple competing messages and create a standout ad campaign. In this post, we’ll discuss three tactics that you can use to make your messaging attract more attention in a crowded marketplace.

These three tactics are: 

• Considering the wants and needs of your customers
• Applying the four P’s of marketing to your messaging strategy
• Using emotional and logical appeals in your messaging 

Considering the Wants and Needs of Your Customers.

Firstly, your business should consider the wants and needs of its customers. In other words, you should assume that “consumers [will] approach a purchase decision or an advertising message with the mindset, ‘what’s in it for me?’” If customers don’t see how a product or service will benefit them, they will ignore it (Parente & Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2015, p. 14, 24; Van de Putte, 2009, p. 674).  

For example, a person who isn’t married and doesn’t have kids does not need to buy diapers or baby food. As a result, they might use their money to buy things like clothes or entertainment. Your potential customers will follow similar thinking and behavior patterns if they don’t see how your product or service benefits them. 

Therefore, as you learn to understand and adapt to your target customers’ points of view, you can create better and more personalized messages that resonate with them (Parente & Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2015, p. 19; Truong, Mccoll, & Kitchen, 2010, p. 716, 721). This strategy will increase your ability to stand out and make more sales. 

Applying the Four P’s of Marketing To Your Messaging Strategy

As a business owner, you must carefully consider how you’ll utilize the four p’s of marketing. These four p’s are as follows (Parente & Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2015, p. 7-12): 

• Product – This is any offer you put out into the world. If you want your product to stand out, you should ask yourself a few questions. Is your product or service something that people will want? Are you addressing all of your customer’s needs and concerns? How can you adapt to changes in the marketplace to stay relevant?   
• Price – How are you pricing your services? People won’t pay attention to your product if the price is too high. You may have the best offering in the world, but your business won’t be very successful if no one is willing to pay for it. If you’re more flexible on your prices and willing to adapt to marketplace changes, you might have a better chance of beating your competition. 
• Place – In many cases, the locations where you distribute your message can impact whether or not your business stands out. For example, if you were to post a billboard ad in the middle of a desert, only a few people would likely see your message. However, if you posted that same billboard ad next to a highway in a large city, your product or service would likely get ,uch more attention. 
• Promotion – How you promote your product or service can affect how people perceive your brand. If you want your message to stand out, you’ll need to create “more interesting, entertaining, and pertinent” content than what your competitors are creating. In short, “content [is] king” (Parente & Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, 2015, p. 10). Better content influences more people to become loyal to your brand. This increased loyalty will lead to more sales and more success.

Using Emotional and Logical Appeals In Your Messaging

Lastly, let’s discuss the importance of emotional and logical appeals. Because the advertising marketplace is so crowded, you should consider how you’ll use both emotional and logical appeals in your messaging. This consideration is essential for a couple of different reasons. 

First, people don’t spend money based on a product’s looks or functions. People make purchases because they want to solve problems. Those problems usually make people feel negative emotions. When people feel these negative emotions, they will want a quick solution that can make their troubles disappear.

For example, someone might buy a car because they feel stressed out about how they will get to work. Maybe buying a vehicle is the solution to helping them not get fired from their job. If you sell cars and can prove that your cars solve these problems on an emotional level, you might make more sales. 

Next, businesses should consider the importance of using logical appeals in their messaging because people often use logic to justify their purchases. An appeal to logic is a sensible-sounding reason for why the purchase is a good idea. 

For instance, one way you might use a logical appeal if you’re selling a car would be for you to emphasize how much money the customer is saving on their purchase. Maybe your dealership is doing a limited-time, special discount sale for 10% off all cars. In this case, you could appeal to the customer’s logic by telling them how much they saved on their purchase. 

In other words, as you use more emotional and logical appeals to make your customers happy, your ability to create more effective ad campaigns will increase. This increased effectiveness will occur because using emotional and logical appeals helps improve customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. 

Putting Everything Together

While these three tactics don’t provide the answers to every advertising challenge you may face in your business, they can help you create more effective messages for your brand. As you consider your customers’ needs, apply the four P’s of marketing, and use more emotional and logical appeals in your messaging, your chances of attracting attention will increase significantly. This strategy can help you get more sales and increase your chances of growing a more successful business. 

If you’re looking for help with improving your marketing or advertising messaging, please contact Pop Jots here. I’ll use copywriting to create a customized message for your brand that can increase your chances of making more sales. Set up a zoom call with me today to learn more about what I can do for you. 

References:

Parente, D. E., & Strausbaugh-Hutchinson, K. L. (2015). Advertising campaign strategy: a guide to marketing communication plans (5th ed.). South Melbourne, Victoria: Cengage Learning.

Simpson, J. (2017, August 25). Finding Brand Success in the Digital World. Forbes. Retrieved May 11, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2017/08/25/finding-brand-success-in-the-digital-world/?sh=67d4e2d3626e 

Truong, Y., Mccoll, R., & Kitchen, P. (2010). Practitioners’ perceptions of advertising strategies for digital media. International Journal of Advertising, 29(5), 709–725. doi: 10.2501/s0265048710201439. Van de Putte, B. (2009). What matters most in advertising campaigns? International Journal of Advertising, 28(4), 669–690. doi: 10.2501/s0265048709200813. 

Van de Putte, B. (2009). What matters most in advertising campaigns? International Journal of Advertising, 28(4), 669–690. doi: 10.2501/s0265048709200813.