A friend of mine works construction.
I got into a conversation with the owner of the company, and he asked me what I do for a living.
I always have a different answer to this question (because people don’t usually “get” what it is I do), but this time I said “I write advertisements”…
And the guy started laughing at me!
I asked him what was so funny and he told me that “advertising doesn’t work”.
I tried my best to educate him a little bit… That yeah, if you have a poor TV commercial, a useless website that no one sees, or well, just plain BAD advertising – no matter the medium – it’s not going to work.
But he wasn’t buying it…
He ran his business his way, and he didn’t need advertising to do it. I’m not in the “convincing” game, so I just agreed to disagree with him.
This guy has every good reason to have this “scarcity” mindset when it comes to advertising though.
He probably paid $1,500+ for a website that no one ever sees, and even if people did see it, it does absolutely nothing to generate leads or brand his business.
He’s probably dumped thousands of dollars into an agency, who promised to “brand” his company with the same boring commercials and newspaper ads as the competition…
So in a way, this guy was right.
He just fell into the trap of hiring companies who focus on “branding” and being “creative”, companies who didn’t focus on bringing new business to his front door.
He manages to do pretty well for a small roofing company without advertising… His business is all word of mouth. But he could be doing A LOT better…
When I say he’s right, it’s because MOST advertising doesn’t work.
If you dump money into a poor TV commercial, a direct mail piece that’s poorly written or misses the target market, an ad in the paper that has no call to action and gets lost in the classifieds – He’s absolutely right, it doesn’t work.
This is true online and offline.
It’s not easy to get right. There are so many moving parts to factor in that without a lot of trial and error (experience) it’s nearly IMPOSSIBLE to figure this stuff out for yourself.
And that’s why online you hear people saying “Adwords doesn’t work” or “my niche doesn’t like long sales letters”…
Copywriting and marketing is a lot like sex…
Everyone thinks they’re great at it but most people have no idea what they’re doing.
Here’s the big take away from this whole thing…
Advertising DOES work. And if it’s not working for you, it’s not because advertising “doesn’t” work, it’s because chances are you’re doing it wrong.
Take a step back and look at where you’re going wrong…
It could be one of hundreds of different factors, from your product positioning to targeting the wrong market – Or even creating a product that no one wants to buy.
It could be your keywords, it could be your copy, it could be your offer or your price.
Marketing is ALWAYS one giant experiment.
The only “edge” that experience gives you is a better “feel” for what’s going to work and what’s not.
You’re going to get it wrong. If you’re inexperienced you’re going to get it wrong most of the time. But when you get it RIGHT… LOOKOUT! The results can be INSANELY profitable.
Most ads don’t convert.
Most traffic sources don’t convert.
The key is anticipating this, and always trying and testing new things.
It’s all about finding that message to market match that DOES convert.
And you CAN find it. Any business can.
Sometimes you just have to dig a little bit deeper for that “big idea” that’s going to bring new customers into your funnel.
That’s all for today.
Something new tomorrow.
Take care,
-Scott Murdaugh
P.S. What would you say to a business owner who flat out truly believes that “advertising doesn’t work”?
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Scott,
I would tell him something similar to what you said, that his ads didn’t work. Then of course I would follow that up with why some ads do work, etc. But I wouldn’t waste too much time with someone who makes blanket statements like that.
I also wouldn’t waste time trying to explain why having that kind of mindset is a set-up for self-fulfilling prophecies. But then that gets into all kinds of other scary territory.
Ken
Ken, I agree.
As someone who spends the majority of my time writing ads, it makes absolutely zero sense for me to try to convince someone why they should test new advertising…
Especially when there are plenty of businesses who KNOW they need good advertising.
When they know they need it, and I simply have to reassure them that I can deliver the goods, there’s no “selling” involved.
That mindset does bug me, but it’s not my job to convince him otherwise.
Thanks for chiming in!
Hi Scott. I do agree that advertising DOES work. However a different form than is traditionally perceived.
It is not the medium, but the message that is effective. The 5-7 touch point thing and showing incredible value.
However, I believe the barrier is cost. Businesses are tired of shelling out thousands (or hundreds for Mom & Pop) for ineffective stuff.
I am in that boat. Just starting out and know that I need a direct mail campaign. Was quoted the other day for $1,000 for three letters and then someone else said $97.
And another, $5,000 for one letter.
Phew, it becomes a credibility issue. In my financial coaching, I tell them that if I cannot help them then I do not deserve their money.
To the question, “What would you say to a business owner who flat out truly believes that “advertising doesn’t work”?”, I would answer,
“Watch and I will show you.” And then do up something for him with no up front cost with the condition of a piece of the action or a, “When it works, you buy my full blown service.”
Dan Kennedy is great in theory but making it work is hard. I recently paid somone $2k who said I would have clients inside three months. He was not a copywriter but told me what to write as he said his method “streamed” clients into him.
Nothing.
I cannot give that kind of money level until I can generate the revenue to pay for it again.
Thought I would give you a perspective from a prospective client
.
David
So true… Yet so much easier for direct marketers to compete! Although it’s mind-boggling how many business owners DON’T GET IT. And they will die arguing with you, convinced that their business is uniqie in a way that laws of Universe and psychology don’t apply to it. They also feel very proud of themselves that they still survive.. If only they knew what was possible
Well, to whom his own. Great post, thanks! Gave me few fresh ideas for my B2B landing pages by the way!
Hi Scott,
This rang true for me, because I’ve worked in offline advertising sales and have the face to face encounter you speak of on many occasions (practically every other call)
Your roofing example was interesting, because I’m working with a roofing company myself right now. The funny thing is, all the other roofing companies that turned me down said the same thing your guy said to you.
I agree, advertising does work… when done right.
Saying it doesn’t work is like saying maths doesn’t work just because you don’t know how to do multiplication or can’t recite the times table backward.
The problem I find specifically with roofing companies, is that it’s largely a REACTIVE market.
For example, you won’t get many roofers pulling in clients from a newspaper ad, because what kind of guy with a hole in his roof is thumbing through his local newspaper before calling Yellow Pages?
Point is, the source/location of the ads – like you mentioned – is a vital part of the process, not just the ad copy or the offer itself.
I try to avoid wasting my time trying to convince people to bandage their wounds and give it another shot… because once someone has been hurt and made their minds up (and publically announced their opinion) then by the very laws of persuasion, they will deny any logic or reason which might contradict their original opinion or belief on the matter.
Screw that. Give me the guys who are breaking even or slightly losing money with their ads, any day of the week.
@David – Yeah, it can be a struggle when you’re starting out. And a common pitfall is that yeah, you don’t have $5k or maybe even $1k for a direct mail piece. So a lot of business owners will think “well, it’s just mail”, go with the $97 guy, waste a few hundred dollars mailing without a response and then think “well, direct mail just doesn’t work for us”…
It’s good that you’re smart enough to know that. And I’m not surprised by the quotes across the board…
Your best bet may be to grab some books and try to do it yourself. Or go with one of the more moderate quotes but make sure you do your homework first.
Chances are the $97 guy is going to cost you $97. The more expensive guys (if you do your homework) will definitely cost more upfront but will actually give you a positive ROI.
Good answer too! “Look and I will show you”….
I do that pretty frequently when landing new clients. But I had zero interest in working with this guy, I just happened to be talking to my friend, the subject only came up because he asked, and after a little explaining I decided it was best to end the conversation.
@Nikolai – There’s so many business owners like that it’s hilarious. One of my best friends owns a landscaping company. I’ve talked with him extensively about it.
When I say “Do you have all of the business you can handle” he says “No, but I’m not going to waste my money advertising”…
This is a guy who’d fight to the death with me if I asked him to but when I start talking about anything marketing related his eyes just glaze over… Oh well. (And no, I’m not trying to sell one of my best friends on hiring me, just giving him ideas to test out but he refuses to listen).
@Nick – Yeah, I’d agree roofing is “reactive”, and when someone needs their help they NEED their help. I’d venture to guess whoever he has advertised with in the past didn’t know that. And understanding that is critical.
I also agree about wasting time with people who just aren’t open to ideas. If someone hates advertising they aren’t going to be hiring me anyway. It’s a lot easier to find people who realize they just need good advertising and showing them you can deliver.
I appreciate the comments guys.