4 Easy Steps to Succeed Using Online Advertising

Advertising online is, nowadays, the ideal, most efficient way of driving traffic to your website and/or business. It instantly extends your reach significantly and gives you greater transparency at a reduced cost in contrast to the more traditional methods of advertising (television, radio, papers etc.). Nevertheless, a successful campaign is one that is a good balance, and knowing what you’re doing exactly is key.

So what is it that makes people click on ads?

This being one of the most frequently asked questions in the digital marketing space, ought to be answered for once. All too often, people opt to advertising online without having a clue about what is it that actually makes people click on ads? Is it the flashy colours? Is it the animation? Is it the statements that push too hard?

Source: http://www.socialhowtomedia.com.au

Read on for a more comprehensive insight on what to do in order to get more customers through your online advertisements:

1. Know your customers - An advertising campaign must be directed toward your niche market. Creating generic ads that do not speak the language or grab the attention of your potential customers is a common mistake. You must always make sure you know the kind of customers you want to attract, and ensure that your ads speak to them on a personal level; for that is what convinces the customers that you are their best bet.
2. Be interactive – Nothing attracts customers more than when they are shown concern on a personal level. And so, one of the many advantages of Internet advertising is that it allows you to get instant feedback from the public on your product, marketing strategies etc. Giving your customers the chance to fill out an online feedback form can be a great way for you to analyse what the public thinks of your company AND your product. Also, you may even create Internet advertising promotions that will encourage people to provide their email addresses to sign up for contests or receiving newsletters. Then, you can use those emails to make the public aware of future products.
3. Pay attention to the colours – Yes, cliché as that may sound, the colour matters. Colours and colour combinations send different messages. The colour signals can be used to send stronger messages online. However, this part is tricky; you should use colours in the right way, at the right time, with the right audience, and for the right reason. For instance, if you are selling bouncy jump houses- where your audience is kids — you don’t want to use a black website – you’d rather go for vibrant, fun colours like orange, yellow, reds etc. While on the other hand, if you’re selling office chairs, you’d opt for the colour silver or black, or even a combination of the two. Its kind of simple if you get hang of it and are able to imagine yourself in the audience’s.
4. Call to action – This part oftentimes is the most prominent on the advertisement, and so, it is vital that your call to action has an impact on the customer. An effective call to action clearly tells the customers what they should do. They should include active words that encourage users to take an action, for example: Call, Buy, Register, Subscribe.

 Additionally, create a sense of urgency with words that can be used alongside phrases such as:

• Offer expires June 22nd!
• Order now and receive a free gift!

Furthermore, the positioning of call to action is important - Ideally it should be placed high on the page and in the central column.

Regardless of how wonderful or in-demand your products and/or services are, your business will not be successful unless your websites and pages generate enough traffic of targeted customers. And so, online advertising must be done bearing all the previously mentioned points in mind.

Good luck!

Alejandro Catalan
Current student in the Master of Marketing program at the University of Sydney Business School