Online Advertising- What you should know first

{photo Pink Ponk of a vintage Sony advertisement from the 60s}

Is was as true then as it is now: one of the best ways to get word out about your shop is by advertising! 

And in this day and age, since your shop is already online, why not catch a potential customer with an online ad?  They see, they click, they're at your site. It's instantaneous and an awesome way to find fresh customers for your handmade shop.

But money is often in slim supply and advertising can be scary- it is sort of a gamble, afterall.  You have to try to gauge which advertising is going to be the best bet for your money and the best customer match for your products. And, you should know what to expect when you place an ad- which results mean you should keep going and which results mean you should try again somewhere else.  So, let's get to it!

Why advertise at all?

With all the risk involved and your hard earned money taking the brunt of it, why even advertise at all?  It all goes back to building your brand, baby.

You need to make potential customers aware of you, of what you sell, of why you're different than everyone else. 

By advertising, you help build that awareness of your brand.  You set up a relationship with customers- one that will result in sales whether it be immediately, or down the road.  The more people you can introduce your shop to, the more customers you'll potentially gain.

It's simple math, yet not so simple to know whether or not your ad is going to be effective or not.  Unfortunately, there's no way to know how your ad will perform until it's up and running, but there are some things you can do to at least sway your results in a more favorable direction.

1. Target your ad towards a specific audience

You'll be much more successful with your advertising if you can target your prime customer base directly. You need to know:

• who is your target customer?
• who is the audience of the site you're looking to advertise on?

The demographics of gender, income and interests should match up so that you're showing off your shop to your ideal audience. Are your products higher-end? Geared towards moms? Made for design-savvy 30-somethings? The easiest mistake to make is advertising your products towards people who aren't an ideal match for your goods - do some research on your potential advertising venues before you take the leap.

2. Weigh the cost vs. the traffic

When researching advertising venues you need to think about what the cost of the ad is as compared to the traffic the site receives. 

The site owner should have traffic information readily available and be more than willing to share it with you. 

You need to know how many "impressions" or views your ad can expect to receive during its run.  A $25 ad may sound like a screamin' deal, but not if it's going to be seen by 300 people. The same applies for an ad that's $250 and seems expensive, but if it's going to be seen by 200,000 people (especially if those people are your ideal audience) then it's definitely worth the price. 

Weigh the differences in your options so you can spend wisely.

3. Make sure your ad looks good

This one is for banner advertising specifically- you need to make sure your banner looks good and appeals to the customer you're after. You can make the most incredible products and have a rockin' shop, but if your banner looks fuzzy and grainy and doesn't show off your products well, it's not going to get clicked.

The goal for your banner is click-thrus, you want as much traffic as possible directed your way.  Your ad can be simple, flashy, colorful, plain, but it needs to look clear and professional, be eye-catching, and show off your shop in a great light.

When designing it, ask yourself "would I click this if I saw it running on a blog?" If so, then hopefully your target customer will too. 

If you don't know how to make a banner, hire someone who does. It's worth the extra cost to represent your company in the best light possible! (psst: I offer banner design, if you need it!)

4. Don't set unrealistic expectations

So, you're ad is up on your favorite site and what?  No sales yet?  What the heck?  I think a big mis-conception with advertising in general is that it's all about sales. 

Your main goal should really be building your brand awareness, as we talked about above. Sales are a possible and welcome side effect of the customer relationships you are working to build, but they can take time.

The customer needs to know you, trust you, understand that you're a professional business.  Most people don't buy the first time they hop over to a site- it could take seeing your ad many times over the course of months, in different places, for your brand to start sinking into their brains.
 
While you have your ad running on a site, ask yourself:

• Are you seeing a noticeable increase in traffic? 
• Are you getting more newsletter sign-ups? 
• Are more people commenting on your blog? 
• Are you seeing your items "favorited" more on etsy?
• Do you feel like your shop is getting more attention than it was before you started advertising?

All of these things are signs of a successful ad run. You want to feel some buzz, some stir, more interest in your shop.

Don't weigh the success of your ad purely on how many sales it does or does not generate within the time it's up, but on the overall interest and exposure you're receiving. I've had people place orders months after an ad run ended saying they found me on X site. The more you get out there, the more traffic you get coming through, the more sales you will get- just know the sales aren't always immediate.

When is an ad run not so successful?  When you see little to no increase in traffic, and none of the results mentioned above.  That's when you know the audience isn't connecting with your shop and maybe that particular ad venue isn't the right one for your dollar. 

Advertising is about gaining visibility and exposure. It's a surefire way to step out from the pack and get noticed. I know I would not have had a successful shop at all had it not been for all the exposure I received from the ads I placed. Unfortunately, the old adage "you gotta spend money to make money" is true and if your shop needs customers, you need to start advertising.

further reading >> Advertising: the Benefits and Drawbacks of Different Outlets