by Shaye Richardson

Created on: May 06, 2008

4 Easy Steps To A Successful Newspaper Classified Ad

On-line advertising works, so why should you consider using a newspaper classified ad? Well if you are looking for a leg up on your competition or just want to compliment your marketing plan with offline advertising, perhaps the good old newspaper is what you need.

Before you dismiss the idea of marketing your business by a newspaper classified ad, take a moment to consider these facts. Newspapers by their very design are broken into specific country, demographic and audience characteristics and as such all a laser targeted advertising campaign. Plus, using print media to market your business can reach a untapped source of sales.

The format of a classified ad has proven to be successful for long term advertising goals. The most famously successful ad on-line that uses the classic classified ad format is Goggle. Consider that Goggle makes a reported $1 Billion dollar each quarter on Ad-sense, would you still want to dismiss newspaper classified ads?

Cost to reach ratio (often referred to as C.P.M), so how much it costs you to place a campaign compared to how many people that ad will be sent to. The C.P.M on newspaper classified ads is very low compared to many on-line mediums.

If you plan on testing, and you should test your ad prior to committing to long term campaigns, negotiate an even lower cost that your initial weekly charge on renewal. Remember no matter what the initial prices quoted, all prices are negotiable and if you want to save money on your marketing budget you must be prepared to bargain for a better deal. If you never ask you will never know. In today's current financial market, interest rates are high, there are not many jobs going and less being advertised in newspaper classified ads.

How To Create A Successful Classified Ad In 4 Easy Steps
Profile and target your market
Select a newspaper specific to your target
Write powerful ad copy
Submit your ad for publication

Profiling your target market shouldn't be as hard as you think. Simply ask yourself who is going to buy my product? Does your product cater for a specific demographic or geographical location? For example you wouldn't have much luck selling French languages dictionaries in New Zealand. So you should aim to eliminate the sectors of the market that will not be interested in your products.

The same is true of other elements such as income. You will not sell many $5,000 insurance policies in a free newspaper that is distributed in a zip code with a low average income. Choosing a newspaper is as easy as taking the list of characteristics you have made and locating relevant papers that fit your profile.

If you are using Ad-sense you would already have ad copy that is converting for you. Perhaps you have classified ad copy from on-line advertising that you know works? A typical newspaper classified ad should be a headline, then three short lines of text, then your URL listing.
Submitting your newspaper classified ad is relatively simple. You will need to collect the requirements from the newspaper you have chosen. Then submit accordingly. Many newspapers will accept faxed copies of your ad and this is often the most time efficient option.

A newspaper classified ad is print media advertising. Print media can be a very powerful marketing platform for an on-line business and as such should be considered a viable alternative to on-line classified ads. Review this hot Hubpage on, How To Advertise In Newspapers With Classified Ads

http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Advertise-In-Newsp appers-With-Classified-Ads

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