by Terra L. Fletcher

Created on: May 13, 2010

How to Improve Your Advertising Response Rates

Call to Action

You cannot assume that your audience is going to know what you want them to do.  Regardless if it is a television ad, radio ad, direct mail marketing piece, or billboard- you have to include an effective call to action.  Tell them what to do.  Tell your viewers, listeners, or readers to call now, visit online, or stop in the store.

Why Your Company?

What makes your company so special?  A strong differentiation strategy is key to a successful business.  In order to achieve immediate response: buyers need to know and trust the companies, like the product, believe the urgency-building story, and find the premium exciting and desirable.

Limited Availability

If your offer, the premium, or discount is limited in availability, let your potential customers know.  Tell them how few are in stock or when the discounted prices will end.

Premium

As a marketing consultant, I often suggest to my clients that they consider use of premiums over discounts or rebates.  In the mind of consumers, premiums increase the value of what they are receiving rather than implying the product is inferior, originally priced too high, or prices change regularly.

Deadlines

Deadlines are basic and common, but they can build urgency, especially if combined with other tactics.  Deadlines work well for small businesses doing “cold” prospecting with local consumers.  Mailing a few letters at a time works well for building a steady flow of customers.  For extra impact, consider handwriting the deadline.

Multiple Premiums

Department stores often make offers along the lines of, “$10 off if you spend $50, $25 off if you spend $100, or $60 off if you spend $200.”  Notice that this is the equivalent of saving 20, 25, and 30%, but this way the customer feels as if they are getting money back, not getting a discount. 

More traditionally a multiple premium offer would consist of more (or better) gifts with greater purchase prices or volumes.

Discounts for Fast Response

This is an effective motivator for consumers to respond quickly.  A classic example is ticket prices.  Those that buy earliest get a discount.  Those that buy at the door pay more.  This works well with soon-to-be released products or events of any kind.  An added benefit is a better guesstimate of attendance.

Sweepstakes and Contests

You can’t win if you don’t enter!  Contests have deadlines which add urgency and increase response.  Hosting a sweepstakes may seem costly, but they usually pay for themselves with high response rates and contact information.  You could also swap prizes if you teamed up with a complementary and noncompeting business.

Ease of Responding

Tell your audience what you want them to do and make it easy.  Toll-free phone numbers, pre-addressed response envelopes, websites, and email addresses give interested consumers easy options to reply.  Having easy to remember phone numbers and website domains increase response further. 

Go to phonespell.org to see what your phone number spells.

Read the book “The Ultimate Sales Letter” by Dan S. Kennedy for more suggestions to improve your response rates.

Learn more about this author, Terra L. Fletcher.
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