5 Newspaper Advertising Myths Revealed

What I'm about to reveal are myths that most people thinkare 'true.'

They seem set in stone yet they are deadly to theadvertiser.

I'm certain you'll be surprised. Certainly you may evendoubt what I reveal to you. But I've discovered that thesemyths must *NEVER* be followed - unless of course you likethrowing your hard earned money down the drain!

There are essentially five common 'Newspaper And MagazineAdvertising Myths'?

Before I go any further I have a proviso to what I'm aboutto reveal to you about advertising. Here it is?

Everything I talk about here has one goal: To help you make more money - substantially more, with your marketing, sales, and advertising.

If you're looking for 'pretty' advertising or advertisingthat looks good without getting you leads and orders thenyou should look elsewhere.

So when you're reading through these advertising myths andfacts, be aware that I'm only talking about newspaper andmagazine advertising that makes money - plain and simple!

So let's get started?

Advertising Myth 1: Your ad must first 'look good' before it is placed in any publication

Many people (not your prospects by the way!) judge newspaperand magazine advertising on the 'look and feel' of the ad.In fact one of the mysteries of the modern worldis having advertising awards for aesthetically appealingads. That's just plain nuts!

It doesn't matter how good your ad looks. What countsis how much money you made from the ad!

Of course I'm not saying your ad cannot look good. What I'msaying is your number one objective is to get the sale (orat least a response.

Never forsake this goal for creating a good looking ad!

Advertising Myth 2: Your company name needs to be prominent in the ad

Regardless of how familiar your company or service is toyour prospects you should always place your company name atthe bottom of the ad. Never ever put your company name atthe top of the ad.

Advertising Myth 3: You should never use a reply coupon because it looks 'unprofessional'

Many design agencies frown on response coupons because onceagain they don't look 'good.' A coupon has the ability to*double* your response instantly.

You must therefore have a very good reason not to use acoupon in your ads. (By the way I've never come up with agood enough reason - unless of course you're restricted tospace!).

Advertising Myth 4: You should use a design agency to create your ads

Like all professions there are good and bad design agencies.However only use a design agency that uses 'direct response'advertising principles.

All other design agencies will never get the results youshould expect with your newspaper and magazine advertising.

In almost every case you are better equipped to create your own advertising rather than using a design agency.

You'll save thousands of dollars and almost certainly makemore money from the advertising you create.

Advertising Myth 5: Your ad must not have too much copy (words) and have lots of white space

This is the number one mistake people make with theirnewspaper and magazine advertising.

You cannot ever hope to get a high response to youradvertising if you don't give people a reason (or severalreasons) to respond. This means that your ad needs to be*FULL* of copy.

Contrary to popular belief an ad crammed full of relevantand benefit written copy always *substantially* wins over anad without lots of copy.

So there you have it. If you want more sales and moresuccess from your newspaper and magazine ads you must stepoutside the box.

You must break from tradition. You must forget aboutcreating good looking ads. Do this and I promise yoursales and profits will soar!

JAMES C. BURCHILL is a 20-year veteran entrepreneur and information technology executive who now provides strategic marketing consulting services to a select group of clients. He is a published author, a passionate advocate of technology and the Internet, as well as an avid study of classical advertising and marketing strategies (which he uses during 'Internet alchemy' experiments.) James is an expert in information and data management, Internet marketing and online networking. A self confessed 'information and technology enthusiast', James brings a wide range of valuable skills to any venture. Of singular note is James' ability to assimilate complex subject matter and produce clean clear 'easy-to-understand' messages. James has been interviewed many times and caused quite the media buzz when a client 'double-dog-dared' him to prove you can get front page coverage for $0. The details and that 'dumb stunt' are now part of EBay legend. Currently James lives in Ontario, Canada with his wife and family, their Siamese cat and one very nervous fish. Visit http://www.JamesBurchill.com for details.