The Mistakes

1. Trying to sell everything at once

A magazine ad is such a brief opportunity that there isn’t time to sell multiple services or high-cost products (big decisions) very well. A brief moment of your customer’s attention is better suited to:

• Selling the first step first.
• Selling something simple and low cost.
• Setting up better selling opportunities for your paid services and high-cost products (like homes).

2. Weak headline

If your headline could be used for virtually any other industry or service, you know it’s too general. This is really a consequence of selling three different things in the ad. The headline ends up being a catch-all for everything you do, and it’s a missed chance to get attention with a more specific message.

What to sell first

The ad offers a range of services and products, but the simplest (and the first step) is calling the advice line. Convincing someone to use this service is a more appropriate goal for the 5-20 seconds worth of attention you’re buying. It’s a free offer that’s quick and easy to act on, and crucially it’s the first step towards a sale of any type.

A better offer

If we decide to advertise only the advice line, we can use a more specific headline like “Don’t blunder through Alzheimer’s” or “Don’t fight Alzheimer’s in the dark” and focus the whole ad on this goal instead of a small portion of it. Offering…

• A first contact point for Alzheimer’s info/advice.
• Advice on help for carers, treatment and management, and living options.
• Free call
• Open 24/7 (you can call us right this minute no matter what the time).
• Information packs available:
  • Home care services
  • Residential living options
  • “The Works” info pack with everything you need to know.

By focusing on one thing we can do a much better job of selling it.

Beyond the ad

Once a person takes the first step, we get an opportunity to:

• Get them the info or advice they need.
• Start a relationship – become their trusted source of advice.
• Set up further opportunities to help or sell:
  • The phone-call itself (if the customer is investigating a specific product).
  • Mailout of physical brochures.
  • Email requested info.
  • Phone follow-up after mailout.

It’s a common error to think that you must advertise your paid services to get a return, when in most businesses getting that first phone-call is the money-maker.

Final word

By selling the first thing first, you help the customer in an order that makes sense, and you begin to establish a relationship with the client (as a trusted source of advice).

Later on, selling something larger becomes more appropriate because:
1) You have better opportunities to sell (phone conversations, information packs, face to face consults, emails, etc).
2) You have a relationship.

It beats trying to sell a home to a perfect stranger in less than 20 seconds.

Dave