A marketing campaign is a series of touches with your market to communicate a key message. The key word is “series” since it usually takes multiple touches for your audience to recognize your message and respond. Planning an advertising campaign is often a very daunting task.  The advertising world is a rough and energetic one, and there is always someone willing to take your money! The following tips will help you generate a campaign from scratch, and lead you away from some of the common pitfalls that freelancers can fall into.

Determine your business objectives:
Find out how to assess your business’s goals and objectives, then create a draft for your advertizing business plan. Your marketing plan outlined some broad sales goals for your business. You know the total market size, the strength of your competitors, and the amount of business that may be available for you to take. Sometimes businesses set goals in advertising that are too vague. You want to list specific things that you want your advertising to accomplish.

Determine your budget:
Budgeting for consistent advertising is very critical. If there is a golden rule for running an advertising campaign, it is that you have to stick to it. Sustained Advertising = Recognition = Trust = Sales. Your advertising campaign is a long-term investment that takes time to show a return. Your budget must reflect this reality. Expect to run your advertising campaign for two to four months before your phone really starts ringing. When setting your advertising campaign budget, there are two costs to consider: production costs, and media costs. Budgeting for both is critical for success.

Who are your ideal customers?
To narrow down your target market, first determine the demographics of your ideal customer. You can then match up your demographics to the right media. Deciding exactly who your target customer is the key to having a marketing strategy that will work. You need to design a “model customer” who you can target.

Keep your message SIMPLE!
The real challenge of creating your advertising is to devise a hook that will cut through the clutter that consumers are exposed to each and every day. Today, more than ever before, consumers are deluged with information — and advertising is tossed into this cauldron of information, too. The key to igniting consumer memory is keeping it simple. No matter what form of media you use for your message, be sure to explain your message in clear, easy-to-understand terms.

Determine your media:
Media planning is generally the task of finding the most appropriate media platforms for a client’s brand or product. There are a variety of advertising media from which to chose. A campaign may use one or more of the media alternatives. Once you know who you’re selling to, look for media that targets that demographic. Depending on your product or service, think community and neighborhood newspapers, high school sponsor advertising, chamber of commerce directories, etc.

Track your campaigns performance:
Try to place some kind of tracking mechanism within the concept. This could be a separate phone number or 1300 number, a tracking URL within an online ad, or a social media special. You could also give a special discount for those who notice the ad. The total amount of new business generated should be compared with the cost of the campaign to determine effectiveness, and the direction of your next campaign.