Does a BIGGER ad mean MORE business? Advertising feedback

[MINKUS]

Hi all

I thought i would give you my feedback from my advertising....ALONG with a question i need to ask you guys:green:

WHen i first started out, i didnt really take it that seriously and just did family and friends - didnt really have a 'regular client base'.

I was approached by Yellow Pages who offered me a corking deal (i thought so anyway !) it was buy an ad in the newly formed Nail technicians section and they would give me another ad for FREE in the beauty department(which was absolutely Flooded!) as i also do beauty.

I never got ONE phone call from the beaty ad, but i steadly built up a client base with my ad in the Nail Technician section.

I tried post office windows, leaflet drops, local village papers....and got ZIP /nowt/nil/nada from it.

This year i was tempted to do an ad with yell.com.....another unsucessful bit of advertising:cry:

So for me....Yellow pages gets the thumbs up:green: i did get a price on a colour slightly larger ad last year which was ASTRONOMICAL.

Here's where the question comes in Does a bigger ad....FULL COLOUR or spot colour equate to more business?

 

[EllaX]

not necessarily - i think its the impact your ad has, and the wording/design that attracts people.
yeah i notice big ads but if the design / wording is pants i go on and look at the more colourful standy out/eye catching ads.

i had a gardener wanting to advertise - he wanted a pink ad? im like a pink ad for a gardener (only a small ad it was too) but my god - on the gardening page with all the other 'green' ads it stuck out like a sore thumb and he got tons of calls from it HTH xx

 

[MINKUS]

not necessarily - i think its the impact your ad has, and the wording/design that attracts people.
yeah i notice big ads but if the design / wording is pants i go on and look at the more colourful standy out ads.

i had a gardener wanting to advertise - he wanted a pink ad? im like a pink ad for a gardner (only a small ad it was too) but my god - on the gardening page with all the other 'green' ads it stuck out like a sore thumb and he got tons of calls from it HTH xx

wow ! what a good idea !!

 

[Sassy Hassy]

I always used to have a colour ad, right from the start. Your ad is your shop front and so the more profesional you make your ad look the better first impression you are giving someone. As for size I would say yes and no! I stuck with the same size - a display ad with pictures for 2 or 3 years and got a good response from it. I then decided to go double the size one year just to see if it made a difference and nope, if anything I got less, but then the market has got more and mre competitive each year too so this may have an effect.

My advice would be is don't spend more than the value of one or two new customer a month (as invalue of new sets), but yes defo go colour if you can and always have a display ad with a picture. If you're not sure then take a look at the hair section and choose which salons would get your call - the size of the ad, the picture, the text etc ... usually it's a combination of picture / colour / Headliner to grab your attention / the fact that they do what you are looking for ... and their location is convenient to you (that's why i like the Thomson Local and got just as much business off them as YP)

Also I think having a name at the fron of the alphabet helps - I definitely noticed a big difference when i changed to Buff!

But it's funny too isn't it because I always did well with yell.com!

 

[adelekeegan1]

Haven't tried yellow pages as when I had an interior design/soft furnishing business we got nothing from it. I have just started with the local paper and freebee and I have been inundated with enquiries which have led to work already. Plenty of repeat work too.

I'm currently using lineage in the classifieds and will continue with this for a while I think.

 

[Sassy Hassy]

Haven't tried yellow pages as when I had an interior design/soft furnishing business we got nothing from it. I have just started with the local paper and freebee and I have been inundated with enquiries which have led to work already. Plenty of repeat work too.

I'm currently using lineage in the classifieds and will continue with this for a while I think.

have to say when I have advertised in the paper it's always been lineage in the classifieds at the back that have worked best. Every time I did a display ad in the main paper in something lihe the women's section i got zilch! Well I think I got one booking and she didn't blinking well show up!!!

 

[Chameleon]

I think the colour isnt as important as the wording is.Having your namr near the front can help.
I will be having my first coulour ad in the yellow pages this year,but the yellow pages gets a thumbs up from me,as its generated alot of skincare clentele,and has payed off,and that ad was just black and white.
I think wording is so important and gets across what your speciality is and ao forth.
Yell com,i would have to say wouldnt be an option,i suppose im a yellow pages girl.
I have to say that leaflet dropping can be successful,if you have the sheer hard work and dedication to do it.
Richard and i spent EVERY sunday leaflet droping ourselves and i got quite a lot of clients from that.

 

[Vetty]

I've been full colour in YP from day 1, the forst year they give you a 'new comany discount' - it almost halves the true cost tbh! I'm colour in Nail Technicians and black and white in Beauty Consultants as I don't do beauty I'm only there to catch the people who don't look under Nail Tech!

My ad is now cross column which makes it stand out, and for me bigger has been better, but it does cost me loads...... As V Nails I am the last ad, and tbh without blowing my own trumpet, one of the most professional looking. I get plenty of comment that my ad looks like so much more than just me in my car, lmao!

I think colour and catching someone's eye is more important than size......

Anyway, hth's