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Marvelous Marketing: 4 Tips for Overcoming Adversity in an Ad Campaign

Adversity

Some people get frustrated or go overboard in their advertising campaigns due to adversity. People are always resistant to new ideas or doubtful of value. Occasionally, some big companies fail in a big way. Some negativity is part of the process. Here are a few tips to countering the adversity.

Price Resistance

Setting prices that meet the value proposition is always tricky. Consumers and partners are not going to accept prices they feel are too high for the market, nor find value in prices that are too low. However, if your pricing is based on cost and market analysis, you’re no different from your competitors.

Reducing your price to attract more buyers reduces your profitability and the prestige of your brand. You don’t want be known as a “bargain” alternative if your profit margins can’t sustain it. Before cutting prices, find ways to introduce further value into your advertising, such as free shipping, guarantees, or package deals. Pricing can be a matter of context. Show confidence in your product, and higher prices may seem justified.

Lack of Trust

Particularly in your initial campaigns, you’re company will be one buyers aren’t comfortable with. It’s important from the outset to start building trust through your advertising. How your brand is perceived will be a big part of gaining consumer confidence. Hard sales tactics from faceless, generic companies don’t go over well. A lack of transparency, unrealistic promises, and little or poor customer service will figure into a consumer’s judgement. What’s more, a bad first impression will probably keep them from coming back.

Focus on building trust. Make branding a part of your advertising by sharing you company’s vision and leadership. Provide credentials such as industry awards and certificates, and mention strengths like research, quality control, and technology. Provide glowing customer testimonials and referrals from influencers such as well-known blogs and review sites. It’s important to build trust first and sales second.

Low or No Response

You may have brainstormed to come up with a catchy slogan and great graphics only to find that audience response is disappointing. Before you spend time and money on your advertising, do the research to ensure that you understand who your customers are and where they can be found. Then you find out what advertising clicks with them.

If the response is still less than enthusiastic, don’t trash all your hard work, but find ways to make it more exciting. Experiment with unique images and graphics. Add an incentive, such as a giveaway or contest. You might introduce a mascot or sexy spokesperson if those fit your brand and product. Start weaving a storyline into your ads. Remember that the real point of advertising is not merely to sell, but to get people’s attention and keep it.

Internal Resistance

You are very likely to find doubt, criticism, and active resistance within your own company. This brings on feelings of doubt or resentment that can lead to hesitations, delays, and disruptive internal politics. If you believe in your ideas, you should back them fully and from the start of campaign planning.

Begin by gathering feedback, and following through to correct any valid critiques. Make up a list of possible arguments from nay-sayers and prepare answers. Be prepared to explain any rationale behind your ideas and try to come up with some data to support them. But state your case in terms of the larger picture of company branding and profitability, not the minutiae of personal tastes. If you’ve done the work and prepared your case, proudly take ownership and responsibility for it.

Adversity can be good, as long as you learn from it and find ways to make it work like during the supposed ACN scam. Remember that even your very first ad campaign is marketing your brand as well as your product or service, and that’s a reward in itself.

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