time to give them a rest. In the end, advertising is a trial-and-error process. You may need to spend several years trying out various advertising options and assessing results to know the target markets and media mix that work best for you.

To gauge long-term results, go back to your original benchmark. Were you successful in attaining the goals you set up? Now look at the specific advertising vehicles you employed. WAdvertising is an ongoing process that is designed for sustainable results over time. However, when your ad contains a coupon, a special time-limited offer or other inducement to act immediately, you can get measurable results almost at once - provided your offer, timing and media selection were right and you had already established a rapport with your audience.

Remember that a single ad does not an advertising program make! Each individual advertising exposure, whatever response it generates, contributes to a residual result that will eventually show up at your bottom line: name recognition, reputation and trust. Establish a method to determine how customers found you and keep track of the results. Some companies routinely ask, "How did you hear about us?" of every new customer who phones or visits. Others have a "Referred by" box filled in on each invoice. Whatever system you use, unless you've done a coupon promotion and can simply count the number of coupons redeemed, tracking is the only way you can assess how effectively your advertising is working. Tracking tells you which ads or media bring inquiries and which bring sales - a key distinction. If you track by invoice, you can also determine how much revenue each ad dollar is producing.

Most important, tracking helps you decide how to readjust your advertising program periodically to make your budget work its hardest. You'll know when to discontinue certain media and publications and when to pump more money into others. You'll also be able to see which Yellow Pages directories and headings pull hardest for you. And you'll know when results are dropping off from previously good sources, signaling that it's time to give them a rest. In the end, advertising is a trial-and-error process. You may need to spend several years trying out various advertising options and assessing results to know the target markets and media mix that work best for you.

To gauge long-term results, go back to your original benchmark. Were you successful in attaining the goals you set up? Now look at the specific advertising vehicles you employed. Whvertising program make! Each individual advertising exposure, whatever response it generates, contributes to a residual result that will eventually show up at your bottom line: name recognition, reputation and trust. Establish a method to determine how customers found you and keep track of the results. Some companies routinely ask, "How did you hear about us?" of every new customer who phones or visits. Others have a "Referred by" box filled in on each invoice. Whatever system you use, unless you've done a coupon promotion and can simply count the number of coupons redeemed, tracking is the only way you can assess how effectively your advertising is working. Tracking tells you which ads or media bring inquiries and which bring sales - a key distinction. If you track by invoice, you can also determine how much revenue each ad dollar is producing.

Most important, tracking helps you decide how to readjust your advertising program periodically to make your budget work its hardest. You'll know when to discontinue certain media and publications and when to pump more money into others. You'll also be able to see which Yellow Pages directories and headings pull hardest for you. And you'll know when results are dropping off from previously good sources, signaling that it's time to give them a rest. In the end, advertising is a trial-and-error process. You may need to spend several years trying out various advertising options and assessing results to know the target markets and media mix that work best for you.

To gauge long-term results, go back to your original benchmark. Were you successful in attaining the goals you set up? Now look at the specific advertising vehicles you employed. Wby" box filled in on each invoice. Whatever system you use, unless you've done a coupon promotion and can simply count the number of coupons redeemed, tracking is the only way you can assess how effectively your advertising is working. Tracking tells you which ads or media bring inquiries and which bring sales - a key distinction. If you track by invoice, you can also determine how much revenue each ad dollar is producing.

Most important, tracking helps you decide how to readjust your advertising program periodically to make your budget work its hardest. You'll know when to discontinue certain media and publications and when to pump more money into others. You'll also be able to see which Yellow Pages directories and headings pull hardest for you. And you'll know when results are dropping off from previously good sources, signaling that it's time to give them a rest. In the end, advertising is a trial-and-error process. You may need to spend several years trying out various advertising options and assessing results to know the target markets and media mix that work best for you.

To gauge long-term results, go back to your original benchmark. Were you successful in attaining the goals you set up? Now look at the specific advertising vehicles you employed. W
Most important, tracking helps you decide how to readjust your advertising program periodically to make your budget work its hardest. You'll know when to discontinue certain media and publications and when to pump more money into others. You'll also be able to see which Yellow Pages directories and headings pull hardest for you. And you'll know when results are dropping off from previously good sources, signaling that it's time to give them a rest. In the end, advertising is a trial-and-error process. You may need to spend several years trying out various advertising options and assessing results to know the target markets and media mix that work best for you.

To gauge long-term results, go back to your original benchmark. Were you successful in attaining the goals you set up? Now look at the specific advertising vehicles you employed. Wtime to give them a rest. In the end, advertising is a trial-and-error process. You may need to spend several years trying out various advertising options and assessing results to know the target markets and media mix that work best for you.

To gauge long-term results, go back to your original benchmark. Were you successful in attaining the goals you set up? Now look at the specific advertising vehicles you employed. Which media were most effective in a quantifiable way - not for a specific ad but during your overall campaign - in terms of response versus cost expended? Which offers worked best? What pricing levels brought in the biggest sales? Did you see steeper upward curves during certain times of the year? Armed with this analysis, you can fine-tune your overall advertising program, and its individual components, for the next year or years. The value of advertising - as a complement to other promotional efforts - justifies it as an integral part of your marketing strategy. And yes, it does get easier as you test, refine, re-evaluate and measure over time.