How can you design
and implement ads for social media using the principals of good design?
The best way for me to use social media is through the pull
model. A simple before and after image would probably the most effective way to
promote my flooring service. In an add, I could ask in a question form “does
this house look like yours?” Click here to see the transformation. That would resonate
with many potential clients who are tired of looking at old floor coverings.
Using Banner Ads
I think banner ads will bring in (expensive) short term
income and generate little interest toward the brand, but in the long run if
you don’t have content to show and subscribe to you might as well stand out on
a street corner and hold a sign.
Twitter Advertising
Today I figured out that I could use Twitter to post small,
very--very short term wood flooring quantities and colors online to my
contractor friends that are really marked down below distributor cost.
What is my game plan?
My goal is to jump start my social media marketing plan by
·
calling between 250-300 businesses locally
·
following up with Constant Contact (emails)
·
provide social media tips, material blow outs,
and our services to subscribers
·
drive local traffic to our website
·
serve clients
I’m not a big proponent of paid advertising, but like myself
and many of my colleges we have become too dependent on third party review
based companies for work. For example, my
friend Steve is 95% dependent on
Angie’s List for his work today. In my opinion, that can be dangerous to a
business if the relationship ever changed or a client’s bad review prevented
him from serving good future clients.
Explain the different
kinds of FaceBook advertising is available
App ad- It’s an ad for an application
Domain ad-This ad is typically placed on the right side of
the page, and takes you out of FaceBook and onto another site like a blog.
Event ad- The is for events Facebook members can join and is
located on the upper right hand side of the page.
Mobile app ad-This takes you to the Apple store or Google
plus for news feeds.
Page like ad-This is so you can directly Like the ad.
Page post ads-This ad can be text, video or a still image. These
ads can be liked, commented or shared.
Also, which ones you
might try for your business Be sure
to include your reasoning behind your choice, timing and budget you feel would
have the most impact and generate the best results.
The advertising I do with Facebook is to notify my followers
that I've upload blog content and should follow the link back to me. I’m just
not interested in allocating any revenue towards an ad at this time.
Make screen shots of
your ads and include them into your blog post.
Before After
Before After
A simple way to illustrate exactly what we do is for potential clients to imagine a dated 1990's kitchen: Tile counter tops, natural oak cabinets (oak wood flooring), white appliances and flat white walls. Now dream with me and picture a modern kitchen with solid granite counter tops, med brown stained cabinets (stained oak wood flooring) and stainless steel appliances and relaxing mint chocolate walls.
Explain why you think they would be effective.
From a marketing perspective, our goal (for this project) was to provide the seller with a justifiable asking price on a budget of 25K. The property was shown once on a weekend to a caravan of Realtors and the property closed 40 days later to a couple who bid above asking. So yes, I believe in theory that this ad can help sum up the potential of what we have to offer.
Create several sample ads following the specific requirements of FaceBook, Twitter or other social media platform you want to utilize
From a marketing perspective, our goal (for this project) was to provide the seller with a justifiable asking price on a budget of 25K. The property was shown once on a weekend to a caravan of Realtors and the property closed 40 days later to a couple who bid above asking. So yes, I believe in theory that this ad can help sum up the potential of what we have to offer.
Create several sample ads following the specific requirements of FaceBook, Twitter or other social media platform you want to utilize
I agree banner ads could be quite expensive for very little return. Before and after posts are very useful in any type of construction, people like to see what your company can do for them. Your game plan sounds very complete to me, calling then following up with an email and drawing them to your site.
ReplyDeleteThank you Bobbi for commenting on my blog post. I appreciate the feed back,
ReplyDeleteEric Bateman
Hi Eric.
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting on my blog to let me know you have submitted work. Your blog is incredibly thorough. The pictures you posted are a great way to add visual content. Like the above comment reads, banner ads are costly but mostly an annoyance for so many consumers. Great post!
Michelle Ramskill
I appreciate your comment on my post. Hopefully we can encourage others (in this class and beyond) to contribute to the conversation. Accountability to each other is more powerful than just grade points. Promoting your brand in real life is not going to happen on its own--it's up to you, the individual.
Delete(preachy), Eric.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteEric,
ReplyDeleteWhat an excellent post. You are always very thorough with your contributions. I agree with your use of before and after photos. I think they work in many arenas and are very effective for making a point and for making an emotional connection with a potential client. For example, when I saw your before and after I imagine how much better my kitchen could look with a few upgrades (if only it was in the budget)!! All of a sudden, something that was not needed is now desired (thanks a lot!).
Great job.
Jill
Oh Jill,
ReplyDeleteYou know that we will always be available for you when your ready to move forward with that kitchen re do! Thank you again for another supporting post.
Eric
Nice post! I love the idea of the before and after pictures, but for many adds the pictures would be tiny. Perhaps you could do a splitscreen with half the picture old and half updated?
ReplyDeleteHi Stephanie,
ReplyDeleteYour're absolutely right. My thoughts were to display the before and click to discover the after image thus viewing the transformation. What do you think?
Thank you,
Eric
Hi Eric,
ReplyDeleteI also like the before/after idea of advertising. People are very visual and it has the "wow" factor when you see it (which I just had looking at the transformation of the kitchen!). I would totally use it as well, I think the best social media (at least for me and for the before/after pictures) would be Instagram. In the profile sectio you can have your brief intro along with your website where potential clients can go to. Since people are by nature (and nurture) curious they would check it out. Same as you, I am not too thrilled about paid advertising but tims are changing and the gap between clients and businesses is closing so we gotta stay on top. I think you are doing just that. Thanks for sharing. Lukas
Thank you Lukas for updating your comments. Instagram is an awesome platform for pictures and groups. I believe one of the best ways to begin getting noticed organically online are through picture-groups. I didn't catch it in the text, but I heard it in a REEL SEO summit by one of the top video platform creators.(An A-ha moment).
ReplyDeleteThank you again,
Eric
Hi Eric,
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of having a before and after picture for your ad. I think having a visual really grabs attention. I would add joining a local chamber of commerce or networking group to your game plan. Those have worked out great for me, and i think you are more likely to find a client that understands the value of what you do instead of haggling you about price.
Hi Travis,
DeleteI appreciate your insight into successful marketing with in the community. The review based company Angie's List however will be my first start to gaining a boost in brand recognition. The goal is to utilize their data base as a member and reach out to specific businesses (B2B). The Chamber is probably #3 on my list to do, only because it is much more broad in membership.
As always--thanks,
Eric
I think the before and after photos are great. People always love visuals and this will be an immediate draw to get new customers.
ReplyDeleteHi Lisa,
DeleteI appreciate your comments on my web-log. Could you elaborate a little more if that works for you?
Thank you,
Eric