How To Take Advantage Of Free and Effective Advertising!

Everyone has what is called an *ad filter*. This is a mental construct in peoples brains that filters out visual and auditory information if it is perceived as advertising. In todays media-rich society, the average person is inundated with advertisements all around them. In response, people have developed what is known as an *ad filter* to screen out information.

In order to get noticed by consumers, you need to find a way your message through or around this ad filter. The good news is, there is a simple and effective way to do this for free! Sound ridiculous? Not at all! There forms of free advertising that are easy to get and actually work better than expensive, colorful advertisements.

What kinds of ads are we talking about? Specifically, the best kind of advertising you can get is the recognition that comes from appearing in magazines, newspapers, and the daily TV news. We are not talking about buying a huge ad opposite a news story, we mean you should be in the news story itself! Every time your business shows up in a small or big news item, you gain name recognition and word-of-mouth advertising. There is a word for this; it is called publicity!

Lets compare the value and cost of a newspaper article about your business versus buying a large, colorful print ad in that same paper. If a news item is long-running and gets a sizeable amount of space on the page, it could effectively replace a $25,000 ad! Whats more, a news item could even get front-page status; something that is usually impossible to achieve with paid advertising. The real kicker? People will actually read and pay attention to the news story, while they might not do more than glance at the expensive ad.

This kind of publicity can be far more effective at reaching potential customers because it is not filtered out by the *ad filter.* The ad filter works to automatically screen out the numerous marketing schemes that constantly inundate a consumer. But these guards are usually not up when a customer is reading a news story. This is because of their trust in the media; the business did not pay to have their names placed on the front page. They are present there because a reporter saw something interesting and newsworthy in this businesses products or actions.

So how do you break into this profitable publicity arena? How can you attract the attention of reporters and news scouts for magazines, newspapers, TV, radio, and maybe even local bloggers? Keep in mind the interests of these media agents. Usually, their main goal is to report stories that are of such interest that many people will buy their newspapers, watch their TV stations, or visit their websites. This means that to capture the interest of the media, you need to come up with something interesting, innovative, or sensational.

Lets look at a couple of examples:

Sometimes the attention-attracting events happen by chance. Perhaps you have seen a picture in your local paper of a restaurant employee saving a choking client. Cases of ordinary people performing lifesaving acts like CPR or the Heimlich Maneuver easily capture the interest of the local community and, therefore, the local media. Now, this type of situation is quite obviously far beyond your control. (And even if it WERE in your control, you would probably rather NOT have a customer choke or faint at your place of business.) But when an extraordinary occurrence does happen, make sure to maximize publicity! Make a point to call many press agents to alert them. If an employee of your store is being interviewed, why not put them in a company t-shirt?

Other kinds of noteworthy events can be carefully orchestrated by the business. Have you heard of the small hotel that had the idea of appealing to animal lovers? They decided to take in a couple dozen cats to their hotel, and offered their guests the option of choosing a room with or without a cat! This was an innovative business idea that was well received by customers. In addition, this move brought the hotel fantastic publicity because all the cats were adopted from a local animal shelter. This blend of altruism and creativity provided the small business with a huge boom in publicity and profits.

However, unless you pull a stunt that is truly outlandish, reporters and news scouts are not simply going to come to you. More likely, you will have to find a way to reach THEM. Knowing the power of their media, they will not want to give you free publicity unless there is something you can offer them in exchange. Build a network of contacts in the media, and focus on what you can provide them.

A good way to make a friend in the news business is to tip them off to something newsworthy. This may or may not have to do with your own business or product! Is there something happening in your local community that would otherwise get overlooked by the press? Find a contact at your local newspaper and give them the heads up. Make sure they know who you are. This helps your contact by giving them a good story, and puts you in the good graces of someone who has the power to help you publicity-wise.

One small tip off might not be enough to do it. Make a habit of looking for newsworthy happenings so that you will be able to develop a long-standing relationship with a friend or contact in the local media.

Now you can see how news publicity is something that is not only free and effective, but well within your control. News items make it past the *ad filter* because people know the substance of a news story will be an item worth their time and attention. This not only gets your name and product out there, but puts your potential clients in a good frame of mind to receive your information. The result? An increase in customers, sales, profits and trust!

Source: http://ezinearticles.com/?How-To-Take-Advantage-Of-Free-and-Effective-Advertising!&id=907165