Guide 12 min read
1. Understanding advertising channels
When creating your advertising campaign, you must consider which channels to use, for example, online display ads, local neighbourhood circulars, social platforms, radio, etc. The channels you select will depend on a number of factors, including:
● your budget
● your specific advertising goals
● where in the ‘consumer buying process’ you need to target your audience
● and where you can most effectively reach your target audience.
It’s important to consider a number of different advertising channels, to determine where you should run your ads to achieve the best results.
It is easier to plan channel activity once you understand the basics of advertising.
2. Local advertising
Advertising locally can benefit any business which has a target audience concentrated within specific geographic or local areas. This is often the case for businesses with physical premises (such as salons, shops, cafes, garages, restaurants and bars, etc) or if you offer a service to customers within a specific location (such as trade businesses, cake designers, dog walkers, etc). Local ads can be an excellent way of raising awareness among your local audience, building your brand, generating demand and gaining new customers.
Examples of local advertising include:
● Leaflet drops such as flyers, menus and brochures, distributed locally by hand, via post, or as inserts in local magazines.
● Ads in local businesses such as posters on supermarket boards, in shop windows and local leisure centres.
● Local outdoor advertising such as displaying large format ads or posters advertising your business on billboards at railway stations, bus stops, buses, taxis or roundabout islands.
● Local search ads on Google Maps to help users find you when they are searching for your product or service within your local area in Google.
● Signage outside or near your business premises, including your premises sign, sandwich boards, or direction arrows, provided you have the required permissions from your landlord, your local council or landowner.
● Vehicle ads with magnetic or stick-on ads or wraps for your own car and any business vehicles including your contact details, logo and short descriptor.
● Local press ads in small neighbourhood circulars, regional newspapers, or local magazines and directories.
Budget
You could decide to design your own local advertising on tools such as Canva, which means it can be a cost effective option. However you will need to pay print costs and any postage, plus any costs to place your ads or rent advertising space.
Considerations and top tips
Ensure you have well-designed ads which stand out, and contain your address or contact details, your logo and any key persuasive messaging. They should also have a call to action making it clear what people should do next such as ‘call now’, or ‘drop in’. Ensure you have permission to use any elements in your design, such as stock images, etc.
3. Social media advertising
Social media advertising is where you pay to place ads or promote posts on social media platforms. If you need to reach a wide audience, social media advertising can be a great tool, particularly for lifestyle and aspirational businesses, for example in fashion, beauty, food, homeware, entertainment, travel, hospitality, online courses.
Social media advertising can be useful if you:
● want to reach a wider audience
● have an active presence on social media e.g. on platforms such as Instagram, Facebook or TikTok, you will gain wider reach through paid social on those platforms
● want to target a specific demographic (e.g. women, aged 30-45 who have an interest in interiors) as social ads can be highly targeted to specific user demographics, locations and interests
● your product or service ‘fits’ with a particular platform (e.g if you sell a lifestyle product you may fit well on Instagram and Pinterest, or if you offer professional B2B services you may fit on LinkedIn)
Budget
You can control how much you want to spend as you set the budgets for each ad, although the greater your budget the more people you’ll be able to reach. You can create and run the ads yourself on each platform. You may wish to work with an expert to set up and run your ads if you feel you would get better results (which would justify the additional cost of professional input) or you don’t have the time to research and run your ads yourself.
Considerations and top tips
Ensure you set up your ads carefully to precisely target your desired audience. Your ads need to be visually appealing, contain your most persuasive messaging and have a strong call to action on what users should do next. Social ads need to be actively managed and optimised to keep spend under control and to improve results. Keep an eye on the platform’s stats to see how the ads are performing.
For more information on social advertising see our guide.
4. Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising
With PPC, you pay to appear in the search engine results for specific search terms. It’s called Pay Per Click as you only pay when a user clicks on one of your ads and it can be an excellent way of targeting and attracting new customers if you sell your products or services online, or if your customers ‘research’ your products or services by searching online. The largest PPC platform is Google Ads.
PPC can be particularly useful if:
● you want to drive sales of your product or service, because PPC can help drive users to your site who are actively searching for terms that indicate they are ready to purchase i.e. when they are researching products (e.g. ‘best waterproof sock brands’) or when they are searching to buy (e.g. ‘buy waterproof socks’)
● you need to quickly drive more traffic through to your website or online shop e.g to boost sales, clear stock or promote an event, because in contrast with the time needed to build search engine rankings, PPC can start driving traffic as soon as your ads are live
● you want to target a certain geographic area as you can target your ads to help them only appear to users within a geographic area that you select.
Budget
Your PPC ad spend can be as large or as little as you want, as you set the budgets, although with more budget you’ll reach more people. You can also set up your campaigns and create the ads yourself. You may wish to work with an expert to set up and run your accounts if you don’t have the time to research and run your ads yourself and if you feel you would get better results to justify the additional cost.
Considerations and top tips
While PPC is ideal for helping to convert customers ready or close to making a purchase, it is not the most effective channel for generating demand or raising awareness. With PPC you can only appear for the terms that people are searching for - therefore if you have a new innovative product that people don’t know about yet, there won’t be any search volume to trigger your ads.
To get the most from PPC, ensure that you do keyword research (buy using keyword research tools such as the Google Ads keyword planner) and target the most relevant terms used by your target audience when searching for your type of product or service. Keep an eye on your budget to control spend, regularly review results to make sure that your ads are working, and make changes to your keyword or ad strategy where necessary.
For more information, watch our video tutorial.
5. Online display advertising
With display advertising you pay to ‘display’ your ads on other websites or online platforms (such as news sites and YouTube). Examples of display ads are the prominent adverts that you see on many websites, such as large video or image banner ads, or the video ads that run on YouTube channels, etc. Running display ads can be an effective way of raising awareness of your business and reaching a wide audience - especially if you have a large, disparate, or national audience. You can run display ads through platforms such as Google Ads, or you can work with specialist media buying agencies.
Display ads can be particularly useful if you:
● want to raise awareness, as display can be a good medium for reaching a wide audience and building and maintaining brand awareness
● need to build demand, for example, if you have an innovative product or service that your customers are not actively searching for, display can be an effective way to introduce people to your product and build demand
● want to target users before they have made up their mind to buy, because unlike PPC, display ads let you target new customers further back in their decision process, before they are actively searching for your product or service.
Budget
Budget required for your display ads varies and is dependent on the level of reach you want and the scale of sites targeted. You could run ads for a relatively modest budget using Google Display Ads for ads you’ve created yourself, potentially in design tools like Canva. But if you’re running a large scale campaign targeting a wide and national audience then your ad spend will be much higher.
You may wish to work with a designer and media buyer for your media space, so you would need to factor in these additional costs.
Considerations and top tips
Display ads reach wide audiences, however they are a mass tool - they are often ignored and some people have ad blockers in place. Be realistic in which metrics to use for assessing the results of your display ads. Look at trends in your traffic and sales before and after any campaign, rather than expecting huge volumes of traffic or sales directly from the ads, as they can often have low click-through rates.
Ensure that your creative is visually attention grabbing and contains your key message - display ads are a visual medium and need to attract attention. Also be sure to keep an eye on costs and your results - set a budget and regularly review their performance and optimise results. Ensure you have permission to use any elements in your design, such as stock images, etc.
6. Press ads
If you know that your audience read specific newspapers, magazines or trade publications, you could run ‘press ads’ in printed press and their related online platforms, or run ‘advertorial’ sponsored content. They can be a great way to raise awareness and generate demand as they help you reach a wide audience. There are a few types of press publications to consider.
Local press
We have already covered local press ads (like neighbourhood circulars and small regional newspapers), which can work well to raise awareness of your business among a local audience and help drive footfall and enquiries. They are often considerably cheaper than national advertising and more targeted.
Trade and technical press
If your business sells to other businesses, placing adverts in relevant trade publications or creating advertorial sponsored articles can be a useful way of gaining awareness, enquiries, trade partnerships and even potential investors. Consider how to ensure the messaging of your ad is tailored to key decision makers within your target businesses.
Specific interest magazines
If your product or service is specific to a niche interest or hobby (such as gardening, cooking, crafts, etc), you could consider taking ads or advertorial content to push your product in niche interest magazines. This can be a useful way of reaching your target audience but be aware that you could be sharing space with your competitors. Ensure that your ad stands out and that your messaging pushes the benefits of using you.
National press
Placing ads in national newspapers or magazines can be costly but if you need to get in front of a large national audience fast to raise awareness, build your brand or create demand, it could be worth considering. If you want to go this route, ensure that your selected titles are a close match with your audience and that you have well-designed ads that will stand out and make a big impression on your audience. You should get guidance on readership and audience figures from the titles or your agency before deciding to advertise nationally.
Budget
The budget required for print ads varies hugely, with a relatively modest budget for self-designed ads in small circulars or neighbourhood papers, to much larger design and media costs for national newspapers.
You may wish to work with specialist designers and media buyers if your ads are reaching a wider or national audience, if you need to look polished and professional, or you have slick competition. These services would incur a fee and additional costs.
Tips on positioning
If possible and budget permits, ensure any print advertisement is in the best possible position. Remember that:
● right-hand pages, especially early right hand pages (those in the early part of the publication), catch the reader's eye the most
● context is important, an advertisement selling greenhouses, for example, should be on a page devoted to gardening
● the most effective place for your newspaper advertisement is either page one or three - preferably in the bottom right-hand corner
● if your advertisement has a coupon - for readers to cut out and use - make sure it is placed at the edge of the page.
It can be difficult to track how well print ads have performed. Some ideas to help track their performance include:
● adding a special phone number (so you know any enquiries are from that ad). You can do this yourself or through specialist organisations that create tracking phone numbers
● add a QR code to the ad which lands on a separate landing page on your site or contains a tracking string
● use a separate coupon code or offer
● ask new customers or those making enquiries where they heard about you.
7. Public relations (PR)
Although technically not advertising, PR can also be an effective way of raising awareness of your business, generating interest, and managing your reputation. PR is the process of working with the media to gain press coverage for your product/service, your business, or specific campaigns or events. PR is often referred to as ‘earned’ media, as you can’t buy placement as you would with advertising, but you must ‘earn’ it through building strong relationships with the media or outlets and sharing engaging content.
PR can be particularly useful if you:
● want to increase your reach and raise awareness with a wider audience, as press coverage reaches people not yet actively searching for you
● want to boost your credibility and build trust, as ‘earned’ press coverage can help customers trust your product and messaging more, as usually only credible and interesting businesses attract coverage
● need to build authority by positioning yourself as an expert or thought-leader in your sector, perhaps by sharing genuinely useful insight into your industry or even comissioning research to generate interesting insight and stats which again builds trust and boosts recognition
● need to manage your reputation, as you can share a more human side to your business, or give more context or information about why you do what you do within longer-form content.
Budget
You can run your PR activity yourself, particularly if you have existing contacts with journalists or media outlets. However, it is often advisable to work with a PR professional if you are looking to run a larger scale campaign, as they have existing contacts in the media and online publications, and could help you gain more coverage and reach your target audience. Working with a PR professional will incur a fee.
Considerations and top tips
There are various techniques that can help small businesses generate coverage.
● Building relationships with journalists or platforms that have an interest in your sector or type of business is an essential step in getting your content and your business out there. You can find and reach out to journalists online on platforms like Threads and X, however you have to have something compelling to share to gain cut-through. It is often more effective to work with a PR agency who already has these contacts and can guide your strategy.
● Entering industry awards can be a good way to gain coverage of your business, and winning awards is even better - this can also help you earn trust with your audience.
● Sponsoring events, awards, charities, local activity, etc can help you gain visibility, connect with your audience and also give back.
8. Radio ads
Radio ads are the spoken word ads you hear on commercial radio stations. They can have large reach and can be particularly useful for raising awareness across a target audience or within a specific geographic region. They are also good for building your brand and for helping to generate demand. Through your choice of station you can target specific geographic areas and demographics.
Radio can be particularly useful if:
● you want to reach as wide an audience as possible as you can run ads across stations or even nationally
● you want to target a specific geographic or local area via local radio stations
● your target audience are a cohort who will likely have the radio on at specific times - such as parents on the school run or commuters who listen at set times, or others who have the radio on more, such as those who drive frequently for work, trades businesses, or garages.
Budget
Radio ads require up front investment in professional production, including scripts, actors, editing and even music. Then budget will be needed to buy the media and the price of buying on-air space will vary depending on the reach of the station and the types of ad space you buy. You will likely need to work with professionals to create and place your ads.
Considerations and top tips
Most people listen to the radio for music or comment - often while doing other things - and so your advert will rely on repetition to have any effect. You could consider sponsoring certain features, such as the weather or travel news to make your adverts stand out, however this is obviously more expensive. Make your ads memorable, for example through humour, a jingle, or a running theme, and keep them succinct. Mention your company name at the beginning, middle and end, and mention your location if appropriate.
Work with radio stations or a media buying agency to discuss your needs and determine what type of radio ads you should run and when.
9. TV ads
TV advertising obviously provides greater visibility for your business, reaching a wide national or regional audience. TV ads are highly effective ways to raise awareness at a large scale, build your brand, generate demand, and seek new customers. However TV ads also require a hefty budget and should only be used if your business demands that level of reach.
You can reach regional audiences by running your ads on regional tv channels or by specifying location targeting with some national advertisers.
TV ads can be particularly effective if:
● you need to build awareness and push for customers on a large scale, and have a wide target audience
● you need saturation within a local market by reaching as many people as possible within a specific area
● you can integrate it with a presence on other channels, e.g. press and online to maximise impact.
Budget
TV ads, even regional, require a much larger budget for production and media buying than some of the other methods we have covered. Your ads will need to be professionally produced by a specialist agency, including scripts, actors, music, filming, and editing, the costs of which will vary depending on the length and scale of the ads you want to create. The media cost will vary depending on station, TV show, time of day and length of ads.
Considerations and top tips
Shop around to find an agency that is a good fit, and collaborate to develop a strategy and creative that suits you and your budget. Investigate the different placement and length options available to decide which works for you. Ensure your TV ads are on brand and that the messaging and creative is relevant to your audience and objectives.
10. Rules and regulations
There are laws and regulations which govern how businesses can advertise within the UK to ensure that consumers are not treated unfairly or misled. There are also specific requirements that apply to specific industries and sectors, including food and alcohol. Find out more on the Gov.uk site.
When you are running any advertising is it important that you understand and meet all your legal obligations. It is your responsibility to research and follow these regulations and obtain expert advice as needed.
Codes of practice
There are codes of practice that you must follow to ensure that your ads meet particular standards including accuracy and honesty:
● the CAP non-broadcast code covers advertising in the likes of print, online and direct marketing
● the CAP broadcast code covers TV and radio and all radio and TV ads also need to comply with the Ofcom Broadcasting Code.
Advertising Standards Agency
These rules are enforced by the Advertising Standards Agency. Check out their advice for businesses to get you started.
Data protection and GDPR
If you are handling, gathering, storing or using people’s data you must adhere to all data protection rules, understand your legal obligations and consumers’ rights, and protect their data. (See Gov.uk for more information). Furthermore, if you are gathering, using or storing data or if you are running online advertising and have implemented any tracking tags (such as Facebook pixel, Google Ad cookies, Google Analytics, etc), you must ensure you are GDPR compliant and that you have full consent from your audience and your website users. You can find out more on the Information Commissioner’s Office website.
11.Tracking success
As with any marketing spend, it is important to understand how your ads have performed and work out your return on investment (ROI).
● Benchmark your business data before you begin (for example, your daily/weekly sales, enquiries, call volume and website traffic) so you can contrast this with what happens during and after your ad campaign.
● If you are running online ads you can track your ad performance and website traffic with digital tracking tools, if you have user consent. Review any online data you have such as website traffic, ad impressions, clicks, click-through rate, online sales and conversion rate. Also look at the traffic sources of all your website traffic and sales.
● Ask any new customers where they heard about you, was it from one of your ads?
● You can also include unique identifiers in any offline ads to help track volume of new calls or sales from these ads sales, such as QR codes, specific phone numbers, voucher codes and specific offers.
As mentioned, ensure you have the correct permissions to use this data and that you adhere to all data protection laws and regulations.
For more information contact your Business Gateway adviser today.
Disclaimer
While this article provides examples of laws and regulations it does not provide legal advice. As a business owner, you are responsible for ensuring you understand your legal requirements and seek independent, expert advice where needed.