Joined: 15 May 2007 Posts: 146 Location: Garden City, KS
Posted: Tue Dec 04, 2007 3:38 pm Post subject: Perfect commercials????
Here are two commericals that I feel will forever remain entrenched in my brain. Are there lessons to be learned from them? Do they do the work we want an ad for our shops to do? Thanks! Later, Matt.
McDonalds and Coca-Cola were trying to do something completely different than small businesses must do with their advertising. Their successful strategy is a sure failure for a small business.
Joined: 15 May 2007 Posts: 146 Location: Garden City, KS
Posted: Wed Dec 05, 2007 1:55 pm Post subject:
I'll take a shot. I think Coke was trying to get everyone on that bandwagon. Show lots of people singing and drinking Coke, so maybe a viewer would just crave a bottle of Coke...plus that catchy toon stuck in their head.
McDonald's was maybe trying to show they cared. Using Ronald as the one to notice the kid being left out and then treating him to a spin. Shows warmness, I guess.
Am I close? Thanks Bud, I was hoping you would chime in. Later, Matt.
_________________ Matt Fanslow
ASE CMAT/L1
Crag-Technologies, Inc
www.wavehook.com
Joined: 15 May 2007 Posts: 774 Location: Baton Rouge, LA
Posted: Wed Dec 05, 2007 3:20 pm Post subject:
My guess would be a large company that already has great name recognition, really only needs to keep their name out there. Coca Cola and McDonalds are household names. A small shop without the name recognition would be throwing money away.
Of course AGCO is sort of like Coca Cola, as far as name recognition. Let's see, I'd like to buy the world a check engine light repair . . .
Louis keeps taking the fun out of this. Of course, I'm just kidding. He doesn't write his own advertising, he pays a profesional to do it. But his answer is a good hint.
Joined: 15 May 2007 Posts: 774 Location: Baton Rouge, LA
Posted: Wed Dec 05, 2007 7:38 pm Post subject:
Bud wrote:
Louis keeps taking the fun out of this. Of course, I'm just kidding. He doesn't write his own advertising, he pays a profesional to do it. But his answer is a good hint.
A man doesn't have to be all that bright, as long as he knows where to find the people that are.
Anyway, I will answer Matt's question in a few days. By posting those 2 ads as examples to follow, Matt is demonstrating two myths that most shop owners truly believe about advertising.
Of course, Matt is probably learning more than the readers who never post anything.
I am amayzed by the readership this site has. It has huge numbers of new visitors every month, with a high average time spent on the site by all visitors.
So this particular forum is a place to dispel myths. It is not meant to teach people how to write advertising and manage ad campaigns. That would be impossible on a website. But it will teach how to spot poor advertising.
Joined: 19 May 2007 Posts: 206 Location: Camp Verde, AZ
Posted: Thu Dec 06, 2007 9:51 pm Post subject:
Bud wrote:
Myth 1] Copy ads that you like. Especially copy ads run by huge companies, like the ones you see on television. After all, if they are doing it, it will also work for my shop.
Myth 2] Ads must be clever, or have a gimmick, something that makes them easy to remember.
Myth 3] Just try to get your name 'out there.' Try to achieve 'top of mind' awareness.
That's a start. Who wants to add more myths?
I did not realize these were myths. I have been told several times these were good ways to do advertising. They make sense, but do not seem to work very well, at least for us.
It would seem that because the big guys use these tactics they must be good. The big guys run their ads in test markets so they should know what works and what does not.
Cannot help you out on new myths, I would not know a good ad from a bad one.
_________________ David Wittmayer
Owner / Manager
Hansen Enterprises Fleet Repair, LLC
Camp Verde, AZ
www.hefrshop.com
Joined: 19 May 2007 Posts: 206 Location: Camp Verde, AZ
Posted: Thu Dec 06, 2007 9:52 pm Post subject:
Bud wrote:
Myth 1] Copy ads that you like. Especially copy ads run by huge companies, like the ones you see on television. After all, if they are doing it, it will also work for my shop.
Myth 2] Ads must be clever, or have a gimmick, something that makes them easy to remember.
Myth 3] Just try to get your name 'out there.' Try to achieve 'top of mind' awareness.
That's a start. Who wants to add more myths?
I did not realize these were myths. I have been told several times these were good ways to do advertising. They make sense, but do not seem to work very well, at least for us.
It would seem that because the big guys use these tactics they must be good. The big guys run their ads in test markets so they should know what works and what does not.
Cannot help you out on new myths, I would not know a good ad from a bad one.
_________________ David Wittmayer
Owner / Manager
Hansen Enterprises Fleet Repair, LLC
Camp Verde, AZ
www.hefrshop.com
Joined: 15 May 2007 Posts: 146 Location: Garden City, KS
Posted: Fri Dec 07, 2007 12:19 pm Post subject:
I don't know that this is a myth, but I know from virtually every management seminar I've ever attended that a shop is to create and ad that conveys a sense of family, safety, warmth, friendliness, precision, money saving, and professionalism. We are told to print ads with pictures of the owner/managers family. I feel that is why we like to list all our advantages: training, equipment, certifications, etc.
Thanks Bud! Later, Matt.
_________________ Matt Fanslow
ASE CMAT/L1
Crag-Technologies, Inc
www.wavehook.com
I don't know that this is a myth, but I know from virtually every management seminar I've ever attended that a shop is to create and ad that conveys a sense of family, safety, warmth, friendliness, precision, money saving, and professionalism. We are told to print ads with pictures of the owner/managers family. I feel that is why we like to list all our advantages: training, equipment, certifications, etc.
Thanks Bud! Later, Matt.
That sounds like concentrating on fluff, the icing but not the cake. Anyway, what measure of success have you had running ads with those formats?
I will answer your original post in detail this weekend, Matt. I feel the longer we leave questions like yours open for thought and discussion, the more people will learn here. Thanks again for giving us those two examples to analyze.
Joined: 15 May 2007 Posts: 146 Location: Garden City, KS
Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 7:27 pm Post subject:
I'm willing to bet we have just as little success with those type of ads as all the other shops doing the same thing have. These seminars are the same seminars that have you boost your shop supplies through the roof, flat-rate all the techs, commission base all the service advisors, raise the labor rate a fixed amount with no reason, and schedule as much work as possible with no regard about if there is enough man power available to get it all done. At first glance, it would seem they are just instructing technicians who opened their own businesses in sound business practices. With a little digging, and thinking, you start to see it's just another charade to justify their high charges for their expertise. Thanks Bud, I always look forward to your posts. Later, Matt.
_________________ Matt Fanslow
ASE CMAT/L1
Crag-Technologies, Inc
www.wavehook.com
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