What type of special offers generate the most response?

AT THE END OF THIS ARTICLE YOU WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO VOTE
Your experience as a business person and consumer is valuable. Share it by voting in our anonymous poll. Click the link at the bottom of this blog to cast your vote on which type of special offers work best. The results are updated in real time. So check back in a day or so and compare the most popular tactics with your own.

WHAT KIND OF RESPONSE WILL I GET?
Everyday I speak to small business owners all over the U.S.A about Door Hanger Advertising. What question do I get asked the most? By a margin of more than 2 to 1, the most asked question is: “What kind of response will I get?”. I always give the same answer:  “….it depends on the strength of your Magnet”.

WHAT’S A MAGNET?
“Magnet” is the term we use to describe the lure, hook, special offer or incentive that will motivate the prospects you are targeting to respond to your advertising. Yes, it’s the bait that is most important when you are fishing for new customers.

THE MAGNET IS IMPORTANT… SO TEST IT
The Magnet is probably the most important factor influencing the success of a door hanger distribution campaign. So how do you know if your Magnet is strong enough? It’s not rocket science. Test it. Show it to your family, friends, employees and even a few loyal customers. Look them in the eye. Tell them to be honest. And listen.

PEOPLE LOVE TO SAVE MONEY, SO GIVEN THEM A DISCOUNT
Discounts are probably the most common Magnet used in advertising. You can minimize lost revenue from discounts by limiting them to time periods when business is slow or to new customers only (but don’t forget to reward your loyal customers from time to time).

The way discounts are presented can make a big difference in the response generated. When using percentages, always give a reference price point. You may think 10% OFF is a great offer, but the prospect is thinking “10% OFF What?”. Are you afraid to show your prices? If so, why? (and don’t say because your product or service is too complicated) If you are advertising a great offer, make it big and bold and easy to understand.

DISCOUNTS ARE GOOD, BUT THERE ARE OTHER TYPES OF MAGNETS
In this economy, that last thing you probably want to do is cut your prices. So here are some other ideas.

• A Unique, Interesting or One of a Kind Product of Service
  A pizza shop advertising their “Famous Upside Down Pizza” (are you curious?)
• A Donation To A Worthy Cause
  We had a propane provider purchase a helmet liner for solders in Iraq and Afghanistan with every fill up.
• A FREE In Home Estimate
  More valuable today than ever. I remodeled my kitchen recently and went to Lowe’s Home Improvement. I was surprised when I was told that I would have to pay for an in home estimate (that would be applied to my purchase) until they explained how much time was involved measuring and going over options. So if a Free Estimate is your Magnet, make sure you describe what’s involved and perhaps even put a dollar value on it.

SO HOW STRONG IS YOUR MAGNET?
If you are not getting the results you want from your advertising, take a look at your Magnet, some fine tuning may be in order. Resist the impulse to do what everyone else is doing. Run-of-the-mill Magnets will generate mediocre results. So be creative, generous and aggressive.

SHARE YOUR OPINION ON WHAT WORKS BEST
Take our poll (takes less than a minute) and see what business owners around the country think about using Magnets in their advertising. CLICK HERE!