• Are other promotional opportunities
(in conjunction with this publication)
available?
• How much experience does the sales
rep have?
•Is investment in advertising in this
publication a good value? (Are ad
prices consistent with those of publications with similar size and distribution?)
• Will I get something from this publication that I won’t get from other,
similar publications?
How Much Advertising
Is Enough?
Mari, who also is a small business owner
herself (Christian Family Books, www.
christianfamilybooks.net/), offers this
advice: “It’s a well-known fact that
one-time ads don’t yield the desired effect. The
people you are trying to reach need to see
your ad/logo/brand name many times to
consider your company real as a resource
when stacked up against the well-known
competition. Consider this: Even the major,
most well-known companies still advertise
even though they have made it to the top,
because they understand that it is necessary
to advertise to keep their position in the
market. Out of sight is really out of mind
when it comes to advertising.”
So, in addition to promoting sales, a
marketing strategy also focuses on the goal
of simply familiarizing your target audience
with your product. Even if your advertisements don’t immediately result in a ton of
sales, each time a reader sees your product
name or logo, he becomes more familiar
with it. As your logo or brand name
becomes more and more recognizable,
readers will become more willing to take
that initial risk—to try your product. Simply
seeing your company name/logo in a variety
of places, over and over, will add credibility.
Expense
The cost of your marketing efforts is a
primary consideration, of course. You can’t
spend more than you have to work with.
Again, it’s critical to ask key questions
such as these:
• What is my target market? How many
people do I want to reach?
• What are my options (radio, television,
magazine, online advertising, etc.)?
•How much effort am I personally
willing to invest in marketing my
product?
• How much money am I willing and
able to commit to promote my product?
Be Innovative
Take advantage of some of the following
opportunities to work on your own—to
invest your time, resources, and energy in
your company’s success. These avenues
have great potential for profitability, especially if your business venture is in the
beginning stages and a great deal of capital
is not available (yet!):
•Homeschool conventions (booths,
flyers, workshops, distribute free
samples, volunteer to be a speaker in
your field of expertise)
• Homeschool co-ops (Introduce your
product locally, and then expand your
business as demand increases and
funds become available.)
• Online forums and blogs (exposure,
brand-name recognition, etc.)
• Product reviews (Check out the TOS
reviews to see how we do that at
www.TheHomeschoolMagazine.com/
Homeschool_Reviews/.)
• Contests (If you provide complimentary copies of your product to the
sponsors of a contest, you’ll get your
