Begin with the end in mind. Simply, put, you've got to know what you're trying to accomplish before you even start your marketing efforts. And you'd be surprised how many don't. Here's a quick outline of the three most important things to know when getting started:

Point #1: Know Your Objective: Sounds simple, doesn't it? It's almost too simple. But you'd be surprised. Most people say, "My objective is to make money. To make sales. To generate business. What else is there?" Well, there are lots of other things... specifically, you need to decide if you want your ad to generate leads, generate sales, move the buyer to the next step in the sales process, or a combination of these things.

Many advertisers assume that everyone who sees their ad will be ready to buy, and waltz right in and plunk down cash. But it just isn’t so. Let me give you an idea... We have a client who owns an upscale, beautifully merchandised natural foods store. He only carries the best of everything natural and pure. He blew a ton of money on radio advertising that was very typical advertising.... You know "We carry this, this, and this. Only the finest that. We're committed to this. Our store is located at XYZ shopping plaza; we're open from 10 to 6 everyday."

It's not my opinion that his ad was horrible. The lack of results proved it. So, true to form, he complained and whined that radio advertising won't work for a natural foods store. But there's a difference between the medium and the ad itself! In this case, the medium wasn't bad.... it was his ad

Here's what we did. Instead of assuming that everyone was just waiting to hear his ad so they could finally find a place to empty their wallets, we assumed that nobody was interested in this store, and they would need a very low-risk way to find out more about the store before they would even invest the time to come check the store out. In his store, various manufacturers conducted product demonstrations on a regular basis often providing free samples, cooking classes, etc. Interesting stuff, but customers were generally unaware of what was happening until they visited the store.

So we created a little thing called the "Special Events List" which is simply a list that's printed out every two weeks of everything that will happen, in the store, during the next two weeks. Then, in the radio ad, we talked a little about the store, but instead of only giving people the option of coming into the store; we gave them a lower-risk option of calling in to get put on the "Special Events List". Well, walk-in traffic nearly doubled, but more significantly, they took over 30 calls a day from people who just wanted to be on the list. The point is this: sometimes it's appropriate to try to generate sales from the ads. In a lot of cases though, it's smarter to try to generate leads from the ads. You just need to make sure that you know exactly what you're trying to accomplish before you start.

Our friend with the natural foods store thought that people would come into the store when they heard his ad He was wrong. There was actually an in-between step for many prospects....calling in to be put on the list. Think about your ads... what are you trying to accomplish? Do you need to add another step? How can you get more people to raise their hand and at least say they're interested? Well, on to the second thing you need to know before you get started, which will sound equally as obvious, but is even more overlooked.

Thing #2: Know Your Target Market: I'll cut this one short to save time and space. You need to know exactly who buys what you're selling, and then talk ONLY to those people. Some advertisers feel like they need to put something catchy, cute, weird, sexy, colorful, or bold in their ads to make sure that every person on earth is attracted to the ad. They assume, if everyone's looking, they've got a better chance at selling to more people. There's a real trap in doing your advertising this way … a trap that you need to avoid. And here it is: your message gets diluted to the point where it says nothing to anybody. Spend your money talking directly to those who are most likely to buy and avoid the temptation to reach everyone. People who aren't "true"

Prospects won't buy no matter how good the advertising and the products are.

Thing #3: Know Your Competition: Sometimes it's easy to identify and combat your competition, but let me point out a few scenarios you may not have considered when formulating your strategy. You can classify competition into three basic categories: direct competitors, indirect competitors, and what I call the dreaded "inertia".

I'll use a common product to illustrate these three kinds of competition... I'll use a weight loss product. Let's say you're marketing an all-natural weight loss product that the customer takes in the form of pills that metabolically "melts" fat away. Who are your direct competitors? First of all, the other products on the market that are pills that metabolically melt away fat. There are a ton of them. You could also include similar products, like weight loss shakes, weight loss skin patches, products that you drink, starch blockers and fat blockers. The list is endless.

What about indirect competitors? Well, ask yourself this question: What are the end benefits of using your product or service? Now, ask yourself, what other kinds of products offer the same end benefits? Those are your indirect competitors. For weight loss there are a MANY, including weight loss clinics, books, audio & video tapes, personal trainers, doctors, chiropractors, acupuncture, health food, fitness equipment, sports equipment, membership gyms, and some that don't cost money, like exercising at home.

What about this thing I called the "dreaded inertia"? It's a tough competitor to combat. It's called "DOING NOTHING." In the case of our diet aid, it means staying fat; taking no action whatsoever. That's a tough competitor to beat because it costs the prospect nothing, it's easy to do and the prospect is already very good at doing it.

So why do you want to know your competitors? Because then you can design your marketing and advertising strategy to address them. And the advertisements would be different, depending on the competition. Think about the different angle you would take for the weight loss pills if you were selling against direct competitors: You'd have to articulate all the reasons why your formula was superior... whether that means better ingredients, higher doses, cheaper prices, it has to be taken less often, the pills are smaller, etc.

What if you were advertising and competing against an indirect competitor? First of all, your target audience should know that your product/service is superior to your direct competitors, or your message won't carry much weight. Once the differential advantage is established, you can talk about how much easier the pills are than going to the gym, or how much cheaper they are than buying a Bow Flex that you'll hang clothes on, and then sell in a garage sale in 2 years anyway.

And what would your strategy be if you were selling against inertia...or in other words, doing nothing at all? What would you say? First, you'd focus on all of the benefits of being thin (good health, great social life, "a new you", etc), then you'd compare the benefits of your products against INDIRECT competitors (easier, cheaper, less work, etc). It is likely that you would not mention direct competitors at all.

You may be not selling some "miracle" diet pill. The point is to identify your competition. Ask yourself the questions I just went over and make a list of these things: 1) who are your direct competitors? 2) Who are your indirect competitors... remember, you find those by asking, first, "What is the end benefit of using your product or service? And then, second, what other kinds of products offer the same end benefit? And finally, 3) Does the prospect have the option of doing nothing, and if so, what would you have to say to the prospect to take action? Hint: It needs to be really low-risk.

Earlier, I told you about the natural foods store and the Special Events List? That's a great example of competing against other natural foods stores, and against inertia. I mean, really, it's easy to not go to any natural foods stores at all. Remember how the solution involved offering the low-risk option of signing up to be on the events list? Can you apply this to your business? Of course you can!