Advertising Information

Become a Storyteller Not an Advertiser and Watch Your Traffic Increase


When you read the newspaper, do you read advertisements as closely as you read news stories? Do you believe advertising as readily as you believe news stories? I don't and neither do most people I know.

Because we have advertising shoved at us from every angle we tend to ignore it, but we pay attention to news or public interest stories. Not only do we pay more attention, we also are more likely to believe news stories than your basic advertisements. When your news is published either online, on the radio, TV or in newspapers people automatically feel that since it's being published it must be worthy information.

I read somewhere that "Advertising is what you pay for. Publicity is what you pray for". This is so true. You can spend a fortune on advertising and yes, it will bring you some traffic but traffic is only part of what you need and it stops when the advertising stops.

What you really need is PUBLICITY - free publicity so that your information reaches your potential customers and people will begin to get to "know" you. When people see and hear your name over and over they will begin to think of you as an expert in your field. They will trust your judgment and buy your products or the products you endorse. They will also recommend you to others which in turn cause a chain reaction and the process starts all over again. One of the best ways to get free publicity is by writing articles and press releases then submitting them to the third party sites and newspapers for publishing. Plus with a price like FREE, why not take full advantage of it?

The most important thing to remember when writing news is to write a STORY not a sales pitch. Don't you hate it when you ask someone about a product and instead of them telling you what it is and how you could benefit from it they go into this "elevator speech" about its features and why it's a good product ("it comes with this and that, plus as an added bonus you get?.") Please! If I wanted to hear a sales pitch I'd turn on the TV.

Sales people call it "selling features instead of benefits" but among news editors this is called, "selling the store, not the story" and it's the WRONG way to get your news published.

You should be trying to sell a STORY connected to the product instead of trying to sell the product itself. Why you ask? Because people love stories! We've been listening to and telling stories for centuries and we will continue to for a long time to come. People will pay attention if they think they're going to hear a good story but will turn away if you give them a sales pitch.

By writing like a storyteller, you will get free publicity which will increase your traffic and your sales.

** Melody Spier is a work at home mom of two teens. She is the owner of Ballyhoo Virtual Services a Virtual Assistant business catering to women in business. She specializes in business marketing and promotion with article and press release submissions, blog maintenance as well as many other services. You can contact Melody by visiting http://www.BallyhooVA.com or by email Mel@BallyhooVA.com


MORE RESOURCES:

The Money Times

How much are those front-page Times ads?
Reuters - 12 hours ago
(Slate) (Photo: “Spiderman” Alain Robert got free front-page advertising on the New York Times. Not in the paper but on the building. ...
Video: Money Minute: Times Ads, Hyundai, Construction AssociatedPress
New York Times now offers front-page advertising MarketWatch
NY Times debuts front-page ad; new revenue source The Associated Press
Adweek - AFP
all 356 news articles


Los Angeles Business Journal

U.S. court upholds L.A. ban on billboards
Los Angeles Times, CA - 5 hours ago
The US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said the city's 2002 outdoor advertising ban does not violate a sign company's 1st Amendment right to free speech, ...
Rare Victory: Sign Company Slapped Down By Court Curbed
Appeals court upholds LA's billboard ban San Jose Mercury News
Appeals court upholds L.A.'s 2002 billboard ban Los Angeles Times
all 21 news articles


Recession raises stakes for Super Bowl advertising
guardian.co.uk, UK - 8 hours ago
"The Super Bowl remains this incredibly unique advertising opportunity because you get all this focus and all this attention and all the PR buzz around it," ...
Kellogg School of Management Faculty Available to Discuss Super ... PR Newswire (press release)
Super Bowl Marketers Must Gauge Sensitivity Mediapost.com
all 15 news articles


BeliefNetworks, Inc. Launches AffinityAgent Advertising ...
MSNBC - 11 hours ago
Utilizing this technology, BeliefNetworks is able to help a variety of customers in the advertising and publishing world develop relevant ad concepts and ...


Times Online

Atheist advertising bid launched
The Press Association - 12 hours ago
An atheist advertising campaign on buses in Scotland has been launched with the slogan: "There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life. ...
Atheists Decide to Send Their Own Message, on 800 Buses New York Times
Atheist bus campaign spreads the word of no God nationwide guardian.co.uk
Britain's Buses Declare 'There's Probably No God' MyFox Nepa
Monsters and Critics.com - Utalkmarketing
all 95 news articles


Dallas Pushes for More Video Board Advertising
MSNBC - 11 hours ago
The city council is looking to add more video advertising boards and told city staff that the five currently planned for Main Street are not enough. ...


Report: Rough Year For Branded Advertising Online
MediaPost Publications, New York - 9 hours ago
This year is going to be a rough one for brand advertising, according to a new report from JP Morgan Chase. The economic downturn has created a climate in ...
JP Morgan: Performance Marketing Steady as Brands Recoil in '09 ClickZ News
'Net Will See Nothing But Flat CPMs, Analyst Also Says Ad Model ... Mediapost.com
JP Morgan: '09 to Be Rocky for Web and Brand Ads Adweek
Washington Post
all 14 news articles


Reuters

IAC's Diller Sees Cost-Per-Click Ad Revenue Down 5%-7%
CNNMoney.com - 6 hours ago
(IACI), said Tuesday he thinks cost-per-click advertising revenue for his Internet media conglomerate are declining at 5% to 7% year-over-year in the midst ...
IAC still waiting on price falls for acquisitions Reuters
Is Liberty Exiting IAC/INTERACTIVE Entirely? (IACI) 24/7 Wall St.
all 11 news articles


Diller Bearish On ‘09 Advertising
Broadcasting & Cable, NY - 5 hours ago
CEO Barry Diller was less than optimistic when it comes to the advertising market this year, speaking at a Citigroup Media conference in Arizona Tuesday. ...


The NAD: A Primary Forum For Resolving Advertising Disputes
The Metropolitan Coporate Counsel, NJ - 14 hours ago
Hugh Latimer, Chair of Wiley Rein's Advertising Practice, has experience in a broad range of complex litigation involving advertising, sweepstakes, ...
Wiley Rein Assists Client To Secure Significant Win In ... The Metropolitan Coporate Counsel
all 2 news articles

Advertising - Google News

home | site map
© 2006