Top 8 Myths About Advertising

Advertising has been around for centuries. The way it has been done has changed over and over but even in ancient times, the fundamentals of advertising existed. Due to the longevity of the promotional tactic, myths have formed and some have stuck around. Our Los Angeles advertising agency has decided to take a crack at some of them.

1. Advertising is too expensive. You've heard the age old adage, "You've got to spend money to make money." And that is still very, very true. This applies to advertising and the realization that many businesses can't afford to not advertise. At least if they want to make money.

2. Advertising and PR are the same. They are not, my friend. Is there some overlap? Sure. Are they twins? Nope; their focuses are completely different. PR is earned and advertising is bought.

3. Advertising is unethical and manipulative. While some companies are selling things to people that they do not need, many companies do good for the world and need advertising to promote themselves. As far as advertising itself being unethical or manipulative, ad agencies abide by strict standards set by the FCC and SEC that forbid false advertising or misleading advertising.

4. We have enough business. "Enough business" is a relative term. Who's to say you have enough business? Having enough business is only a momentary thing; maybe you are too swamped for a couple months to take on more business but your business's goal should never be to have "enough business".

5. People don't pay attention to ads. While consumers do have a higher filter for paid ads versus "free" promotion, ads are still very effective. Google generates over $30 billion per year from their ads. Also, brands wouldn't spend money on ads if they didn't work.

6. Online advertising is too difficult. There is lots of software and internet marketing companies that know how to do advertising online. With social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, etc. all you have to do is sign up to advertise on their platforms, which is a few clicks.

7. Effectively targeting a local target market is too hard. Effectively targeting any market can be difficult if you don't have the right data and creative behind it. With advances in geo-targeting techniques and software, going after a specific local market is not as hard as many are led to believe.

8. Humor reduces the effectiveness of our message. If you use humor inappropriately, such as too much of it, then yes, it can detract from your message's impact. However, using humor can actually help your message get through to consumers and be remembered better!

Does your business need to advertise? Email Integraphix or call us and see how our creative marketing agency can help your business increase its exposure and more business!