
Running a successful, stress free advertising campaign across multiple platforms can seem as unlikely as a pig swimming. However, as shown it can happen and I am here to help (with the advertising not the pig training) with a handy list of my top three tips.
Don’t fall at the first hurdle: prepare advert copy in advance
Creating individual copy for each advert and then editing it if it isn’t performing well, is time-consuming and often means a long delay between recognising an advert isn’t doing well and editing it.
To avoid these unnecessary holdups and ensure you have time to experiment with copy, create most of it, if not all of it in advance, writing at least the following at the start of every campaign:
5 x Headlines – two to four words, which encapsulate what you are trying to sell e.g. ‘Cinematic Choreography’
5 x Short Text – Half a sentence or so following on from the headline, something similar to a bit of a review, the star rating, or a summary of the show e.g. ‘Stunning visual & emotive display’
5 x Longer Text – A short sentence, or review that adds to the explanation of the piece, or an opportunity to speak directly to the audience e.g. ‘“A poetic fusion of sight and sound” The Guardian’ or ‘Allow your gaze to be imaginatively reoriented & experience space anew’
By having multiple options of text with varying lengths, which has all been approved, it then becomes a simple task to edit and play with ad copy to get the best results, regardless of the style of the advert or the platform you are using.
Use small, but consistent budgets across multiple adverts
One of the hardest things when new to advertising, promoting a new type of show, or simply trying to engage with a different audience is which platform and type of ad to use. It is tempting to create one advert, which you think looks amazing and would click on, and invest all your budget in this. However, this is unlikely to get you the best results or use your money most effectively.
The best way to overcome this is to put a small budget on several ads with different styles, platforms and target audiences. Through this, you will be able to understand, which adverts are most relevant for the goals you want to achieve. As you analyse the promotions, you can then increase or decrease the budget depending on what works and edit other ads you feel may start performing with a little tweak; bringing me onto my final point.
Edit, edit and then edit some more!
The most important tip I can give to anyone when it comes to advertising, is don’t be afraid to edit adverts if they are not doing as well as you had hoped. I have had examples of adverts which aren’t engaging people, then I change the image or review and within a day has exceeded past results.
To me, advertising is less a science, more an art; a lot of it is about experimentation and creativity. As an advertiser, you must be prepared to play with your adverts and figure out what aspects of it engage with your audiences most. Also, it is worth remembering that just because a certain quote, video or image appeal to your audience of 35-60 years old, that is not necessarily the case with people under that age bracket, so don’t get frustrated or disheartened, carry on making small changes until you have an advert with a relevancy of 8/10 or higher, then move onto the next one!