Advertising isn’t dead – but it’s certainly not pretty!
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Flicking through my local village magazine I'm astounded by the number of businesses advertising.
The local business directory which is delivered to all the houses in my village every other month is thicker than I've ever seen it. Talking to the editor and owner of the magazine, she tells me that she has had her most successful year to date. More and more businesses, it seems, want to get themselves out there and the local business directory, or parish magazine, seems like where it's at.
Companies are slashing their advertising budgets, but recognise they still need to get their name out there. The solution? Many are choosing to place display adverts in parish magazines or local business directories. The magazine editor tells me because they recognise the benefits of advertising locally, adn more cost effectively.
It's a fair point. And good on the magazine for doing so well in these tough times.
But look a bit closer, and the quality of design is frankly shocking. I mean seriously, less than 20% of the adverts in this, and many other local magazines or business directories, are doing the businesses any favours. They are quite simply badly designed – poor layouts, fonts that scream amateur and that's before I get started on the lack of call to action!
Advertising is no bad thing. But if you want to be taken seriously, if you want to attract customers, then you have got to make sure your adverts are well designed. And that means understanding the principles of graphic design if you want to do it yourself, or paying someone to do a professional job. It doesn't cost the earth, and it will make all the difference.
If you're set on doing it yourself, then join me on 18th June or 22nd October for an inspiring, creative, practical workshop to give you all the know how to be able to create professional looking adverts yourself. Design Rules: Graphic Design Secrets for the Uninitiated http://bit.ly/3hFdqE
