Best Advertising I've Every Done!

j Paul

PFG, Picture Framing God
Joined
Feb 23, 2004
Posts
7,299
Loc
Toledo,Ohio
Four weeks ago a lady from the road dept. came in and said they would be closing the access road at one end of our plaza for approx. 2 weeks. That was alright with me because it would force all of the customers from the newly opened Mynards store as well as the high end Mexican Resturant to drive my my store.

Just so happened I had just ordered 50pcs. of 24x18 double sided coroplast yard signs with our Logo/Address and Sale printed on them. I lined the main roads leading to our plaza as well as the plaza itself with these signs.

I have recieved 27 NEW FRAMING Customers in the last 3 weeks. Everyone is telling me they see my signs. That does not count the number of new vistiors to our store as well as general merchandise customers.

These 50 sign cost me $195.00 = S&H, just a little over 4.00 each. What a deal!

Got 5000 oversize postcards ready to go out next week for around $2,000. And we just started running cable TV. 2weeks on/1 OFF / 2 weeks on/ another $2,000, well see how that compares.
 
J Paul -
What a great success story!

I'd be interested in knowing how these coroplast yard signs are supported and/or hung. And where did you have these made?

Hope those customers keep pouring in!!!!
 
Got them from this guy on E-bay, he has other quan. aval. also. Current item # 6007504752 for 50 double sided with stakes.

Sherry Lee, the are supported on wire stakes which are included in price.

Destiny, take March Bluestones advice if you need a permit. Put them out on Friday night and take down Monday morning, the people who care don't work weekends. If when a few blow away or are taken down they only cost you $4.00 anyway, how many impressions willl you have made before that happens.

Colleen, I'm running a 30sec. zip code specific spot on cable. $992. for 124 spots over 2week period. That is $8.00 per spot ROS. But have gotten some prime time on stations like CNN/Fam/TBS. Plu there are FREEBIES thrown in after midnight. Does not cover the whole cable area just 10-12 mile cir. from my store.
 
If I put out ANY kind of sign I get a big fine.

The town hall is diagonally across from my shop.

Other businesses that put up signs get a fine and the sign taken within hours of going up.

I've started cable a month ago to anemic results so far. I'm gong to keep doing it because I think they need to run a while before they really start to work.

Congrats on your new found adds.
 
While it's great that you're getting such great response, this is exactly whats been frosting my cookies for a few weeks now.

A major retailer opened it's doors in our town a few weeks ago, they draw nearly 17,000 visitors each day.

The weekend they opened, every furniture store going out of business, every contractor (there's alot of storm damage here from hail) put signs out. Our town looked like campaign season all over again. Ok, what put me over the edge was my competition.

My point? Do it with good taste. There's a line to draw when you clutter a community, exactly the reason why cities and towns put these ordinances in place.

I was embarassed that 17,000 people who had never been to my town were greeted to my community with such a trashy welcome.
 
Originally posted by JbNormandog:
[QB] If I put out ANY kind of sign I get a big fine.

In a session given by Marc Bluestone "How to Get More Customers" he suggested in a situation like that if possible buy an old cargo van for (U-Haul) for $1,500 -2,000. and have it painted with your Advertisement on it and park it out front and around town, doesn't even have to run that good, cheap billboard.

Just a thought from Marc.
 
Originally posted by jangal:
While it's great that you're getting such great response, this is exactly whats been frosting my cookies for a few weeks now.

My point? Do it with good taste. There's a line to draw when you clutter a community, exactly the reason why cities and towns put these ordinances in place.

We actually did it with the blessing of the village. But you still gotta do, what you gotta do to get business in. My store is in a very nice 3 year old centre. You even see very high end jewerly stores doing this from time to time.

As I quoted Marc Bluestone earlier, he does suggest this not be done on a long term basis. Reason is people get used to them and then they no longer see them. He has as I recall a landlord that said absoluetly no yard signs. That is why he put them out on the weekend and took them down Monday. He said it had better results that way as they caught peoples eye more than if they were continually up. Ours will come down shortly the weather will see to that, but hopefully when they see our TV adds or get that oversize postcard in the mail they will have a recall.

Everyone do what they want or can, I'm only reporting on a situation that has worked well for me.
shrug.gif
 
It's nice to hear about a successful marketing strategy. I've been framing for a number of years now, mostly wholesale, but my background is primarily in sales and marketing. I've been very surprised by how little effort most retail framers put into advertising. And though I realize it can be quite expensive, you've got to give to get. An advertising budget should be a must. And it would be a good idea to track the effectiveness of each advertising method. Keep on rockin.
 
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