Companies in the natural products industry spend millions of dollars in an attempt to communicate the unique features and benefits of their products to current and potential customers. Creative development and media costs are not going down. But for some manufacturers, sales are. So in today’s increasingly volatile business environment, it becomes essential for companies to spend advertising dollars wisely and for maximum consumer impact.

While that scenario certainly has media implications in terms of analysis and selection, it has an even more profound impact on the messaging and creative strategy behind the advertising you develop and put out into the marketplace. Is it effective? Does anyone read or watch? And if they do, will they take away your desired message?

There are actually concrete ways to improve your chances of developing successful advertising. It starts with recognizing what advertising can accomplish and what it cannot accomplish. Advertising can help:

• Create customer awareness
• Reinforce brand image and positioning
• Generate leads or referrals
• Encourage trial
• Alter an attitude or point-of-view
• Entertain or amuse

First and foremost, it can help build brand equity by moving your potential customers through the stages of awareness, acceptance, trial, preference and loyalty. What it doesn’t do well is single-handedly generate sales without the aid and synergy of other sales tools. If I only had a dime for every Marketing Director who runs a single print ad and then waits for the cash register to ring. Advertising is about continuity of message with adequate audience reach and frequency to move the needle.

Effective advertising should get attention, reflect your brand personality and communicate your key selling message memorably. That said, here is a brief road map to improve your advertising output.

Define A Communications Strategy
It’s important to make sure before you develop advertising that you have a clear understanding and consensus regarding how you want your product or company to be perceived in the marketplace relevant to your competition. Is your position the “science leader” or the “product innovator” or the economy value brand?” Or is it something else. You should be able to write down in a sentence or two how you want your brand to be positioned in the marketplace. Next put down on paper a brief creative strategy. I would suggest writing down your thinking regarding these key questions:

• Why are you advertising in the first place?
• Describe the competitive environment in which you do business.
• Who is your target customer (be specific)?
• Why do they need your product or service?
• What is your key selling message to that target consumer?
• What support can you offer for your key selling message?
• Going through this process in some manner will help you identify the core focus of your advertising message.
• Learn to Appreciate and Respect the Creative Process

Developing creative advertising is a non-linear process which may be frustrating to more structured, left-brained individuals. Writers and designers think differently than you do. And that’s OK. Let them. Their fresh ideas can help you make money. Allow them room to move and create. This ad for Body Shop® is an idea that could never have come from a structured thinker.

Know Your Competition
If you’re not doing so already, you should be reviewing your competitors’ advertising very closely. You can learn a lot about their marketing strategy, and about how to improve your own advertising efforts. It’s the most easily accessed competitive data there is. Don’t ignore it.

Know Your Customer
If your advertising is targeting all women, you need to rethink your target. A twenty-something woman generally has a completely different approach to life than a fifty-something woman. Define your target consumer in terms of demographics (age/sex/income/education) and psychographics (lifestyle/attitudes/shopping habits). If you don’t know, go out and talk to your customers. Access them through your Web site. There are ways to get some basic information without spending a lot of money. Trust me, it will be worth it.

Demand Attention
The Wall Street Journal may be boring to look at, but we read it because we want to know what is happening in the world. No one needs to read or view your advertising. You are imposing on their time. The burden is on you to prove that you have something worthwhile to say. But it all starts with getting their attention. If that doesn’t happen, nothing else will. A unique headline. An outrageous or unexpected visual. Give your prospect a reason to take notice. Altoids® mints wrote the book on demanding consumer attention, as you can see here.

Involve the Audience
Good advertising invites audience participation. Ask a question. Offer a sample. Include a coupon. Present a problem with a solution. Get them to your Web site. It’s important to make the reader, viewer or listener think about your message and interact with you in some way. Those experiences build familiarity which breeds awareness and eventually loyalty.

Get Emotional
People remember what they felt long after they’ve forgotten what they heard. In other words, consumers remember what touches them in some way. Don’t be afraid to use emotional appeals in your advertising. Use humor. Create anger. Trigger sadness. Generate sympathy. The point here is to make some connection with your customer. They’ll remember it.

Product Should Be Hero
Don’t get so wrapped up in being funny and demanding attention that you forget to highlight the product. Remember that you are advertising ultimately to sell product. If people remember the ad but can’t recall the product, you have failed. Take a page from the Absolut® vodka campaign shown here. Product is always hero.

Know When To Stop Selling
This is definitely the greatest and most common sin in advertising. We all love to talk about ourselves. But often times, the more we say the less is understood. In communication, practice the art of focus.

Integrate Your Communication
This is advertising. Advertising is important, but it is only one arrow in your marketing quiver. The key selling message you identify for your advertising should also guide your packaging and merchandising and public relations efforts. Speak with one voice.

Measure Your Success
Or lack thereof. Either way, it’s important to know. Include a phone number or Web site. Offer a sample or a coupon. Build in a way to assess response to your advertising. It’s the only way to improve.

Advertising can be a great investment or a tragic waste. These steps and others should help get you on the right road. And if you get lost, there’s no shame in asking for directions.