“The best advertising is done by satisfied customers,” – Philip Kotler
Advertising remains a critical aspect of the commercial world because this industry helps brands and companies to attain visibility in crowded markets. While commerce is driven by competition and the quest for profits, advertising is the hand maiden that enables brands to stand up to the competition and earn profits for the brand owner or business operator. The best advertising methods are an outcome of creative efforts, consumer research, a keen understanding of market requirements, product or service design, and a deep knowledge of the human psyche. These methods try to associate certain values with a brand image, but these values must ideally go beyond product attributes and product features if the advertising campaign is to succeed in the public domain. Interesting advertisement campaigns have helped businesses to launch new brands, develop the market, expand the concept of consumer choice, and to take the competition head on.
Every brand or brand owner can choose to take a creative approach to marketing communication in its quest to unveil the best advertising methods. For instance, a cosmetics and beauty products manufacturer can initiate a public dialogue designed to uncover the meaning of feminine beauty and its cultural impact on human society. Members of the public can be invited to participate in the said campaign and their points of view can be incorporated to create a distinct two-way flavour that informs said advertising campaign. Women from every socio-economic backgrounds and every layer of demography should actively vent their views on the said topics and thus help to create a significant public dialogue. When properly stewarded, the said campaign can attain broader significance, attract much media attention, and can help the brand manufacturer to gain outstanding traction in the market. We note that such a campaign marks a clear departure from the cut-and-dried approach to selling beauty products.
Businesses that sell merchandise from common supply chains can share space on their respective commercial premises in an attempt to promote products. This cross-promotional approach to advertising remains one of the best advertising methods because it informs the lay public about the various products offered by the said businesses. For instance, a coffee chain that operates lounges in multiple cities can choose to advertise special coffee brews (and coffee beans) that are offered by a certain coffee growing business. The focused, visual nature of this advertising campaign can draw coffee consumers and connoisseurs to the said brews, thus enhancing the visibility of the product. The coffee chain can also use display space in its lounges to promote music festivals, stand-up comedy acts, dance classes, etc. We note that most of these activities are designed to appeal to the specific clientele and certain age groups that frequent these lounges.
We live in an electronically connected world, which has diminished the role played by traditional mass media, such as radio, television, newspapers, and magazines. Therefore, advertisers and creative professionals should work to expand the best advertising methods by including communications designed specifically for connected tablet devices, the mobile Internet, and smartphone lock screens. Advertisements designed for these new age devices require significant efforts in the domains of market research, consumer preferences, back end IT infrastructure to collect the numbers of valid advertising impressions, and new advertising paradigms. This approach to advertising hinges on the fact that every customer and potential customer carries a connected tablet or a smartphone enabled with high definition screens. Therefore, advertisements can be engineered specifically for in-app displays and for mobile apps that empower e-commerce businesses. Similarly, pop-up advertisements and scrolling messages embedded in commercial websites and product micro-sites can help brands and brand owners to acquire significant audience reach.
A different approach to high technology powered advertisements lies in polymer-based banner ads and LED-powered banners that can be hoisted for public display in areas of social congregation. These venues can include outdoor music festivals, trade fairs, art exhibitions, photography exhibits, shopping malls, and cinema theatres, among others. We note that this approach to advertising retains elements of old school public communications, but in terms of sheer exposure, it ranks among the best advertising methods. We note that the high technology aspect operates when visitors take note of the said advertising and subsequently engage in conversations on social media platforms. We could say that such conversations help the advertisers to gain extended mileage, thereby qualifying for inclusion among the best advertising methods. In a similar vein, modern technologies such as low power Bluetooth can be leveraged by businesses to communicate directly with customers through their tablets and smartphones. We must note that this is a highly focused approach to advertising and can operate only in large indoor areas such as shopping malls or very large supermarkets.
Vehicle wraps based on polymer media are increasingly finding favour among advertisement creators and ad space buyers. We note that such wraps represent one of the high technology, and highly mobile, aspects of modern advertising. Modern printing technologies can be used to create high definition images of products, corporate logos, or corporate messages; these can be suitably enlarged to fit the polymer wrap that makes each vehicle a mobile advertising platform. The content in the said advertisements should be formulated clearly in bright colours to attract the maximum attention as the vehicle navigates its way in an urban landscape. We must note that the extremely high visibility afforded by such platforms can boost brand visibility and help to broadcast a specific message. In addition, the high technology polymer substrates that comprise the vehicle wrap contribute to the durability of the said medium. Therefore, such advertising should be counted among the best advertising methods.
The Internet has emerged as a global phenomenon and therefore advertisers should leverage its immense reach to deploy ad campaigns. Contextual advertising can be designed to work inside search engines and must be triggered by search inputs generated by human users of the global information superhighway. In a similar vein, hyperactive local advertisements can be powered by smartphone apps and used by local businesses to offer their wares and commercial services. Further, a business can advertise its wares and services inside mobile apps during peak online traffic. This comprises a cost efficient technique to leverage online traffic towards the achievement of desired business outcomes. We note that the Internet figures as the connecting element in these advertising strategies and therefore, it stands to reason when we mark such communications among the best advertising methods.
In the preceding paragraphs, we have assessed the efficacy of various traditional, electronic, and online advertising strategies. We must note that the best advertising methods are often created to deliver high visibility and to drive the maximum response from the target audience. The choice of media notwithstanding, every approach to product or service advertising should be expertly formulated and masterfully stewarded to ensure that the brand stands out from the competition. In addition, the rationale behind every advertising campaign must be carefully constructed so that the brand or the product being advertised gains maximum mileage from the said campaign. Notable instances of stellar advertising campaigns may trigger copycat marketing techniques from competing businesses, but this should not deter an advertiser from creating masterful campaigns.
