Sorry, in many cases, spending a bunch of money on advertising is going to kill you.

Unless… (You knew this was coming)

Unless you are capable of supporting 3 things that will make it work.

It’s not gloomy or scary. Just do some things right, and it works every time. Buying a schedule of airtime is easy. Making it worth the expense is what separates the wheat from the chaff.

Here are 3 simple ideas you must take into account.

Funny how these simple notions get lost in the process.

Live long and prosper:

1. Be tall enough to ‘ride that ride’.

This means spending enough to provide an adequate share of voice and to put quality ads on the air. It takes courage, money, and even more courage. Never stop advertising once you start and fund the plan correctly.

2. Hire a copywriter.

Did you let the rep at the TV station make your ad? Pray. Death awaits. The fast way to test this is to honestly compare your ads to others in your industry. If your ad looks nearly the same as your competition’s, why would anyone call you more often or remember you first? Great ads don’t write themselves; great copywriters do.

3. Delight your customers.

(This is what I really wanted to write about today) There are only 3 grades you can earn from your customer: One, Zero, Minus One.

In every interaction along the way, and in your follow-up, you either score (+1) for a delighted customer, (0) for satisfaction, or (-1) when you disappoint them.

While we all know you’ll never succeed long term by constantly disappointing people, delight and satisfaction can multiply your investment many times over. But Customer Experience is harder to grade.

It’s all about the story they tell after they interact with you.

After the store visit, the phone call, after the appointment, after the transaction is settled, experiences of delight or disappointment are the only time most customers will care enough to tell their story about you.

Satisfied customers don’t have a story. They got what they paid for. That’s not a story. At best, it’s, “Meh. They were ok”.

Delighted customers clearly can say they made a smart choice. They were right to trust you. They have confidence in promoting you. They are excited. They don’t hesitate to call you again.

Disappointed customers feel the urge to vent. They take revenge when they hear your name. They say, “Never again with those guys!” They murder your brand in front of their friends and God Forbid, leave an ugly review on Google.

Spend the money. Make sure your ads are awesome. Invest in customer satisfaction.

Retire early, serve the planet, die happy.

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