Prove It! - Give Your Marketing and Advertising More Credibility

Your marketing and advertising won't be effective if your potential customers don't believe the claims you make. So how can you prove your that you can do what you say you can?

Tone it down. Even if it is possible, your claim that dieters can lose 50 pounds in a month probably won't be believed. Make it more realistic and representative of typical results.

Get customer testimonials. Let them see that others have had great results. Testimonials should be specific and include the customer's real name for the most credibility.

Get endorsements from experts. Respected authorities who say that your product or service is good make you look good.

Positive media coverage will make you a star. Media coverage provides an implied endorsement from a respected source.

Show a track record. Have you been in business for 20 years? Customers are more comfortable doing business with someone they believe will be around if there is a problem after the sale.

Make yourself accessible. Give a phone number or e-mail address where customers can contact you (or support staff) directly with questions. Phone numbers are especially valuable in creating the awareness that you are approachable by clients. Add live chat at your web site to resolve support issues.

Cite statistics from a reputable source to back up your claims. There is a joke that 67.8% of all statistics are made up on the spot. When you use statistics, tell where they came from.

And, never make claims that aren't true. If you are caught in a lie, it can be difficult or impossible to reclaim the trust of your customers.

Copyright Cathy Stucker. As the Idea Lady, Cathy Stucker can help you attract customers and make yourself famous with creative strategies that help your business excel. Get free marketing tips and discover what she can do for you at http://www.IdeaLady.com/.

In The News:

AdAge.com
Does GM Have a Point About Facebook? Yes, Rivals Concede
Forbes
Executives with other automotive brands say they wouldn't have completely departed Facebook advertising as General Motors did this week. But some also concede that GM had a point in its decision to stop buying ads on the ubiquitous social-networking ...
Facebook is tough to quit, and investors like thatKansas City Star
Facebook Advertising Shows 'A Lot Of Potential But It's Not A Slam-Dunk'Huffington Post
Why Facebook's GM ad drama won't impact this IPOVentureBeat
AdAge.com -Washington Post -Detroit Free Press
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TIME
Are Advertisers Disembarking the Facebook IPO Hype Train?
Datamation
While still blinding, the spotlight surrounding Facebook's IPO dims slightly as advertising and mobile monetization concerns surface. That deafening buzz? It's the anticipation building in Silicon Valley and on Wall Street on the eve of what promises ...
Is Advertising on Facebook Worth the Expense?TIME
Companies ask: Does advertising on Facebook pay?Seattle Post Intelligencer

all 8,660 news articles »

The Future of Advertising Sales -- It's all About Integration
Huffington Post (blog)
Advertisers have a story to tell, and the media is there to help tell it. Today, however, media and marketing go beyond mere storytelling; now it's about storytelling and dialogue. That's why social media's so popular. It's not about the word "media"; ...

and more »

NPR sees sharp downturn in advertising revenue, leading to talk of cuts
Washington Post
Halfway through its fiscal year — and six months into Gary Knell's tenure as chief executive — Washington-based NPR has seen a sharp downturn in corporate “underwriting,” or advertising revenue. The falloff has led to projections of an annual ...

and more »

Sweeney: Facebook Advertising Money Is In the Movies
CNBC.com
Traditional advertising in that context can be both annoying and ineffective. Imagine someone interrupting your conversation by waving a big billboard between you and your friend. Yuk! Social media advertisers are just realizing how influential the ...


Seattle Post Intelligencer (blog)
Skechers agrees to pay $45 million to settle charges of sketchy advertising of ...
Seattle Post Intelligencer (blog)
By Rita R. Robison Kim Kardashian, fresh from a sweaty workout and pictured in a variety of steamy, suggestive poses, decides in a TV advertisement to dump her personal trainer. “It's not someone else, it's something else” Kardashian, a reality TV-show ...
Sketchy ads? Skechers agrees to pay $50M to settle false-advertising allegationsThe Star-Ledger - NJ.com
Oklahoma joins the fight against Skechers for deceptive advertisingKRMG
Sketchers settles charges of deceptive advertisingvtdigger.org
MarketWatch (press release) -Aljazeera.com (blog) -Wall Street Journal
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Access Washington
Skechers settles with WA over false advertising
BusinessWeek
Attorney General Rob McKenna's office says the shoe company will allocate $40 million for refunds and pay $5 million to the 44 states that sued the shoemaker for false advertising. The attorneys general say the commercials for the Skechers line of ...
Shoe-maker accused of sketchy advertising settles lawsuitAccess Washington
Skechers to pay $40M over deceptive advertisingCherry Hill Courier Post
Skechers Gets its Butt Kicked for False AdvertisingMedical Daily
USA TODAY -kwwl.com -NASDAQ
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New York Daily News
Sitcoms new favourite for TV advertisers
TODAYonline
NEW YORK - The big winner of this year's upfront TV advertising sales season was an old favourite: The sitcom. By the time the curtain came down on the network previews yesterday, 16 of the 36 new scripted shows added to the programming lineups of the ...
And the winner is? The sitcom, TV networks hopeReuters

all 336 news articles »

Viewers Want Choice, Control and Relevance from Online Video Advertising ...
San Francisco Chronicle (press release)
New York, New York (PRWEB) May 17, 2012 Vibrant Media, the global leader in premium contextual advertising, has released key research findings that determine what viewers want in their video advertising: choice, control and relevance.

and more »

75% of Advertisers Say Rest-of-Web More Important Than Facebook
MarketWatch (press release)
Methodology This multiple-choice online survey was distributed to 2177 brand marketers and advertising agency representatives. It was conducted in March 2012, and results were analyzed and validated for statistical significance in April 2012.

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