So you have $1000 for advertising...

[bagellad]

Where do you spend it for maximum returns? and why?

Assume the location is a small city, 200,000 people. Mid level income. College & University.

[frostbyte5014]

Save your $1000 and hit the pavement. Shoe leather is cheaper and you'll get more return. Face to face introductions will get you the most customers.

[14049752]

Honestly, the best advertising we have is a sign outside of our shop. It cost us $150 and has paid for itself many times over.

Put some time and money into direct mailing businesses, write a letter to the owner, and mail them out. It's a lot of work, but it will probably pay off.

As far as your $1000, don't put it all in one place. There's really not one good answer, because the advertising that will work depends on how you'll use it, what's available in your area, etc.

[SOHO-NZ]

Save your $1000 and hit the pavement. Shoe leather is cheaper and you'll get more return. Face to face introductions will get you the most customers.

I agree - $1000 goes a LONG way in paper & printing.
Your ideal customer probably doesn't Google for their repair service - especially if their computer is broken!

You can also try dressing up nice, walking round some of the local businesses in your area, and just introducing yourself and what you do..

[robrich22]

Another important thing to remember is, if you do spend the money.. spend it wisely..

aka.. DON'T go spend all your money on some unknown piece of marketing. Start small, test your results.

What works for some people may not work for you. If your going to do a postcard campaign. Test 100 postcards, judge your results and adjust accordingly. When you find one thing that works, spend more money on it and keep using it until it no longer produces results.

Same goes for any other marketing as well. Doorhangers, flyers, postcards, newspaper inserts, ADVO, etc.. Start small, gauge your results, find what works.

Remember there are alot of free advertising mediums as well.

1. Offer your local DJ's free computer repair for mentioning your name on the radio. Or some other valuable service you might offer.

2. Submit a press release to your news paper.. For something interesting.. get creative..

I'm sure there are plenty more but that is a couple to start :).. I am designing my marketing campaign for when I "go live" with my business, I will post it when I am finished. I'm sure it will change drasticlly within the first few months.. or even after receiving some input from you guys..

I have a ton of marketing experience, in probably one of the most competitive industries and I'm hoping my marketing experience will get my computer business off to a good start..

[rtrahan]

Take $250, or whatever the cost and join your Chamber Of Commerce..see if they have an Amassador program. Where I live I'm an Ambassador and our main job is to attend all new business ribbon cuttings. Best 30 minutes you could ever spend for your business. You meet the owner and staff and its a bond cause they appreciate strangers who could be doing something else, go to their new business for the event..works great for me....

[TimeCode]

Take $250, or whatever the cost and join your Chamber Of Commerce..see if they have an Amassador program. Where I live I'm an Ambassador and our main job is to attend all new business ribbon cuttings. Best 30 minutes you could ever spend for your business. You meet the owner and staff and its a bond cause they appreciate strangers who could be doing something else, go to their new business for the event..works great for me....

That is an interesting idea that I hadn't thought of before. Good one!

[abe]

great idea where did you get that from,

[benrybin]

We are going to run a promotion specifically geared towards College Students. Its going to involve facebook and a $500 gift card to a local restaurant/bar. We have never done on before ,but I think it might generate some buzz on campus.

[robrich22]

We are going to run a promotion specifically geared towards College Students. Its going to involve facebook and a $500 gift card to a local restaurant/bar. We have never done on before ,but I think it might generate some buzz on campus.

Hmm.. why not a $500 computer? The person that wins, will more then likely be your customer for life and you will recoup the money...

On another note, if you do the gift card to a restaurant. You could probably wotkout a deal with a local one, that'll give you a $500 gift card in exchange for computer service .....

Just an idea..