Print and media advertising runs the gamut from television ads to posting flyers on grocery store bulletin boards. The type of advertising a business selects hinges largely on whether it’s targeting a national audience or a local clientele. There are some advertising-related initiatives that all new businesses should take advantage of. For example, the major search engines, like Google and Yahoo!, have business directories that list local businesses and, in some cases, even provide a map to show where they are located. You can get your business listed but have to go to the Web sites and sign up. The listings are either free or subject to a small yearly fee. If you want to see how this works, type “sporting goods stores in Tulsa, Oklahoma” into the Google search bar and see what happens. The names of the “local businesses” that appear have registered their businesses in the Google business directory.

Radio advertising is effective for many businesses that have a local station with a listening audience that reflects the demographic they’re trying to reach. Classified ads, either in local newspapers or online, remain effective in many instances. Direct mail, placing an ad in a local business directory, and advertising in publications such as local homeowners’ association newsletters are additional choices. A business’s own signage and visibility can be its most effective form of advertising. Some home remodeling businesses, for example, report that their top source for getting new business is people who see their trucks parked in neighborhoods and call the phone number displayed on the side of the trucks.

Another option is to advertise in an industry trade journal. A trade journal is a periodical, magazine, or publication that focuses on a specific industry, trade, or type of business. A directory of trade associations (which publish trade journals) is available through Weddle’s.^[1] Many trade associations also sponsor trade shows and conferences where new businesses can gain visibility and display their products.

An increasingly effective way for new businesses to get noticed and sell their products is via pay-per-click Internet advertising, as discussed in Truth 15, “Internet businesses: The sky does seem to be the limit.” This type of advertising is provided by the major search engines, such as Google, Yahoo!, and MSN. Google has two pay-per-click programs—AdWords and AdSense. AdWords allows an advertiser to buy keywords on Google’s home page, which triggers text-based ads to the side (and sometimes above) the search results when the keyword is used. If you type “watches” into the Google search bar, you see ads from businesses that sell watches. Many companies report impressive results utilizing this approach, presumably because they are able to place their ads in front of people who are already searching for information about their products. Google’s other pay-per-click program is called AdSense. It is similar to AdWords, except the advertiser’s ads appear on other Web sites or blogs instead of Google’s home page. You’ve seen AdSense ads many times as you’ve looked at Web sites and blogs. They are easy to spot because they have a small emblem underneath the ads that says, “Ads by Google.”

An increasingly effective way for new businesses to get noticed and sell their products is via pay-per-click Internet advertising.