Advertising is a paid message intended to get someone's attention. In business advertising, the message calls attention to a product or service. It's a one-way message that invites the receiver to take some action.

Promotion is any effort to influence others toward a desired action. It can be advertising, sometimes called above-the-line promotion (because it is obviously a paid message) or below-the-line promotion, such as endorsement, sponsorship, and product placement. Yes, advertisers actually pay film companies to have movie actors hold their brand of soda during a scene.

Publicity is the promotion of a product or service through filtered information, such as a product announcement or press release. Along with promotion and advertising, publicity is a component of marketing. Marketing is the task of getting products and services chosen by the consumer. Your service business is a vital component of the marketing process.

Before you begin advertising your business, make sure you know what your message is, who you want it to reach, and how you can best reach them. Your business's success greatly depends on your ability to promote — advertise, publicize, market — an accurate and needed message about your service.

What is Your Message?

Every product, every consulting business, every franchise, has a distinct message that it wants the buying public to hear, understand, and act upon. The message is rarely about a product, but about the benefits of a product. Coca-Cola Corporation doesn't sell soda; it sells refreshment.

What is your business's message? It is different from your mission statement, which probably has to do with client focus and profitability. The message is what you want your clients to think, to say, to believe, about your business. It can define your clients (“The Homeowner's Helper”) or the services you offer (“Weight-Loss Solutions”) or more obvious benefits (“Building Your Small Business”). Make your message memorable. A good place to look for service messages is in the yellow pages of telephone books from other areas, which are available at larger libraries.

To formulate your own business's message, first take a look at your business plan (see Chapter 7). It will offer clues from definitions of your business and your clients. Some business plans outline a unique selling proposition or USP, a list of features and benefits that the business will be designed to provide. However, most USPs are too long to become a business's message. It may take some creative writing to develop a succinct yet easy to remember communication that will be your message. Make your message short and snappy.

Who Is Your Audience?

When your were formulating your business plan, you did research and developed a definition of who your primary clients are. Don't say “everyone;” there are many people within the local marketplace who would never consider buying the services you sell. You can't realistically expect to sell something to everyone who contacts you. You must focus on a specific group of primary buyers who most need what you sell. And you must define them carefully: “Senior adults looking for individual training in personal technology tools,” for example.

Of course, you have other client groups as well, depending on what types of services you sell. However, most of your clients will have commonality. They may primarily be of a specific interest group, economic group, education level, or a geographic area. Your business may attract others, but these are your core clients. That's the audience for your message.

How Can You Reach Them?

Because your core clients have commonality, promoting your business is a matter of getting your defined message to your target audience. Of course, it's not quite that easy. You first must figure out what message paths these people have in common. Are they all readers of a specific newspaper's business or leisure section? Do they drive past your office every day?