Ad Strategy

🎯 Advertising Mastery: Your Ad Strategy Adventure!

Imagine you have the coolest lemonade stand in the whole neighborhood. But wait—how do people know about it? That’s where ADVERTISING comes in! It’s like being a friendly megaphone that tells everyone about your awesome lemonade!

🌟 The Big Picture: What is Advertising?

Think of advertising like sending party invitations. You want people to come to your party (buy your lemonade), so you need to tell them:

• What’s happening (delicious lemonade!)
• Why they should come (it’s the best on the block!)
• Where to find you (the corner of Main Street!)

That’s advertising—telling the right people, the right message, at the right time!

📚 Advertising Fundamentals

What is Advertising Really?

Advertising is paid communication to persuade people to do something—usually buy a product or remember a brand.

Simple Example:

• When you see a toy commercial on TV = Advertising
• When a billboard shows a yummy burger = Advertising
• When your favorite YouTuber says “This video is sponsored by…” = Advertising

The 4 Key Ingredients of Any Ad

graph TD
    A["🎯 Message"] --> B["👥 Audience"]
    B --> C["📺 Medium"]
    C --> D["💰 Budget"]
    D --> A

1. Message: What do you want to say?
2. Audience: Who needs to hear it?
3. Medium: Where will you say it?
4. Budget: How much can you spend?

Real Life Example: Nike’s “Just Do It” campaign:

• Message: You can achieve anything
• Audience: Athletes and fitness lovers
• Medium: TV, billboards, social media
• Budget: Millions of dollars!

🎯 Advertising Objectives

Why Are You Advertising?

Before spending money on ads, ask yourself: What do I want to happen?

There are THREE main goals:

1. 📢 Awareness (Make People Know You Exist)

Like: Being the new kid at school and introducing yourself.

Example: A new phone brand runs TV ads so people learn its name.

2. 💭 Consideration (Make People Think About You)

Like: Telling classmates why you’d be a great friend.

Example: Car ads showing safety features to make families consider buying.

3. 🛒 Conversion (Make People Take Action)

Like: Actually getting invited to play at recess!

Example: “Buy now and get 50% off!” ads that push immediate purchases.

graph TD
    A["👀 AWARENESS<br/>They know you"] --> B["🤔 CONSIDERATION<br/>They like you"]
    B --> C["🎉 CONVERSION<br/>They choose you!"]

Pro Tip: Most ads focus on ONE objective at a time!

💰 Advertising Budget

How Much Money Should You Spend?

Setting an ad budget is like deciding how much allowance to spend on snacks—you want the best treats without running out of money!

4 Common Budgeting Methods

1. 📊 Percentage of Sales Method

Spend a fixed percentage of your total sales on ads.

Example: If you sell $100,000 worth of shoes, spend 5% = $5,000 on ads.

2. 🎯 Objective-Based Method

Decide what you want to achieve, then figure out the cost.

Example: “We want 1 million people to see our ad. That costs $50,000.”

3. 👀 Competitive Parity Method

Spend similar to what competitors spend.

Example: “Our rival spends $10,000/month on ads. We should too!”

4. 💵 Affordable Method

Spend whatever money is left after other expenses.

Example: “We have $2,000 extra this month—let’s put it into ads.”

The Golden Rule

Spending too little = Nobody sees your ad Spending too much = Wasting money Just right = Maximum results for your money!

📺 Media Planning

Where Should Your Ads Appear?

Media planning is like choosing the best playground to find friends—you go where your potential friends hang out!

The Media Planning Process

graph TD
    A["🎯 Define Target Audience"] --> B["📍 Find Where They Are"]
    B --> C["📅 Decide When to Reach Them"]
    C --> D["🔢 Choose How Often"]
    D --> E["📋 Create Media Plan"]

Key Questions to Answer

1. WHO are we trying to reach?

   • Age, interests, location, habits

2. WHERE do they spend time?

   • TV, social media, websites, radio

3. WHEN are they most attentive?

   • Morning commute, lunch break, evening

4. HOW OFTEN should they see the ad?

   • Once might not be enough!
   • 3-7 times is the sweet spot

Example: Selling kids’ cereal?

• WHO: Parents with children aged 5-12
• WHERE: Morning TV shows, parenting websites
• WHEN: Breakfast time, weekend mornings
• HOW OFTEN: Daily during breakfast hours

🛒 Media Buying

Actually Purchasing Your Ad Space

Media buying is like reserving the best seat at a concert—you negotiate the price, pick the perfect spot, and make it official!

Types of Media Buying

1. 📞 Direct Buying

Call the TV station or website directly and negotiate.

Like: Calling the movie theater to reserve the best seats.

2. 🤖 Programmatic Buying

Computers automatically buy ad space in milliseconds!

Like: Having a robot assistant who finds the best deals instantly.

How Programmatic Works:

1. You set your budget and target audience
2. Software bids on ad space in real-time
3. Your ad appears to the right people automatically!

Key Terms You’ll Hear

📡 ATL, BTL, and TTL Advertising

The Three Levels of Advertising

Think of advertising like a building with three floors:

🏢 ATL: Above The Line (Mass Media)

What: Reaching HUGE audiences through TV, radio, billboards, newspapers.

Like: Shouting from a mountaintop—everyone can hear!

Examples:

• Super Bowl TV commercials
• Highway billboards
• Radio jingles
• Newspaper full-page ads

Best For: Building brand awareness to millions of people.

🏠 BTL: Below The Line (Direct & Personal)

What: Targeting specific people with personal, direct methods.

Like: Whispering to friends one-by-one—personal and specific!

Examples:

• Email campaigns
• Store promotions
• Free samples
• Loyalty programs
• Events and demos

Best For: Getting people to actually buy RIGHT NOW.

🌉 TTL: Through The Line (Mix of Both!)

What: Combining mass media WITH personal touchpoints.

Like: Shouting from the mountaintop AND whispering to friends!

Examples:

• TV ad that directs to a website for a coupon
• Billboard with a QR code for a special deal
• Social media campaign with in-store redemption

graph TD
    A["📺 ATL<br/>Mass Reach<br/>TV, Radio, Billboards"] --> C["🌉 TTL<br/>Best of Both!"]
    B["🎁 BTL<br/>Direct & Personal<br/>Emails, Events"] --> C
    C --> D["🎯 Maximum Impact!"]

Remember:

• ATL = Awareness (they know you)
• BTL = Action (they buy from you)
• TTL = Both together!

💻 Digital Advertising

Advertising on the Internet!

Digital advertising is like having a magic billboard that only appears to people who actually want to see it!

Types of Digital Ads

1. 🔍 Search Ads

Appear when people search for something on Google.

Example: Search “best running shoes” → See Nike ad at the top!

2. 📱 Social Media Ads

Appear on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, etc.

Example: Scrolling Instagram → See an ad for headphones you were just talking about!

3. 📺 Display Ads

Banner images on websites.

Example: Reading a news article → See a shoe ad on the side.

4. 🎬 Video Ads

Play before, during, or after online videos.

Example: Watching YouTube → “Skip ad in 5 seconds…”

5. 📧 Email Ads

Promotional messages in your inbox.

Example: “Flash Sale! 50% off today only!”

Why Digital is Powerful

Real Example: A pizza shop can:

1. Target: People within 5 miles
2. Time: Show ads at dinner time (5-8 PM)
3. Device: Focus on mobile (people ordering on phones)
4. Track: See exactly how many orders came from the ad!

🎭 Native Advertising

Ads That Don’t Look Like Ads!

Native advertising is like a secret agent—it blends in so well, you might not even know it’s an ad!

What Makes an Ad “Native”?

Native ads match the look and feel of the content around them.

Example:

• Reading a news website about health
• See an article: “10 Foods That Boost Energy”
• It’s actually sponsored by a vitamin company!
• The article looks just like the other articles

Types of Native Ads

1. 📰 Sponsored Articles

Full articles written by (or for) brands.

Example: “How to Sleep Better” article sponsored by a mattress company.

2. 📱 In-Feed Ads

Appear in your social media feed like regular posts.

Example: A “promoted” post on Instagram that looks like any other post.

3. 🔍 Search Recommendations

“You might also like…” sections.

Example: Shopping on Amazon → “Customers also bought…”

4. 📺 Branded Content

Entertainment that’s actually advertising.

Example: A fun video about cooking that features a specific cookware brand.

Native Ads vs. Regular Ads

The Golden Rule: Native ads should ALWAYS be labeled as “Sponsored” or “Ad”—being sneaky is not cool!

🗺️ Putting It All Together

Your Ad Strategy Roadmap

graph TD
    A["1. Set OBJECTIVES<br/>What do you want?"] --> B["2. Set BUDGET<br/>How much can you spend?"]
    B --> C["3. Choose ATL/BTL/TTL<br/>Mass or personal or both?"]
    C --> D["4. MEDIA PLANNING<br/>Where & when?"]
    D --> E["5. MEDIA BUYING<br/>Purchase the space"]
    E --> F["6. Go DIGITAL + NATIVE<br/>Online magic!"]
    F --> G["🎯 SUCCESS!"]

Quick Recap

🌟 You’re Now an Ad Strategy Pro!

Remember our lemonade stand? Now you know:

• ✅ What to say (Fundamentals)
• ✅ Why you’re saying it (Objectives)
• ✅ How much to spend (Budget)
• ✅ Where to say it (Media Planning + Buying)
• ✅ Who to reach and how (ATL/BTL/TTL)
• ✅ How to reach them online (Digital)
• ✅ How to be subtle about it (Native)

Go forth and advertise like a champion! 🏆

The best advertising doesn’t feel like advertising—it feels like help, entertainment, or a friend’s recommendation!