by Judette Coward-Puglisi

THIS WEEK I GOT a congratulatory call from the chief executive officer of Stechers, Sheena Thorpe. My company produced a series of ads for her luxury stores' bridal registry and she was happy to report excellent consumer response.

The success of the Stechers campaign had to do with a couple of factors. The design was clean. The product was a hero. The message was simple. But there was another success factor: working with an exceptional media planner, we determined which audience would receive the messages and what media would be most appropriate for them.

Not all businesses strike the right advertising note. In fact, I was having lunch two months ago with my friend, an advertising manager of a large service company who was lamenting her failed advertising strategy – in her post-campaign research, only one in four of those surveyed remembered the messages in her ads.

Her dismay was a striking reminder that the advertising-marketing mix is difficult if you don't understand the framework necessary for analysis.

* Share of voice

Whenever clients have an advertising dilemma, the first question I ask is do they understand their share of voice. Most of them don't, but it is a fundamental starting point.

To arrive at the percentage of the total exposure for all business in their category, I ask them how much of the total signage
is theirs. I also ask for the details about their TV, radio and print advertising.

I also like to get the below-the-line-details like their Web traffic or the number of mentions their brand had in a news story as opposed to a competitor. Understanding the numbers makes them aware of their total share of voice and if they need to ramp it up simply because they are not visible in the marketplace.

In Stechers case while her share of voice was not high, it wasn't important that it should be; after all, how many customers can afford an $8 000 crystal owl as a decorative piece? Not many. To be effective, Thorpe was advised to buy more repetition for her ads but get it from fewer media entities – that is, increase her share of voice to prospective buyers with targeted media-buying.

* Impact quotient

Advertising fails for only two reasons: the ads are either reaching too many people with too little repetition, or delivering a message no one cares about. Let me give you an example. We provide a myriad of services under the umbrella of strategic communications and
brand-development.

Last year we wanted to increase the number of editorial projects we were doing, so we came up with a message addressing the fact that many smart businesspersons who are not gifted writers get stuck writing the first sentence of their report or proposal.

Our ad began with the question: "Stuck for words?" and was supported by graphic design of someone doodling as they were trying to write. The impact of that ad was great. Our audience could relate to it easily and quickly and, because they did, our editorial work increased by 80 per cent.

So the question is, how impressive is your advertising message? Does your audience care about what you're saying? Does your audience understand what you're saying? To generate sales your ad must look good and reach the right target message but, first of all, it must
be believable and deliver on what it promises – which brings me to my next point: your brand promise and the personal experience factor.

* Personal experience factor

Have you ever seen a really good ad for a clothing sale, one that touted the store's high-quality designer wear but in fact sold designer knock-offs? Chances are, if you went to the store because of the ad and were disappointed, you probably wouldn't return.

In essence, unimpressive products or services nullify impressive ads, especially in an era of word-of-mouth selling. A strong ad will only temporarily prop up a business that delivers a weak personal experience factor. Remember that your ad must create genuine impressions of what you're selling.

If you haven't been as successful as you'd like, try looking at your advertising from other angles: voice share, impact quotient and the personal experience factor – that way you can get your campaigns back on track quickly.