It started with a great idea- a flicker in your mind’s eye. You summonsed your courage, found the money, and started a business. You know you will be a success; you have a phenomenal product or service. Now, you just have to let the rest of the world know what you have to offer them.

All of us have to do it. We access our ingenuity and engage in marketing campaigns. We devote our advertising budget on television commercials, radio mentions, mail brochures, etc. We sit back and wait for the customers to crash our sites, beat down our doors, and have the phones ringing off the hooks. We wait… and wait some more… but nothing. What happened?

Many of us make marketing mistakes. Some are so prevalent, that they can be labeled as common. This article illustrates a few marketing mishaps, and what you can do to resolve them.

You aren’t being noticed

Perhaps that magazine page gets glanced over, someone gets up to get a drink from the fridge while your commercial runs, people are daydreaming trapped in traffic during your radio ad, etc. People are conditioned to ignore advertisements.

Companies try to counteract this indifference by adopting radical tactics, but unfortunately this does not always work and may not be taken seriously. It is time to be direct with the customer. You have a product or service you think they want; let them know about.

Construct your marketing efforts by making your target customers aware of a problem or issue they may have. Make them realize your products and services will serve as the solution. Don’t use industry jargon; describe the problem and the solution in terms they would use themselves.

You are showing yourself to too many people

Of course, we want to sell to as many people as possible- more sales equal more money. As far as marketing dollars go, you have to choose wisely. You place an ad in a major newspaper, but most readers are not looking for search optimization services. Your television commercial is clever, but most people watching do not need financing consultation.

The SEO ad would be better off if placed in a Web magazine and the financing commercial would attract more sales if it ran during money-based television programs. You have to keep your target market in mind when using your marketing dollars. Showing yourself to the masses is great, but not at the sacrifice of your pocket.

You put all of your ads in one basket

It happens quite often. A company will drain its marketing dollars on one idea. Whether it is a series of radio ads, big newspaper spreads, or television commercials ran during primetime. A huge return on investment is expected, yet never arrives.

Most often, finely researched and premeditated persistence will attract great returns rather than rolling once for the big win.

Your message isn’t compatible with the medium

There is a difference between a successful television ad and a newspaper ad, between a radio ad and a direct mailing. You have to think about the medium you are leveraging in order to make the most of your ad it is hosting.

Television affords you the benefit of actually showing your products and services. How does it perform? This can be showcased. Radio ads need to be more emotionally charged. How can you make the customer feel by telling them about the solution your product or service represents? A direct mailer affords you the opportunity to speak one-on-one to the customer.

Fashion your ad to serve most effectively in regards to the medium you are using.

You are being too inconsistent

You place an ad in a newspaper for a few weeks and you noticed it is not doing anything; so, you decide to take your ad out of the publication and go with another publication. This happens often. It is understandable to feel anxious, but you need to be consistent with your ads and where they appear.

You cannot expect to win the customers over the first couple of times, but gradually over time, you will see results.