AJRoss Blog

You get what you pay for. That old adage has been truer than right now, and especially if you’re talking about marketing and advertising.

Everybody wants a dollar to go further, but at what moment does that stretched dollar finally snap? When does spending less mean getting less? It may be hard for some people to believe, but putting a little more time, effort and money into a project, remember, I said “a little more,” can make a substantial difference in the quality of a communication and the impact it can have on customers, both existing and potential.

Lately we’ve been faced with some advertising people who claim they can offer a client a lot more for a lot less than what he or she is paying now. You have to be careful when falling for this pitch. The space costs in local and national the newspapers are not that negotiable, air time is still going to cost what air time costs, and we all know what it takes to send a 5 lb package via Federal Express. So, the question is, if somebody is going to save you money on advertising, where will those savings ultimately come from? Take a wild guess.

Advertising and marketing is a service business. And service does not come from computers or androids, at least, not yet. It comes from people. That’s why the first thing a newly suckered client invariably notices is that nearly every call made to the “agency” is forwarded to an answering machine. And how about that creative team? You know, the one that’s not old enough to vote and is only available on Tuesday afternoons. Production? Fuggetabout it. Anybody who can make a home video can shoot your spot, right? And what’s so wrong about your account guy’s cousin showing up to read your radio spot.

Nobody wants to pay through the nose for an off-the-top expense like advertising, and, frankly, any ad company that attempts to do that today will be out of business faster than you can say Saddam Hussein. But smart spending never goes out of style. Finding a quality organization with quality people and paying a reasonable fee for those services is never wrong. Getting expert advice and listening to it, then following it up with quality work is what matters, regardless of how big or small the budget is.

Bottom line is to know what fair price really is. Any reputable ad/marketing agency will be happy to give you those numbers along with a proposal so you can make relevant comparisons and the right decisions Watch out for bids that seem suspiciously low. Ask yourself what’s the least you can spend for the best work, not what’s the lowest amount you can possibly spend –– period. You get what you pay for. And that may be exactly what you don’t want.

In manufacturing, it’s called a black box. In marketing, you can call it a white one.
It’s the box that will contain the new product you want to sell. Months ago, you thought of this product idea, developed it, then showed it to consumers and they really liked it. Maybe you even did some quantitative research. In any case, you heard loud and clear exactly what you wanted to hear. You have the right idea, the right product, at exactly the right time, precisely what you need for success except for one thing: your package is white. Maybe you’ve heard a few names, a design idea or two. You probably had a working name while the product was being developed. Terrific. But for the real world you are going need professional help. And that’s why you should contact AJ Ross Creative Media. Our specialty is turning a white box into an eye catching, consumer stopping, “must-have-it” design. Need help with a name? We can help in a big way. Then, once you have the perfect name and the memorable, ownable, functional or fashionable design your products deserves, we’ll create everything from the sell sheets, to the advertising for print, radio of TV. We’ll also come up with the ideal media plan, which means one that gets you noticed and fits your budget. Discover how much AJ Ross Creative Media do for you and your big idea. It may be a white box to some. But to us it represents endless possibilities.