What is an advertising campaign?

When companies are about to launch a new product or service, it is necessary to devise the best way to spread the news , as well as the type of audience and message that should be used to gain notoriety, sales and/or communication.

To achieve the above it is necessary to design an advertising campaign .

Below we explain what its characteristics are and what elements are necessary to create a successful advertising campaign.

What is an advertising campaign?

An advertising campaign is a set of actions generated with the aim of promoting a brand or a product or service . Through different media and formats, companies present advertisements that explain how they solve a problem and why it is the best option among their competitors .

The strategy to be implemented must contain the insights obtained from a prior analysis of the internal and external situation. In this way, the best results can be obtained and the objectives can be truly met.

According to data from Statista, the forecast for spending on advertising campaigns for 2024 is more than 884 million dollars, showing the importance of having this type of strategy today.

What are the objectives of an advertising campaign?

The objectives of a digital advertising campaign are varied, depending on the state or maturity of a business:

• Increase sales volume and return on investment (ROI).
• Getting people to identify (create empathy) with some communicative element of the brand.
• Reach the audience that will actually be interested in the product or service.
• Getting people to know the brand and distinguish it from the competition.
• Maintain or increase the positive reception that people have for a product, service or brand.

Characteristics of a good advertising campaign

Each company must design its own advertising strategy , that is, one that is in line with its product, available resources, interests and corporate culture. While there is no formula that works for all companies, there are some elements that cannot be missing when creating an advertising campaign.

Some of these are:

• Be persuasive. The basic principle of advertising is to convince audiences to buy a product or remain loyal to a company, so this starting point should not be forgotten.
• Designing based on market interests. Advertising is related to the demands and contexts of audiences, so it is important to investigate what the public's tastes are and what they find attractive.
• Target a specific audience . Advertising campaigns need to target their message and be designed to respond to the tastes, needs and demands of an audience. This way, they will be more likely to react in the planned way and resources will not be wasted.
• Be innovative. It is crucial not to repeat formulas generated by the competition, as this makes the strategy something old-fashioned.
• Repeat the message. Every campaign must constantly repeat the same idea, image or message directed at consumers to be successful.
• Have achievable goals. These should be defined in the short or medium term, preferably not exceeding one year, because they seek to achieve very specific goals, such as taking advantage of a shopping season to increase sales, attract potential customers, among others.

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Elements of an advertising campaign

The essential elements of an advertising campaign are those that allow the design and execution of an effective communication strategy to promote a product or service to a target audience.

The description of the product or service : this involves knowing in depth the characteristics, benefits and competitive advantages of what is offered to the market.

Objectives : refer to the results expected to be obtained with the campaign, such as increasing sales, generating brand recognition or customer loyalty.

The target audience : is the segment of the population to which the campaign is directed, taking into account their characteristics, interests and needs.

The public objective : is the impact you want to generate on the target audience, such as persuading them to buy a product, subscribe to a service or share information on social networks.

The message : is the content that is transmitted to the target audience, in a clear, attractive and convincing way, highlighting the benefits of the product or service.

The media plan : is the selection of the most appropriate channels and platforms to disseminate the campaign, such as social networks, television, radio, internet and print media.

The budget : is the estimation of the available resources and their strategic allocation to the different stages and elements of the campaign.

Measuring effectiveness : is the monitoring and analysis of the impact and return on investment of the campaign, allowing for continuous adjustments and improvements.

How many types of campaigns are there?

There are different ways to classify advertising campaign types, depending on the criteria used. Some of the most common criteria are:

• The nature of the product or service being promoted: advertising, social, institutional, industrial, co-branding, sponsorship and corporate campaigns can be distinguished.
• The stage of the product or service life cycle: we can distinguish between teaser, launch, maintenance, reactivation, relaunch and hard sell campaigns.
• The media or platforms used to spread the message: traditional media campaigns (television, radio, press, etc.) and digital media campaigns (social networks, blogs, podcasts, etc.) can be distinguished.

There is no exact number or single classification of advertising campaign types, as each one may have specific characteristics and objectives.

These categories can serve as a general guide for designing and executing an effective communication strategy.

How to make an advertising campaign?

To create an advertising campaign, follow these steps:

Define the objective

To define it, goals and needs must be taken into account, that is, understanding what part of the journey the audience to whom the message will be directed is at. The most common are attracting new customers, launching new products, and promoting available products.

However, an advertising campaign can also be created to achieve greater awareness, or to associate a brand with certain feelings or emotions.

Define in as much detail as possible who you are addressing.

This will be essential to establish the following points of the advertising campaign strategy. To identify the target, you can investigate: age, sex, social class, marital status, educational level, habits, tastes or hobbies of the public. It is also called buyer persona .

Segment the audience

Once the target has been defined, it is time to segment it by dividing it into several groups according to the products or services you want to sell.

Select the corresponding media and parts

Once you have a clear idea of ​​what you are going to communicate, to whom and why, it is time to define the media in which you will launch the campaign. Here it is vital to take into account the target audience's favorites and the investment available.

Once the media are defined and agreed upon, then it will be time to think about whether you will need videos, images, ads for Google or social networks , television and radio spots, etc.

Create the main message that the entire campaign will identify with

It should reflect the brand's personality, the aspirations of the target audience and be attractive. The best guiding concepts for communication are brief, concise and direct.

Track and measure results

Understanding what works and what doesn't allows you to analyze the campaign in a strategic way and evaluate what aspects should be maintained or corrected in the future.

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Conclusion

When we talk about an advertising campaign, we usually refer to a series of coordinated marketing efforts that are designed to make a particular product, service or point of view known and considered.

An advertising campaign can take many different forms and may involve a variety of different media, such as television commercials, print ads, web content, social media campaigns, emails, and so on.

Whatever the format, the goal of an advertising campaign is usually to generate interest and drive sales in a specific target market.

Written by Moises Hamui Abadi : I am an entrepreneur, founding partner of Viceversa and SoyMacho. After leading several digital businesses and advising several other businesses, I decided to form MHA Consulting, a digital marketing consultancy dedicated to growing and empowering digital businesses in more than 7 countries and generating more than 1,500 million pesos.

If you want more information on this topic or are looking for other options to profile your ideal client, you will find the solution you need at MHA. Schedule a call.