Have you ever spent hundreds or thousands of dollars placing an ad in a magazine and not have a good response? Have you been confused as to why your ad did not work like you had hoped?

Here are 9 basic tips for advertising your business in magazines.

1. Color ads are generally more effective than black/white ads. The exception is, if the page you are advertising is in color and your ad is black/white. The black/white ad can even be more profitable if it is done well.

2. A full page ad is often thought to do better. Again there can be exceptions to the rule. If you have a black/white ad against color ads, you can have the ad smaller and generate more response. Or, if your ad is placed in a more opportune location in the magazine.

3. The most effective placements in a magazine are the following: First the back cover of the magazine, second, is the inside front two pages. Third, the inside back two pages. Also good placements for ads are on the outside of each page. As people browse through, they will see those ads before they see ads closer to the center.

4. Ads that are placed with wording around them are ideal. The reason being that while people are reading they will glance more than once at the ad. It gives you more exposure time. Remember, you only have a few seconds to capture someone’s attention.

5. The ad itself needs to be neat and eye catching. If there is too much verbiage, you have lost potential business. Most people are visual and will not take the time to read a lengthy ad. Make sure to get your point across with a picture (or pictures) and words.

6. Bullet Point your ideas. Keep them brief and to the point. Take time to think about your company. Make a list of the most important things your company offers. What are you most passionate about? Translate those ideas to your ad.

7. Make sure phrases, words, prices, phone numbers, etc., are eye catching. Use various fonts, sizes of fonts, bold, italic, etc., to draw attention to different points. If the font on the ad is the same, it will blend in and important information will be lost.

8. It is critical when placing an ad, to choose a magazine that hits your target market. If you sell health products, advertise in a chiropractic magazine. If you have a home based business, advertise in a home based business magazine or entrepreneur magazine.

9. Get statistics from the company. Number of circulation, areas of circulation, how the magazine is distributed, etc.

I am convinced that you can have effective advertising if you use these guidelines. The goal is to keep advertising costs to a minimum and still receive the response you are looking for. Statics show that people will look at an ad up to seven times before responding. Be patient, your phone may or may not start ringing off the hook. However, if you have done everything right you will receive good business from your advertising.