There are ways of advertising that guarantee results and others that guarantee failure. Some advertising agencies will tell you advertising has to be creative, that it is an art form, even entertainment. Actually, advertising does not have to be creative at all - it just has to be interesting enough to make you change your brand preference and buy the product. In short, good advertising causes you to take action.

Consider the words of advertising guru David Ogilvy: "When Aeschines spoke, they said, How well he speaks. When Demosthenes spoke, they said, Let us march against Philip." Would you rather people talk about how wonderful your ads are or for them to buy your product?

You have the same solutions as your competitor: use all the appropriate media at your disposal to get your name and image in front of your target group, while spending the least amount of money possible. Advertising or "communication" - whatever form it may take - is the only way to sell anything! From word of mouth to television, effective communication is the key.

To begin, you should understand and accept three keys of advertising and increasing sales.

• First, and most important, the wrong kind of advertising will actually hurt your sales! When Coca-Cola changed the flavor in 1985 in an attempt to increase market share, the move backfired and caused a boycott. No company, no matter how large and viable, is impervious to bad advice. Only proper research can prevent such tragedies. Advertisements should use the right appeal.
  
  
• Second, realize what you are up against. If your company is relatively unknown and you have to sell your product to a corporate giant, then the job will be anything but easy. The other party is ignorant of your company, the products, customers, reputation and the company's record. Under these circumstances, chalk out effective strategies that will help you put across your product as attractive and worth investing in.
  
  
• Third, realize the importance of positioning. Where you position yourself in the marketplace has everything to do with the success of your product or service. What exactly is positioning? Positioning is what your product does and who uses it. The Dove bar could have been positioned as soap for men with dirty hands, but instead it was marketed as a toilet bar for women with dry skin. Once the product was positioned properly, David Ogilvy masterfully created advertising to reach the target market. Take a lesson from Ogilvy: the better you and your advertising agency positions and promotes your image, the more sales you can expect.