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JULY 2014
FUNERAL HOME & CEMETERY NEWS
S ec t i on A
Retail pioneer John Wanamaker was famously quoted
“Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the
trouble is I don’t know which half.” It’s the dilemma of
marketers whether they’re in retail or manufacturing,
whether they’re spending tens of million dollars a year on
marketing or just ten thousand.
As catchy as the quote may be, it’s not really that diffi-
cult to parse the answer. After all, there are only two fun-
damental components to advertising: what you have to
say and where (or to whom) you say it. The half most ad-
vertisers spend the bulk of their money on is the “where,”
which really means the media. So when the advertising
results in a resounding thud, all that expensive media gets
the blame. I can’t tell you how many times I hear a new
client tell us “I’ve run in radio and it doesn’t work” or
“We don’t use billboards, that’s a waste of money.”
Gentle readers, here’s the simple truth: if the message
is not compelling, you can quadruple your advertising
spend and still get dismal results.
Let’s put it in human terms. The guy who’s popular at a
big party will be popular at a small party. The guy who’s
800-321-7479
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Which half of your advertising is wasted? The definitive answer.
By Dan Katz
Dan Katz
a bore at black tie gala
will put people to sleep
standing at a car wash.
Now if you’re in the fu-
neral business, the point
is amplified many fold.
Funeral homes, cem-
eteries and cremation
services are not what
one would call a cate-
gory of high consum-
er demand. So the hur-
dle clearly isn’t one of
where to spend the me-
dia money. Uh-uh. It’s
mostly a matter of what
can be said to get At-
tention, create Interest,
generate Demand and
cause Action (AIDA)
given that you’re talking
about death, loss and
grief.
It’s all in the messag-
ing. What you choose
to do at this juncture
is what will affect ev-
erything that follows.
So here are some ways
to think about making
both halves of your ad-
vertising dollars work
for you:
Start with a powerful
strategically-based mar-
keting message. This is
the very foundation of
your entire marketing
effort. If this is faulty,
nothing will stand on
it. Make sure you have
a point of view that is
completely unique to
your firm alone, that
your competitors aren’t
also saying. Be sure it’s
a compelling message
that would motivate
someone who is already
leaning toward the com-
petition. Merely show-
ing your group photo
or facilities, using a pun
for its own sake or rely-
ing on clichés are non-
starters as far as market-
ing messages go.
How you say it is near-
ly as important as what
you say. Invest in ex-
ceptional creative ex-
ecution. Your compel-
ling message still needs
to stop people in their
tracks before it can do
its job. I’ve long said
that “Creative” exists as
the most effective deliv-
ery vehicle for the mes-
sage. Use the very best
talent you can afford
both in wordsmith-
ing as well as in design.
Here’s the nexus where
you’ll either be wasting
your ad budget or making
it soar. Many advertisers
will spend next to nil for
the ad’s creation (getting
what they paid for), only
to blow tens of thousands
of dollars on the media to
get a lot of people to ignore
their ignorable ad.
Have patience. Even great
ads don’t work instantly.
Your audience isn’t waiting
for your ad to appear. But great advertising is highly ero-
sive, wearing down the indifference so that when the right
moment comes – or your salesman calls – the audience
is ready to buy. Nearly everybody remembers the brilliant
Apple campaign, “Hello, I’m a Mac. I’m a PC.” But the ads
still had to run some length of time before people not only
remembered the spots but acted on them as well.
Make certain that the entirety of your marketing is in
step. If your ads are cutting-edge but your website is still
an antique, or if you’re not fulfilling the ads’ promise on
all other fronts, you can’t expect optimum results. Adver-
tising is synergistic. And cumulative.
So, in essence, getting your money’s worth starts at the
very beginning, not at the end. Putting the bulk of your
focus on messaging, rather than media, will be much
more rewarding. Don’t leave it to the junior staffer at the
newspaper to create your ad. Don’t substitute hard-core
strategic homework for a clever headline. And don’t think
that the media selection is wrong when the creative you’re
placing in it is what’s sending your audience running in
the wrong direction. (I’ve seen humble bus benches cre-
ate insanely great response when used creatively.)
There. Now you know which half of your advertising
needs more of your love.
Dan Katz is president and creative director of LA Ads. Reprinted with
permission from Dan’s blog, Funeral Advertising for the Perplexed:
Observations & Comments about Funeral Marketing & Advertising. To
discuss your thoughts with Dan on this blog or any marketing mat-
ter
mail via dkatz@
laadsmarketing.com or learn more a