Are You Making These Common Small Business Marketing Mistakes? (Part 3)

Not Making The Most of a Powerful Guarantee

This mini-article is one of a series aimed at helping you avoid common small business advertising mistakes. Many small businesses don’t have a strong guarantee, or they don’t know how to incorporate their guarantee into their ads. This is important, because powerful guarantees have been shown to increase ad response by 50+ percent.

Gurantees work because they remove the risk of purchase from your customer, making it easier for them to buy. When you guarantee your product or service, you’re showing confidence that it will produce the result you claim - customers respond to that.

Here are a few tips for successfully incorporating your guarantee into your ads:

1. Your guarantee should be a specific promise of performance or results.

Don’t use boilerplate phrases like “Satisfaction Guaranteed” or even “Money-Back Guaranteed”. While these are probably better than nothing, they don’t have a fraction of the effect of a specific promise like:

“Be thrilled with your treatment or we’ll pay you to go to the competition”

” Enjoy a minimum 50% increase in website traffic within 60 days or your money back”

“Send $35 to [Your Company Name and Address]. $40 refund if you’re not completely satisfied.”

2. Test Your Guarantee

In my work as a small business marketing consultant and copywriter, I often work with clients to develop a powerful guarantee. Sometimes the business owners are hesitant - what will happen if customers try to take advantage of a money-back offer? The simple answer to this is to test. Test small at first (one ad with the guarantee, versus one ad without). Keep track of the difference in sales results and any returns or refund requests. If it works, keep doing it!

I’ve always found that a strong guarantee generates more than enough additional sales to cover any returns or refund requests.

Also test different aspects of your guarantee (e.g. wording, time period, conditions etc.) The difference in sales generated by a 30 day and 60 day guarantee can be significant.

3. Make your guarantee highly visible

If you have a strong guarantee, don’t hide it away where it won’t be seen. Strong guarantees make great headlines. Visual devices such as a “Money-Back Guarantee” rosette also work well - but remember to enlarge on your guarantee statement.

What powerful guarantee can you offer your prospects to make it easier for them to do business with you?

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