For most small charities and support organisations, traditional advertising is perceived as being simply beyond reach. It’s expensive, hard to measure and notoriously unpredictable.

In the main, they’re right. Yet, opportuinities for cheap local advertising are more plentiful than you might think. And if you really want to make a big splash, a well crafted and placed ad can be very powerful.

What do we mean by advertising?

Advertising was traditionally split along an imaginary line.

Above-the-line advertising included TV, radio, cinemas and billboards, press and magazine advertising. In other words the traditional broadcast media. This is an area where many of the big charity brands continue to spend much time, effort and money – as well as giving the Advertising Standards Authority’s (ASA) something to do.

Below-the-line advertising centered on direct mail, fliers and forms of advertising that didn’t involve buying space (be it on the side of a bus, or on the radio).

These days the line is blurring, especially with the addition of the digital medium. We’ve covered below-the-line activities like web, direct mail and annual reports elsewhere in this section. However, even for smaller charities there are still opportunities to make a real impact with above-the-line advertising. You just have to be smart about how you go about it.

Where should you advertise?

The fact that so many charities regularly resort to shock tactics in their advertising is perfect illustration of how hard it can be to get your voice heard. If you’re a local charity or support organisation you probably have many local newspapers magazines, newsletters, fanzines and ‘free sheets’ – and that’s your starting point.

Think about where you want to advertise

That means that before placing an ad, you study the places and publications where you might want to advertise. Are they right for you?

If they accept advertising, find out how much it costs

Pages are usually sold on a full-page, half-page and quarter-page basis – with discounts provided for volume buys (i.e. 3 or 4 editions in a row. There are two types of advertising space available for sale. Display advertising is the space in the body of the publication, sandwiched between articles and editorial. Then there’s the classified ads, usually found at the back of a publication, often sold at much smaller sizes, and thus more affordable. Remember, that even in this day and age, people still tend to read the classifieds (What’s On, Loot or Time Out for example).

Find out their press/publication day

Advertising revenue has taken a serious downturn. As print deadlines near, those selling ad space will be more likely to offer discounts and deals to fill empty pages.

Use your charitable status to your advantage

Local publications are unlikely to literally give their advertising space away, but they may give you a ‘sweetheart deal’ based on your charitable status. What have you got to lose by asking?
 

Do it yourself?