What Advertising Can’t Do

A twelfth-century proverb tells us much about business and marketing. Indeed, there is great wisdom in the saying that “you can lead a ​hor​se to water, but you can’t make it drink.” Here’s how this phrase applies to show us what advertising can’t do…

Even though you may think marketing would create immediate opportunities for business this simply isn’t true. Advertising doesn’t make a sale.​ It can’t.  You make the sale!

​Imagine a horseback rider who is annoyed because after riding a bit the animal should hydrate itself but doesn’t. The trail has led to the bubbling brook, but the horse won’t sip. That irrational frustration is shared by people who think advertising equals immediate results. Even the greatest coupon with the highest discounts doesn’t guarantee results. 

Advertising can’t guarantee sales.  The greatest marketing campaign has huge power to influence but it simply cannot force people to buy a product or click on a website. Regardless of what the unicorn-and-rainbows “experts” always believe​ about how their magic pixie dust marketing can accomplish,​ it can’t make people do anything.​  Advertising influences.  That’s it.  It builds awareness over time. Think of ads as long-term investments that pay off gradually. Keeping your logo in front of clients helps you be the choice when the need arises.​ Don’t you want to be top of mind when someone thinks of your industry?  ​

​For any campaign to be effective it must be paired with a viable and affordable need or want. You can have the brightest billboard or the loudest commercial but if your product is subpar then the ad spend does ​little ​good. Let’s say your spot encourages people to call for information but no one answers the phone or voicemail isn’t set up. That’s not the fault of the advertisement. Or maybe an ad drives traffic to your website but if it’s outdated​ and crashes. Or when an employee is speaking it makes a potential customer lose confidence in your business. Poor customer experiences void any advertising budget.​ Marketing doesn’t make the sale!  The purpose of marketing is to create awareness and make clients curious. You could even say that good marketing creates a thirst for your company.

The thirst for your brand is what leads people to action.  ​Effective advertising creates this thirst so that your product o​r​ service is actually desired like a parched person craves water.​ It places your company on the forefront.​​ The rest is up to you! The proverb is true “you can lead the horse to water but can’t make them drink.” It’s also true that you can make the customer thirsty and that’s accomplished through consistent branding.