Most activities we take part in experience ebb and flow - a period of high activity and a period of low activity. This is true in weight lifting where you work a muscle group hard one day and then have a rest and recovery day the next.

It is true in our sleep cycles; you only get five hours of sleep one day and you make up for it with a few extra hours the next night. It is also true in advertising, though many do not realize it. It would be great if we could put out one great ad that would last us for a decade or two, but that’s just not the way things go.

No, all advertising has a life cycle and you will find yourself rolling out new ads in an effort to keep your image vital and fresh in the public eye. If you have found yourself on the low end of that cycle and want to revitalize your marketing efforts, let me offer you a few suggestions.

Posters - No, posters are not just for the cinemas or the local ballet. Instead of running another tired newspaper ad that will get lost at the back of page 15D (seriously, have you seen the decline in newspaper readership these days?) why not opt for a medium that is really going to catch people’s attention? Custom poster printing can add a breath of fresh air to your public image and best of all, they are simple. An evocative image and a bold headline is all it takes to draw in customers and create interest.

Flyers - Handing out flyers works for the same reasons business cards work. We are socially hardwired to be accommodating in face-to-face interactions, which makes it harder to refuse or ignore a smiling person handing us something. Even if that flyer goes in the trash, it will more likely than not be viewed before being trashed.

It is just harder to tune out flyers than other forms of advertising. You do not have to take on the hands on approach, though. Flyers can work just as well tacked to community bulletin boards or slipped under the windshield wipers of parked cars.

Whatever medium you choose to use, and there is a print marketing option for every need, it is imperative that you adjust your marketing when you notice an ebb in ad effectiveness and customer response.

It is easy to get comfortable with a previously successful ad, letting it run month after month with diminishing returns, all the while wasting valuable marketing dollars. Stay ahead of the cycle. Update your marketing, let the influx of new customers, and profit flow.