Economy Gotcha Down? Why You Need To Make A Marketing Push Now

Right now you, along with just about everyone else, is afraid to spend money. The current uncertainty and "dooms day" reports by media about an impending recession have got people scared to do much of anything but cut back on everything. I get it! I do! Even I have cut back my spending on non-essentials, but not on marketing and growing my business.

Over the years, I've fallen victim to budget cuts and slow economies resulting in a "pink" slip (once after returning from a fun and restfull vacation - what a bubble buster). This is because when things slow down businesses look at the first things they "think" they can cut, and that typically becomes marketing.

But I have to tell you that NOW is the time to boost your marketing efforts. How are you going to make business better when you all but terminate communications to customers? I've never quite understood this rationale.

Think about it this way - right now you have a unique opportunity to build customer loyalty by being a business that really cares and wants to make life easier for customers. Trust me, what you do today, during tough economic times will be remembered by customers and create a long-term relationship that will only grow your business. There are ways to do this affordably but still get your point across. What you need now more than ever is pure determination.

Here are some tips for promoting your business and building loyalty during economic down times:

Couponing - show you care by offering discounts at your store/business. Everyone is looking for a bargain right now

Regular, ongoing discounts - this can come in the shape of a customer loyalty or membership program where anyone who signs up receives a regular discount every time they make a purchase. OR you can run a long-term promotion open to any and all customers, supported by store/window signage, advertising, etc.

Incentives and trials - maybe as part of your sales promotion you offer a free gift or service. This will not only bring people in to try your store/product/business, but people love free stuff and they often will want to let others in on their "big find".

Other freebies - complimentary services including consulting. Anything that is a "bonus" offering. This is the time when you will need to go above and beyond for others. Call it "The Secret", "the universe at work" or what you will, but I'm a big believer that when you go above and beyond the call of duty for others that it will come back to you.

GET OUT THERE! Now is not the time to sit behind your desk or counter all day. You are the best marketing tool your business has so get out there and tell people about your business. One client of mine does a particularly great job at this. She went to Kinko's and had business card-sized coupon cards made and she hands them out to everyone she meets. Believe or not, she has gotten a pretty decent return on an idea that cost her about $25. Mostly because she is really determined to build one-on-one relationships with everyone she meets and turn them into customers.

No matter how you decide to connect with customers right now the key is communicating it. That means you will still need to advertise, but maybe you cut back on the number of outlets and pick only one, three or four that directly target your customer. It's also a good time to pursue an affordable element like PR as media are looking for all kinds of information to provide readers on how to save money, especially with the holidays coming up.

The reality is that most of your customers are going to start flinching a little bit when they have to pay full price. What you have to do is show them you get it by giving them more for their money, or be willing to offer discounts to drive sales. Many of you might not be willing to reduce your prices but wouldn't you rather get the sale and make a little bit less than not get the sale at all?

Marketing Your Business Takes Patience, Perseverance and Persistance

After a long day of simply running your business it can be difficult to sit down and make time to focus on marketing. Even I sometimes stop at the end of the day and think "do I have to?". And you do if you want to maintain the business you have and continue to reach new customers.

Building a brand and marketing your business is a long-term, ongoing process that doesn't stop after the first ad, sales promotion or media story.

Actively marketing your business requires patience, perseverance and persistance. It is the number one way to ensure your success and make your dreams of running a thriving business come to fruition. However, it is a stumbling ground for most who are full of ideas but never seem to get around to implementing them. That's why you need to put them on paper and prioritize your marketing goals.

Here are some of the marketing priorities that should be on your list:

Brand Identity - logo creation: Does your logo/brand represent your business the way you want people to perceive it? Building a brand identity you're happy with is crucial because it is how customers will "see" you; identify with your company. It must have longevity. You can't afford to brand a logo only to change it and start all over again.

Website - In today's world, your website is the first step customers will take in the buying cycle - research. It is in many ways the first impression they will recieve on your business so you have to make sure it's up to snuff. Chris Nastav, KC Web Specialists, has provided plenty of great tips for your website here. Review them, learn them and use them.

Key messages - what are the 10 key messages you want to be sure to communicate about your business in every marketing element? In your elevator pitch?

Marketing Tactics - outline how you plan to communicate to your audience(s) about your business. Is it through advertising (what kind, where and when), using PR (what's your story), direct mail or email, sales and/or cross promotions, sponsorships, etc?

You wouldn't construct a building without a blue print so why would you build your business without a business and marketing plan? Putting your marketing ideas on paper, making them real, will help you see the game plan or vision for your business. It will also, most importantly, keep you on task with what you need to do and when. Don't stress about marketing your business. Create a plan and a timeline of implementation that you review weekly. It will give you direction and much needed peace of mind.

Jennifer Fortney, Cascade Communications, www.cascadecomms.com

It's a Bloggers World

In recent years blogging has not only become a well-known term, but an everyday resource for news and information. There are blogs on just about every topic available to anyone interested in anything, run by "amateur journalists" who are positioning themselves as key tastemakers in the market. Even I admit to reading certain blogs relative to media news and personal interest on a weekly, or daily, basis.

So what do blogs mean to you? Well, I've discussed the importance of embracing non-traditional media, and this is a reason why. These ordinary, everyday individuals could be a key factor in communicating directly to your audience; they are committed to distributing news and information to their audiences and that includes your business.

The hardest part is breaking through to this group of burgeoning thought leaders. With the growing influence of "mommy bloggers", for example, it is becoming more difficult to achieve pure PR on their blogs. They understand their position and prefer, for the most part, to seek your advertising dollars. And for the most part if your business fits in a category like this, it is more than worth your time to consider it. Other bloggers are more interested in content, but the real key is this: You must understand the blog, it's content and what the goal of the blogger is.

"Small Business Daily" , a blog I recently started with several other small business experts, is dedicated to providing tips and real information to entrepreneurs and small business owners. We're not looking for editorial or PR pitches, but to share our knowledge. I can't tell you how many PR pitches we get in a week. These people simply don't take the time to understand the blog and it's purpose, which is stated clearly at the top of the page.

Take some time to research the blogs that are relevant to your business and subscribe to them. Become familiar with them and determine how you might be able to pitch a story to them that they would be interested in. One, more importantly, that their readers will be interested in.

Finaly, consider starting your own blog, if relative to your business. BUT you have to commit to posting at least three times a week. Now, even I get behind.... but having a blog can boost the search engine optimization of your website and reinforce how your customers perceive you and your business, as well as enhancing the perception of potential customers.

The Importance of a "Marketing State of Mind"

Not everyone has the "marketing gift". Meaning that marketing - understanding it - doesn't come easily to everyone, but it is one of the most important things you can do for yourself and your business.

How do you exactly develop a "marketing state of mind"? First you have to look at the obvious things about your business - where are you communicating, to whom are communicating and how? Understanding this is the first step. Then you need to put yourself in your potential customer's shoes and evaluate your messages and methods of communication.

Sometimes, the most obvious things are the one's that seem the most confounding. For instance, like making sure the sign on your office building is large and more importantly, clear and easy to read. Banners are another aspect and must always be put up where traffic is most likely to see it.

Understanding the different aspects of marketing, how they work, and how they can be most affective is another crucial step to getting the right frame of mind. Buy books, ask experts for their advice or to teach you how things work. Do whatever you need to in order to better understand marketing. Until then you might just be wasting your valuable money on tactics that aren't reaching your customers.

Once you've embraced the several elements of the marketing mix you can begin to determine what avenues of communication and promotion are right for your business - and that also means determining what you can afford to do and do well for a period of time.

Remember that marketing is a long-term process. It takes time for people to remember who you are, become acquainted with your business and build a relationship with you. One that will result in either them becoming your customer or them referring you to someone who is need of your product or service.

The most important thing to remember is this: If I was my customer how would you reach me?

Utilizing Social Media Like The Big Boys Do

While public relations is still a mainstay for achieving valuable third-party endorsements, there is no doubt that learning to utilize the Internet can take your brand building efforts further.

I am a religious subscriber to only a few solid marketing sites, where my contemporaries share their thoughts and experience on marketing and branding in a 2.0 world. iMedia Connection is a great resource even for small businesses to learn about branding, why it's important to making your business successful and how you can take ideas from the big boys and make it work for you.

This latest article I found very helpful, Learn to Syndicate Your Brand by Adam Broitman. This is his specialty and he offers some great examples of how larger companies are utilizing the variety of social media available and the power of RSS Feeds.

In today's world of millions of web media, blogs and traditional media, a comprehensive integrated marketing campaign is one of the many keys to generating awareness and revenue for your business. The tools that Broitman suggests can easily be manipulated to fit your business, with a little bit of creativity, and support your public relations and advertising or direct mail campaigns. And, it's affordable.

You really have to stay on top of your marketing, though, and ensure that your messages are always new, always relevant and continuously leading consumers to your brand. Once your customers begin recognizing your brand identity it will lead them to trial. Give them a great experience and they may adopt your business long term.

Attracting Media Attention

Generating positive public relations is all about THE STORY. What is your story and why are you unique in the industry or amongst your competition.

When I sit down to learn about a new business I often listen for key things:

1. What is your direct competition in the market like? How unique are you?
2. What made you decide to go into this industry? Is there a personal story here?
3. Do you plan on growing your business by looking at other products and services or expanding what you have to create something new?

Today's media want to cover the hottest new trends. Period. They're looking for something no one else has covered or a lead for a future story.

It's important that you follow your local media (and favorite national pubs) and the writers you'd like to produce a story on your business. Also, following national trends and jumping on opportunities can be extremely beneficial.

Take the green movement right now. Everyone jumped on the Earth Day bandwagon and it was a crowded news week, but did you know that there are two other noted dates on the calendar dedicated to green living and recycling?

With the down turn of the economy everyone is looking for new ways to save money. Editors might be more interested in your budget-friendly product/service, upcoming promotion, discount or sale than you know. It's all about being aware of what's happening and seeing how your business is applicable. When trends are hot, journalists are looking for all kinds of tips.

For the DIYers it can be as simple as writing a related pitch to the writer connecting the trend to your business. If anything they'll keep your information on file as a potential reference for a future story. That's the kind of expert positioning that builds real credibility!

How would you answer the questions above? It could determine whether your PR program is successful or not. Think like a journalist, interview yourself and dig through what's specifically interesting about you and your business. Journalists don't want the same information and story they've already written. They want something new and of current interest.

Believe me, everyone has a unique story to tell and it's always interesting.

Keep Your Business in The News With Growth

Over the years I've worked with a wide variety of businesses. Corporations that missed the mark in communicating to their customers and shut down, those that refused to put money in to appropriately making a mark in their industry, those who've been successful all around and businesses that went to market with one product, and one product only to wonder within five years why they're going belly up.

This last group, while successful initially, begins to decline and fall off consumer's radar because they failed to grow their business and keep their key messages in front of customers. They fail to continue generating their brand.

When you start a business with a simple idea you can't forget to consider where your company can go. Becoming a successful long-term entrepreneur, or business owner, is defined by your ability to grow; to look forward and branch your company off into including new products and services.

This is really important not only to overall success but to the success of ongoing marketing programs.

Understand one thing about public relations, if you don't have a story or a new story you will stop generating press. The same can be said for other forms of marketing where your messages can become stale over time. While media outlets will be more than happy to take your advertising dollars, the message will begin to bounce off consumers with no impact whatsoever.

One of the first things I consider when I talk with a new potential client is whether or not they have a vision for their business and ideas to grow it by creating new products and services to meet the needs of a broader audience. For me as a publicist it means two things: the company will either become a one-time client or a long-term client. I prefer long-term clients.

To be honest, you can get all the media in the world when you launch your business and become outrageously successful, but the reality is that unless you keep that momentum going by developing new brands for your business then that success will begin to reverse and you'll be left wondering why your customers aren't returning.

Starting and owning a long-term successful business in today's world demands ingenuity, drive, passion, and the desire to become everything you know the business can become. It also requires actively marketing your business. You can't afford to manage your business any other way.

How Crunches in Media Effect You

Although it has presented a load of opportunities for businesses and individuals, the Internet has been very hard on traditional media, especially newspapers and TV. Those who failed to embrace the Internet right off the bat are making staff cuts that can hurt your chances of achieving positive public relations, unless you're knowledgeable and sensitive.

Today's editors are not only doing their jobs but in most cases the jobs of their staff, which have been pink-slipped. In smaller daily papers across the country you will notice more and more wire stories peppered throughout the publication with only truly local news handled by staff writers. The cuts have also lead to an increase of freelance writers, who were more than likely prior with the publication.

So what does this mean to you and your business? It means that it can be harder to get an editor on the phone to discuss your news, that freelance writers are nearly impossible to get to directly and that you need more patience in waiting to get your story placed. Remember that these media are now in competition with the Internet, in some cases, and they're looking for stories that are right now, the newest thing and they want it before anyone else gets it.

The good news is that as many of these media begin to embrace the Internet, with news that rotates out faster and is updated more often, they will be looking for more news and content for their websites. The other good news is that as journalists break off on their own and launch their own news sites and e-zines, there is even more opportunity to generate positive press for your business.

I also believe that every business should have an online pressroom and press kit that is attached to an RSS feed. This will help distribute your news directly to the editors, bloggers and writers who are interested in your industry/category.

It's always fun to see your name in print in the local daily newspaper, but we all need to begin to shift our perception of what that means to us personally and what it means to the success of our businesses.

Super Bowl Ads Return to Creative, Intelligent

Super Bowl 2008 was probably one of the best championship games we've seen in a decade. The combination of great, inventive and intelligent advertisements made for very few safe periods of time to get up and hit the bathroom or get another plate of ribs. Everyone at the party I attended were glued to their seats for three and half hours.

In years past, advertising agencies have tried to outdo themselves from the year before, but the ads that aired seemed like private jokes created by a highly caffinated bunch of executives that were locked in a conference room for too long. This year was a completely different story.

Gone were the futuristic, overdone technology spots and in their place was the return of human nature ads, and some that tugged at our hearts. Especially the Budweiser horse training like Rocky and Coca-Cola's "It's Mine" (you always wanted Charlie Brown to win something!).

Also, there was a new creativity coming from new advertisers - Life Water, Vitamin Water, Garmin and Under Armor. The ads were refreshing and really fun to watch. On the otherhand CareerBuilder.com took, well, an interesting take on finding a job that you love. Sometimes a bit morbid, gory and definitely surprising, the ads did make one wonder where each would go. They were creative but not necessarily my favorite.

What can small businesses learn from this year's Super Bowl advertiser's approach? That people are always interested in human nature, and whether it was humor or a tug at the heart spot we respond to things that hit us emotionally. The most successful ads of the Super Bowl were those for companies seeking to enhance our lifestyles. Even Bridgestone's "Unexpected Obstacles" gave us something to relate to - running over Richard Simmons, or at least nearly missing him.

Small businesses need to learn first to differentiate themselves from competitors and then find interesting, creative ways to communicate to customers. Determine what value your service or product has and then, for lack of a better term, step outside the box to communicate these messages.

GoDaddy.com created an interactive program to generate click throughs to the company website. This is a great tip for small businesses because the entire goal is to drive business. Moreover, it gives you an opportunity to track interest, since it is nearly impossible to track ROI on advertising unless the customer is given an incentive.

My favorite ads of 2008 are attention getting, humorous, creative, did a great job communicating the brands, and lastly they used incredible star power:

1. Budwesier - The Clydesdale Team
2. Bridgestone - Unexpected Obstacles
3. Coca-Cola - It's Mine
4. Glaceau's Vitamin Water - Jockey
5. Garmin - Napoleon
6. GoDaddy.com - Spot On
7. Planter's (Kraft) - Perfume
8. Pepsi - Magnetic Attraction
9. Sobe Life Water - Thrillicious
10. Under Armour - The Gathering

You can view all of the ads again at Ad Age.

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