Welcome to Part III, which concludes this topic from my previous posts.
The most common mistake companies make in a down economy is cutting or eliminating their current marketing budget. In fact, companies should beef up their budget, and become more aggressive in their marketing efforts when the economy is suffering. Why? Because in a recession, there are more companies just like yours going after the same clients. If you don’t put your best marketing foot forward in both print and online communication, your competitors will.
Bhaskar Chakravorti, Senior Lecturer of Business Administration at Harvard Business School recently made a comment to reinforce this point: “Most managers tend to focus on cost management and operational efficiencies when they strategize during a downturn. While there is nothing wrong with that, I do think such measures often miss the unintended consequences of the actions. Cost cutting can severely impair your ability to be competitive or could cause you to lose customers. This creates an opening for entrepreneurs who think holistically.”*
Here are five more marketing strategies that will allow your company to be recession-proof, without blowing your budget:
11. Advertise online with websites that cater to your target audience.
Online advertising, the most popular of which is banner advertising, can be a smart and affordable lead-generating avenue for your business. What is a banner ad you ask? They all share a basic function: if you click on them, your Internet browser will take you to the advertiser’s Web site. An ad can be static, animated, or incorporate rich media such as audio and video. The most important key to success is to create visually-appealing ads with interesting content, and to intelligently place the ads so they are exposed to audiences that would be interested in them. Combining these qualities is a simple concept, but effectively accomplishing this can be a challenge. Hiring a professional can save your business a lot of time and energy by doing the research for you, and creating an ad that achieves results.
12. Join the social networking scene.
Social networking websites function like an online community of internet users, many of whom share a common interest. Though some social sites are aimed at building friendship networks, others focus on creating and maintaining business relationships as well. Top social networking sites include Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Each have their own capabilities and “flavor”, so check them out to see if any of them make sense for your business.
13. Participate in online discussion groups.
Go to your favorite group search engine page, and type in your product or service, and you will find several groups, forums and chat rooms where you or your business can contribute. Sift through the topics regularly to find posts where you can provide expert help and feedback that specifically relates to your business. Try to establish a relationship with regular members, who will then be more likely to turn to you for your product or service. And, remember to always include your contact info with each posting, along with a direct link to your website.
14. Try keyword advertising to lead qualified buyers to your website.
Online advertisers can buy keyword advertising on a search engine, such as Google or Yahoo, so that their ads are displayed when someone performs a particular search. If an advertiser buys up keywords related to their product or service, they can potentially increase the number of visitors who click on the banner ad (or click-throughs), because the visitor has already demonstrated an interest in finding sites on that particular subject. With keyword advertising, you are only charged if someone clicks on your ad. Search engines provide a free keyword tool to help you select keywords that may fit your product or service. Pricing varies by search engine and keyword.
15. Create your own workshop.
After you’ve published some articles online, and hopefully have received some feedback from your readers, it may be a good idea to create your own workshop. Determine which articles received the most positive response and what may be a “hot” topic in your industry, and build from there. I’m not talking about a weekend conference by any means, but rather a 1-2 hour interactive exchange of information that your audience would appreciate. This can be done in-person, over the phone or even on the web—free, or for a small fee. Workshops are a great way to establish yourself or your business as an expert, and can be an inexpensive way to market your product or service.
Despite the pressures of today’s tough economic climate, companies need to be both innovative and aggressive with their marketing dollar. If you follow these secrets to marketing in a recession, your company will outlive your competitors, and reap the rewards once the economy stabilizes.
* Quoted from Creative Entrepreneurship in a Downtown, Q&A with Bhaskar Chakravorti, by Martha Lagace, February 23, 2009.
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