Strive to Thrive: Marketing Success in a Slow Economy
 When budgets tighten under the pressure of a slow economy, organizations often take a conservative approach to marketing. However, when times are tight, it's more important than ever to keep your message going out to as many customers as possible. Regular, frequent communication is a fundamental marketing principle that can keep your customers engaged and position you not just to survive, but to thrive.
Key to Surviving: Keep Marketing!
Media coverage continues to exacerbate the fears of business owners. However, Jeffrey Pfeffer, professor of organizational behavior at Stanford's Graduate School of Business, recently said that it's crucial to avoid "succumbing to the madness of the crowd." When all around you, your competitors are cutting back on their marketing efforts, your best bet will be to stay in front of your customers with frequent, regular "touches."
Maintaining open lines of communication will sustain your business by:
- Keeping your brand in customers' minds
- Conveying your company's stability and reliability to your customers
- Providing opportunities to remind customers of the value of your products and services
Stick to the Basics: Educate, Don't Sell
As Proven Systems President and founder Marc Dube notes, marketing in its most basic form isn't selling — it's about getting your message to customers in a way that engages them, therefore predisposing them to working with your company. For long-term sales benefits, instead of spending on ads or sales campaigns, focus on keeping a relationship with your customers.
One of the most economical ways to get your message to customers is through eNewsletters. Eighty-three percent of large companies surveyed by Forrester Research reported investing in email marketing because of its high return on investment (ROI). The ability to send to large numbers of recipients coupled with the lower cost of sending email makes it significantly more affordable than most other forms of marketing.
Plan to Thrive
But it's not just the lower cost of sending eNewsletters that makes them attractive. Building and maintaining a connected relationship with your customers produces ongoing, repeat sales opportunities. Sending a regular eNewsletter to both existing and prospective customers:
- Grows your list of prospects
- Predisposes contacts to be receptive to cross-selling, upselling and promotions
- Allows you to announce new products and build excitement and expectation around upcoming products
Are you planning your 2009 budget and thinking about "survival mode?" Think instead about how to position yourself to thrive — now and during the economic recovery that will come. To learn how, contact the professionals at Proven Systems at (800) 720-5398 or info@provensystems.com. |
