With marketing budgets under scrutiny, doing more with less is essential for creating a positive return on your investment. The fact is that marketing budgets are shrinking in today’s difficult economic climate. This is the exact opposite of what should actually happen. When times are tough, its time to start marketing.
How can you do more with a shrinking budget? The answer is simple. Create more way to market in a viral way. Essentially, let others do the selling for you. Here are a few suggestions for getting your marketing moving.
Leverage all of your assets. As a business, are you leveraging every customer interaction you have? Whether it is on the phone, face-to-face, or over the Internet, how frequently do you use that opportunity to ask about other needs or pain points?
Make a conscious effort to ask for referrals. In many industries, referrals are the lifeblood of the business. Starting a referral campaign is easy and can be done simply by asking. You may also consider offering an incentive to individuals who pass along your name or encourage others to transact with your company.
Focus on your communications. If you are sending letters, giving away business cards, or packing someones groceries, be sure to include a flier or message about other products and services you offer. You may even consider a special offer that can be included with each of these touch points.
Test. Test. Test. When marketing budgets go south, many businesses stop experimenting and trying new campaigns. Although you wont have the money to try anything, you may simply try new “value adds” or other things that can improve your conversion rates at the retail level or online. Consider adding a frequent shopper club.
Improving marketing results does not have to cost you money. In fact, some of the best, most successful marketing ideas were started with little or no money. Think viral. How can you leverage the assets you already have? By taking what you have and making it better or expanding it, your results will often scale. To many people stop short of fully riding out their marketing campaigns and enjoying the results they can achieve if only they persist.
One final idea to consider. Take a closer look at your website. Can you do more to attract visitors and have them provide some information about themselves? This could be access to a free instructional video or ebook. As the economy worsens, people are looking for more free information and helpful advice. So give it to them. The result will be a trusting relationship. When they have money, they will buy from your versus your competitors.
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