Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Small Business Owners: Don't Stop Advertising in this Economy

By Clint Steiner

Recession does not discriminate. Whether you're a small business owner or the CEO of a Fortune-500 company, there's no escaping the effects of a recession. Cost cutting is rampant. People prepare food at home instead of dining out. Companies begin scaling back resources and laying off employees. How can a small business owner survive a difficult recession? What can be done to capture market share and keep a business growing during tough economic times?

First and foremost you need to delve into the consumers mind. Customers cannot live without making purchases in recession. However, the difference is that they will not make impulse purchases; rather they will research and then make a purchase to get a best deal. So how does a small business owner retain a customer?

Here are a few small business ideas which can help you to actually grow in recession:

Advertising: one of the major mistakes that happen during recession is that small business owners cut down or completely eliminate advertising. Doing this can make big difference since stopping advertising can make you lose a huge chunk of the market share

Customer loyalty: Fostering customer loyalty is even more important during a recession. To do this, you must understand and meet your customers' needs. Customers who feel appreciated will keep coming back time and time again.

Customer input: Getting feedback from your customers through surveys or other tools will provide valuable information about how your customers are managing during a recession. This will help you create customer loyalty by choosing the right products and services that are tailored to you customers' needs.

Have a good business plan: Planning is one of the most important ways to manage resources in a recession. You'll need to run a well-oiled machine in order to keep costs low and increase your business during a recession. You can't do this without a clear business plan.

Locality specialist: Its often seen that with the increase in gas prices, customers often visit their neighborhood shops more than the big malls. Try advertising through flyers and other means to make your customers aware of your presence.

Discounts: Recession makes every one look for discounts and great offers. Hence its a great small business idea to offer customers discounts in every way you can. Be sure to advertise the discounts in the neighborhood.

Make customer convenience a priority: Many customers just don't want to spend time shopping for every-day needs. This is why home delivery and dial up services can grow your customer base.

Promotional offers: Even though cash-strapped customers focus on saving money during a recession, we all need to splurge at times. Come up with creative promotional ideas and discounts that will attract new customers.

These small business ideas can help you to enhance your business in a great way. You can even build a small business website for your business which can make your business truly global. So use these small business ideas and see your business beat recession and grow!

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