Your Small Business Marketing Guide in a Recession

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Your world will never be the same.

Sounds like a bit of an ominous statement doesn’t it?

Considering the amount of bad news that flows throughout our daily lives it’s nearly impossible to look at the above statement and attach a positive meaning to it, however I see great opportunity in what I am writing to you.

We are witnessing our world undergo huge changes almost daily. In the past few years, we’ve seen an historic shift of technology and economy unlike any other, and the transition is not near completion.

“The only constant is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be.”
- Isaac Asimov

Change will always occur, that’s inevitable. As Asimov reminds us, a lack of acknowledgment or understanding of this change can make or break businesses [and lifestyles] forever.

Where Did The Money Go?
The advent of global economy and technology-enabled business practices are in a rapid state of flux. Growth and change are a given in business, but we’ve never witnessed such rapid transition in such a short time period, the effects of which are being felt on every streetcorner of the world.

The recent economic events and credit crunch are moving the tectonic plates of business and the cozy confines of national or local economy are shifting to a global platform. These shape-shifting occurrences are too large, too rapid and there are too many moving parts even for the experts to comprehend.

How does this effect you?
For starters, just look around your neighborhood, listen to your neighbors or friends. The global housing bubble has popped. This part of the puzzle will directly effect you, me, and every citizen on this planet as millions upon millions have based so much of their personal wealth, retirement, and family around their homes.

Next, consider that just recently the first of the Baby Boomer generation retired and a trickle began the first stage to what will certainly turn into a raging river of generational change. A large portion of the Boomers base their retirement on two major components: housing and the stock market. This is the largest generation we’ve ever seen. They will be transitioning to their golden years and many will be forced to retire due to health problems, job competition, etc. The problems we’ve experienced in both housing and stocks and the pressures felt by Boomers will shape the future of business significantly.

The massive transfer of wealth and earning potential from Boomers to Generation X is underway. Further, more jobs will be handed down to a smaller group of people, which will cause a ripple effect of opportunity. On the other hand there will be less total disposable income coming from the Gen Xers vs. the Boomers because of this. Many businesses will be effected as their sales are forecast on a premise of Boomer spending that simply will cease to exist.

You + Me + Technology
The advent of web technology and tools such as laptops, e-commerce and social media are contributing to a massive global population shift. We aren’t uprooting and destination-bound like people were in 1849 during the Gold Rush, but the tides are changing nevertheless. We don’t need to move houses, we have moved into a new virtual space in our minds and the impact is huge. We don’t do business like we used to, we don’t shop like we used to, we don’t interact like we used to, we don’t write letters, we don’t do a lot of things that were commonplace as little as 10 years ago.

In addition the growing trend of crowdsourcing will effect every aspect of life from politics and religion to science/technology and business. It’s also becoming common for corporations to listen in and have their customers or focus groups do the thinking for them. This is not a case of the evil overlord manipulating his pawns – many are willing to do the work – they’re even passionate about it. This is smart for businesses and brings about a more community-oriented, inclusive customer relationship in the process.

Do you think the Twitter trend on Capitol Hill will have an effect on politics? Do you think social networks such as Facebook will or the gravitation from television to online media will change business? You bet it will.

Your local shop
The speed and connectivity of web-enabled business has given consumers a power unlike they’ve ever had in history. This will continue to make a huge slice of the business pie disappear. A product seller or distributor will have to really take a look at their business model and ask themselves how they will be able to compete or how they add value. Many local storefronts have already become casualties of this movement. The reality is many store owners will be expecting customers to travel to them in addition to paying the shop overhead when often that same customer can compare dozens of prices, offers and customization options for the same product in an instant online.

Here’s where you’re wondering about the great opportunity I mentioned earlier…

As you’ve probably come to expect from my blog posts I am an eternal optimist for your small business. True, I see many doors closing and many businesses becoming extinct, but these shifts are being nothing more than opportunities for you. These shifts are part of the natural ebb and flow of the business life cycle. They are a reminder that the world will always change.

“Necessity, who is the mother of invention.”
-Plato

When we look to the future we can feel comfort in the fact that we as people always do our best work in times of need. Right now business needs to change. Right now business owners are seeing their profits drop and necessity is staring them in the face.

Pattern-recognition is a survival method innate to many a living creature. The patterns are difficult to detect in the business world because it’s changing by the minute. Not having the time or knowledge to recognize these patterns might overwhelm some business owners into making a bad decision for themselves. The single most important work a business owner can do is to spend time on their identity. What is my business? Who are my competitors? Where is the business world going? How can I be positioned for where it’s headed? These are a handful of a hundred questions to answer for business success. The prevalent pattern is one of flow, of a shift in power from corporation to consumer, from passive television watching to active internet searching. That’s the pattern you need to see here. In addition, if you’re waiting for things to get back to normal, I’m here to tell you, they won’t.

Someone moved the cheese. Let’s find some new cheese.

I see great opportunity for businesses that create their own product. Today’s business world demands not only something to be created but it must be unique in what it offers or it will get lost in the shuffle. Give your business a unique product, something with value and it will be given every chance to succeed. Your business has a global reach. You have the ability to put your product in the hands of someone halfway around the globe. That is mind-blowing. You just have to put a product out there that will do the work for you. You can’t physically travel the globe in ways that your product can. Create a product that will do the walking and the talking for you.

I see great opportunity for unique service-based businesses. The key word here is ‘unique’. The ‘me too’ business doesn’t differentiate itself so it’s already going to have a harder time standing out. Create a service or add to your service by latching on to the wants or needs of your customer. What does your hotel customer need? What does your technology offer to save them time? How can you be unique? There are many free tools available online to help you gain the answers to these questions and distribute your message to your target. The sheer volume of social tools available to you on the web is incredible. These tools are essential to your service. Again, create something that will walk and talk for you.

Now is the time to spend as much time on strategy than ever. Now is the time for you to stop the busy part of business and really ask yourself how you can answer the questions I’ve raised.

The shift is happening.

Your world will never be the same. That’s a good thing.

9 Tips for Successful Social Media Marketing

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Although everything has been said about it, one gets still surprised by the number of people who have no clear idea about social media marketing. The only thing that people are starting to realize is that it is not a walk in the park to initiate a social media campaign. A good and effective social marketing offensive is definitely as complex as any other media advertisement campaigns.

Primarily, it is not about commercial campaigning, but sustained presence. This leads to new contacts and new opportunities for companies, as well as strengthening their existing customer relationships and branding effects. The following 9 tips for successful social media marketing may contribute to a better understanding.

1. Stay on Top and Update Regularly!

One of the most common mistakes is that businesses euphorically build their profiles on any given platform, are thrilled by how many people “like” it or follow them, and then turn around and concentrate on other things which seem more important at the time, apparently without realizing what kind of damage they do to their reputation and their brands. You don’t have to write a new blog post every single day, but I think it is not too much to ask to update your status on Facebook, Twitter & Co. on a daily basis.

People fail to realize that these messages are the foundation of their relationships in the social networks and that they leave an impact on potential customers who may visit the profile in order to gain an impression of the provider. Irregular or infrequent updated profiles may indicate unreliability or inactivity. And never forget that your competition is just a click away, waiting to convert these potential customers into regular clients.

2. Do Not Pitch!

As already mentioned before, social media is about building relationships and not about troubling some random contact with your newest business idea. Direct advertising is frowned upon and how you get in touch with someone has also something to do with respect. Not everyone who is interested has an immediate requirement but may keep you in mind for future projects. A pitch in social media is totally inappropriate and destroys more than it could ever achieve.

3. Communicate!

You don’t have to comment on every single post or respond to everything which is being said on your profiles. But to turn a blind eye also doesn’t cut it. It’s like in the real world; How can we possibly come in contact with somebody without communicating?

Get involved, reply to comments (where it seems appropriate), contribute to some interesting discussions if you have something to say and time permits.

4. Think, Then Post!

What you write on the Internet is public and it will be there forever. Keep this always in the back of your head before you post something instead spontaneously posting everything which crosses your mind.

5. Handle Criticism with Style!

We all have a bad day every now and then and it will happen that somebody posts something negative on your profile. Let it be there and do not delete it! Unless there is something you have to correct, simply ignore it.

One should also remember that everyone makes mistakes and not every criticism is unjustified or undeserved. React to legitimate criticism with humility and merely explain your position, OK?

If there are several critical comments, it is not necessary to respond to every single one individually. Give a well thought-through general statement and show your followers that you really care about them. And then, and that’s really important, analyze what mistakes you made to prevent them in the future.

6. Link other Content!

Rather than always to post your own content, you can and should also link to post created by others. However, the problem remains that you have to consider first whether the post is relevant. The posting you consider to link on you pages must be related to your own sphere of expertise as well as relevant to your audience. Prevent to be perceived as just another “Retweeter”.

7. Do not just share Business Content!

There is no reason to hide the human side of your company, to the contrary! Is there a BBQ or something extraordinary in everyday life which was photographed or filmed by your employees? Publish it! Such content always conveys a positive image.

8. Set a Weekly Trend

To share something once a week at a given time will set a trend that will be rapidly picked up by your followers. This could be for example a specific content or an “offer of the week” if you run a retail establishment. Trends always spread and will bring traffic and increase customer loyalty.

9. Guide People to Your Profiles!

It’s great to promote yourself through social media but it shouldn’t stop there. It is equally important to draw attention to your platform from the outside. A great way to do this is to create an e-mail signature with direct links or to put QR-Codes on letterheads and business cards. There is also nothing to be said against a “like us” link on your website.