"We are about to witness the deepest depression since the
1930's," reported Martin Weiss, Ph.D. for The Daily Reckoning.
Pessimistic as Weiss may seem, the facts lend credence to his
statement. Since the tragedy of September 11,more than 415,000
layoffs have been announced, initial jobless claims jumped to
528,000, the highest level in decades, consumer confidence has
tumbled and billions of dollars worth of business has been lost.
With new uncertainties raised by the attacks and many economists
forecasting a deep and prolonged recession, businesses will have
to do everything within their power to brace for the coming
storm and survive the bad times-predicted by some to be bigger
and more devastating than the Great Depression of 1929. Infact
a recent OECD Report says the "Global Slump Could Last Until
2003" Use these surefire strategies to immediately
recession-proof your business and you'll not only weather the
recession, but you'll come out on top of your competitors when
the economic tide reverses.
Diversify
In a weak economy, diversification may be your business' best
friend.The more services you can offer, the more clients you
will be able to find.For example,if you primarily create
business plans or marketing collateral for big name clients,
you could expand your services to include press releases, sales
letters, web content, or other business-related products and
services.And you can diversify even further by repackaging your
product and selling it to a different clientele. For example,
you could host a seminar or workshop on writing business plans. Each person who attends may not be able to pay your normal fee, but combined not only may you earn more, you could also score a few new clients. No matter what service you offer,with a little innovative thinking you should be able to develop several "new" offers. All of which will help keep you ahead while your niche-focused competitors bite the dust.
Offer Outstanding Customer Service
Once you've started attracting customers, you'll have to worry
about retaining them, and in a stagnating economy that may be
even more difficult. You must provide not only a high quality
product, but also exceptional customer service. When money's
tight, clients expect more for their dollar. If you want to
keep their business, you must keep them happy. Refine your
customer service strategy to insure that every step from taking
the order to delivering the product is client-focused and
effective. You may want to conduct a customer satisfaction
survey or two in order to make sure your customers' needs are
being met. Also consider making your service more valuable to
clients with faster delivery times, wider selections, or more
flexible payment terms.
Intensify Marketing
One of the biggest mistakes business owners make during periods
of economic slowdown is to cut back on marketing and advertising,
doing this could be most detrimental to your business.Instead,
your marketing needs to be more aggressive and more comprehensive
than ever. Start by contacting past clients and simply touching
base. Chances are a good number of them will have projects or
assignments for which your services may be required
Offer discounts, freebies, or other extras as incentives. You
may also want to set up a referral reward program for clients
as part of your marketing efforts. You also need to re-evaluate
your current marketing methods. If you are not seeing some
increase in sales from every dollar you spend on promotions,
then you are wasting valuable revenue. Whether you use
billboard ads, direct mailings, or the yellow pages now is the
time to make sure your current marketing is cost-effective and
efficient. I am often haunted by P.T. Barnum's stark reminder:
"Without promotion, something terrible happens - NOTHING!"
Position Yourself to be a Market Leader:
Are you content to follow the herd? Step outside of your
comfort zone and dare to lead than to follow. Set yourself
apart from the competition by developing your own USP-unique
selling position sometimes also referred to as ESA (Essential
Selling Advantage) What is your USP? It doesn't really matter
'what' your USP is as much as it matters that you have one.
Prospective customers MUST have a good reason to do business
with you rather than your competition.It could be your superior
customer service, your lifetime refund policy,best prices or the
outstanding quality of your products.You have absolutely no
reason to worry about the economic slowdown or competition
once your customers 'experience' your USP. Infact,you can use
your USP to ruthlessly eliminate your competitors.
Adopt Cutting edge Technologies
One of the best ways to stay ahead of your competitors is by
keeping up with current technology. So if you aren't familiar
with customer relation management software or even e-mail
marketing, now is the time to do so.You can put your business
online, advertise with well-placed banner ads, send out
information to potential clients via e-mail, outsource some of
your administrative duties, manage your payroll, or establish
an affiliate program all on the Internet. Current technology
can help your company run more efficiently and more cost
effectively, plus it can open access to clients in the next
city, in another state, or even enable you to compete in the
global marketplace. You'll have the potential to contact
millions of people who would otherwise have never heard of you
or your product and in a slow economy you need all the exposure
you can get.
Stay Focused
Nothing will damage your business more than business myopia or
short sightedness.. In order to stay successful, you must
always keep an eye on your long term goals and objectives.
You will hit rough spots but do not get bogged down in the
present. Do not make this mistake. Instead keep your eyes on
your target.Stay focused.Every decision, every cutback, every
improvement you make now must be beneficial not only in the
present but more importantly in the future. Think about this
before you slash prices, fire employees, cut overhead, or lower
your standards.
Seek New Ways to Improve
If you are like most people, you are content with the status
quo until something disturbs it. You should be constantly
re-evaluating not just your marketing plan, but all of your
business strategies including policies, pricing, and employee
performance. The idea is to eventually be as efficient and
effective as possible so your company runs smoothly and
profitably. Look closely at your competitors. Talk to business
leaders you respect. Read business management books.
Experiment. Solicit feedback from your workers and customers.
By doing several of these things you will accumulate a wealth
of knowledge and experience crucial to the survival of your
business.
As you read this tens of thousands of businesses across the
country are headed for extinction. Use these recession-proof
strategies immediately and you are guaranteed to see assets
where others see liabilities, opportunity where others see
failure, and extra profits where others see financial losses.
About the Author
Collin Almeida is a Product Licensing Consultant and
Publisher of the Strategic Marketing Audio Newsletter. visiting his website at
http://www.HowToRecessionProofYourBusiness.com or contact him at (541)736-9631.