A recent study done by Ad-ology (a research firm for the advertising industry) shows that nearly fifty percent of adults in the U.S. believe that a lack of advertising by retail stores, banks, auto dealerships and other mainstream large companies during a recession– indicates that those businesses must be struggling.

These results do not bode well for all of those businesses, big and small, who have decided to reduce their marketing budgets in order to save money. Ad-ology’s study shows that advertising appears to play a key role in a consumer’s view of how a business is doing financially, and by not advertising– businesses may be causing current customers and potential customers to shy away from buying their products or services.

“It is critical to advertise in the current economic climate, to maintain long-term positive consumer perception of your brand,” said C. Lee Smith, President & CEO of Ad-ology Research.

“Advertising not only assures consumers of a business’ reliability in a soft economy, but it can influence where and what they buy, especially when the ads address concerns about value.”, said Smith.

Cutting your advertising budget is the equivalent of committing business suicide.  In a recession people are tight with their money, but they will still buy what they need and if they find your competition (who IS marketing) before they find you– Your competitor will get their business– Not you.  Cutting your advertising budget may seem like a quick fix to your budget woes now, but it’s amplifying your problems in the near future.

Have you reduced your business’s advertising budget?  If the answer is yes, has there been a dramatic effect on the amount of business you’ve had lately?

Recession got the phones on hold?

Have you heard the sound of silence yet? You know, phones idle in their cradles. The economy is slow and lagging more than ever. We’ve felt it in every state of the union as well as around the world now. So, what’s the next step? Cut advertising, travel, training, marketing? Cut purchasing? The anxiety level is starting to hit the roof, and your sales force is seeing a dramatic cut in their checks. They get the “salesman Blues”, or just quit. What can you do about the “it’s not getting better” attitude.

Can You Could Reach Your Market Without Incurring hardly any Cost?

How often do you work with your referral base? The only investment is your time. If you are referred to a customer, 70% of the job is done for you. They already know about you and your services, so are pre-sold on the idea. When this occurs, profits and sales go up. Follow these 10 “Working” strategies and watch your business boom.

10 “Working Strategies” to Attracting New Business in a down Economy

1. Look at who you are as a Business. Do you think you can broaden your approach to your services or products? If you have to re-invent yourself in order to penetrate DO IT!

2. Don’t stop and smell the flowers! The saying “only the quick survive.” is a saying for a reason. Learn how to make quick sounds decisions for your business and go for it. Slow down now and it’s over!

3. Repeat business from current customers is essential to your survival. Your current client base needs to be catered to, and fawned over. Customer service is everything.

4. Time management for the sales force. What needs to be chased first, or completed before the little things need to be done? Remember “what’s closest to cash”

5. Become an Authority. People will refer you if it is known that YOU are the “go to company” in your field.

6. NETWORK NETWORK NETWORK!! ’nuff said

7. Bundle your services to increase value. NEVER CUT YOUR PRICES as this diminishes the perceived value on your product of services.

8. Treat your referrals as the gold they are. your customer has gone out of their way to hand one of THEIR customers to you. This means their reputation is on the line as well as yours. Treat them right and you will find that more will be on their way.

9. Contact everyone. You may think that the one call you got this week is not important because they were looking for the least profitable item on your list, but who is to say that their next purchase is not the biggest ticket item? Communicate with thank you cards, or just an e-mail. It goes a long way.

10. Don’t forget to thank the ones that sent you the business. Believe it or not, most people just say thanks for sending them to us, and forget to send a nice gift. Proportionate of course, but send one anyways.

11. BONUS TIP! THANK YOUR VENDORS AS WELL. They make things happen at your office and for your customers. Thanking them can make your life much easier in the long run.

Follow these tips and you will get more referrals. You will attract new business. You will get more clients. You will accelerate your sales. And, you will achieve higher results without increasing your cost of sales. In fact, there’s a great chance that you will decrease your costs!

Shannon Smith: Senior Account Executive With JH Studios, a web site marketing, Graphic Design, Promotional products company, has been in Sales and Marketing and Graphic Design for 20 Years. His e-book “Networking Techno Style” is due to be released in January of 2009. Contact us for pre-release sales on our blog at marketing.jhstudios.com