New Years Joy

New Year, new plans, new business.

Here are my Top Tips for 2012 to surviving the down turn, protecting the brand, and seeking new business.

One person’s recession is another’s boom time. What am I talking about? Let me explain – 2012 feels like a home coming year - I started my own PR & Marketing consultancy in the early 1990s in the heart of the last big recession. I feel comfortable with current market trends as I’m pretty sure what to expect, what to do and how to identify and capitalise on great opportunities.

These are my Top Tips for getting through the next 12 months which I will expand upon in more detail in the coming months in future editions of the BlackChilli monthly eNewsletter, through LinkedIn and on the Mr PR man Blog.

Top Tips to beat the recession

1. Throw away the rule book.

It’s clear that we are in a tough economic times and what ever your previous marketing plans were, a good move would be to start over again. Severe times call for severe measures. Throw away the rule book and do it now.
What is required today is a full proof plan for the current battle we are about to fight. In the last recession many companies chose to cease investment in the future of the business, stopped investing in infrastructure and promotion – instead hibernating and waiting for the recession to end. As a result they failed.
More details on how to write that marketing plan next time.

2. Take a lesson from Sainsbury’s

No I’m not cracking up. An old Sainsbury’s strap line fronted on the TV by Jamie Oliver was ‘Try something new today’. This should be your mantra over the coming months. Think outside the box, do something different and excite your target audience, prove to them that you are the company to deal with. Time for guerrilla tactics. Again – more details next time.

3. Dedicate time and effort

Over the years I have been amazed at how many companies with turnovers in the millions have not only no solid marketing strategy, but no dedicated marketing person to drive the business forward.

Nominate a team member to manage all marketing initiatives and be the focus of your new guerrilla campaign.

4. Plan to win

If you are going to be a winner, you need to plan your campaign. Did you think Julius Cesar or Napoleon Bonaparte just waded into a country and declared who wants a fight? No, each ruler was a technical strategist and each campaign was meticulously planned. Plan to win and you will.

Write your marketing and media plan, identify your target audience and be prepared to win. Now you know where you are going.

5. Double your investment.

In a recession, the first knee jerk reaction is to cut budgets. If that is what every one else is doing let them. You should look to increase or even double your investment in marketing your business. If you are not able to do so for purely financial reason, at the very least maintain previous budgets.

Your competitors will be dumping their marketing budgets; as a result, you must maintain yours. In the coming 12 months, the business with the highest profile and best market reputation will win and survive.

6. Strengthen the brand

Your brand is the most important element of your business. You have nurtured and invested in it but if you are not careful you are about to abandon it. Bad parents!

As custodians of your brand you have a duty of care to protect and strengthen it, extend its life and raise it up for all to see. Your brand can communicate to your target audience that you are trusted, respected and a business worth dealing with. Maintaining your marketing initiative over the next 12 months will strengthen your brand and brand loyalty.

7. Follow the money

Follow the money – means following the trends. In all down turns there will be certain markets that are buoyant and cash rich. It’s the law. It’s not all doom and gloom. Invest time and effort to achieve a clearer view and discover these emerging markets. Find them and you can follow the money.

8. Watch your competitors

Remember watching doesn’t mean copying. Be aware of what your competitors are doing in the market place. Research your competitors; ensure you know their offers, their pricing structure and guarantees. Before you can claim you offer the best be sure by scoping out the competition.

9. The laws of attraction

Doing business is like dating. You have a better chance of dating the person in your radar if you are both attracted to each other. This holds true in marketing terms and it’s called ‘attraction marketing’. By building your profile and market reputation you also build your attractiveness to the prospect.

Your best chance of clinching a sale is if the buyer is attracted to you, rather than you perusing them. That is why direct mail has a dismal success response rate of about 2%, because 98% of names on that data base don’t care about your proposition and don’t want what you are selling. Work on your corporate persona - it will pay dividends.

10. Be a face of the industry

Why should you be trusted? I have money to spend but in this market I have to be sure my investment is sound. I have heard of your business, but I really don’t know who you are. But hang on – aren’t you the guy that appears in my trade magazine every month? Becoming a face in your industry and regular media contributor will mean you appear as an expert in your field. We all want to work with experts as they appear as the most trusted and the media is telling you so.

All BlackChilli clients are groomed to become media faces and experts in their field. You can do this yourself, with a little effort, but we have the experience, so let us do this for you.

11. Be big online

When was the last time you used Yellow Pages? I suspect it was a long time ago? The internet now dominates, because it’s easier, cheaper and quicker. As a result your website MUST reflect your business and be a tempting shop window.

The quality of the design and content must be the best it can possibly be. Come on – be honest, how good is website really? In today’s market your website will be working for you 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It works when you are not. Does your website need a re-vamp? And is it optimised so that it appears high in the search engine rankings?

12. E is free – email marketing

Regular communication with your community is a crucial law of marketing. With email it’s both cheap and easy to do. After all you are reading this message in the BlackChilli e-newsletter.

Top things to remember are to build your own database otherwise your messages will be seen as spam; communicate on a regular basis; hold content on your website; and educate rather than advertise. Valuable and interesting information will get read - gratuitous self promotion will get deleted.

13. Add value

Now this is going to be a tough one. Don’t discount – this is a slippery slope and that’s tough to get off. Setting your prices so low to chase a deal only means you work for nothing. An old boss used to say “I can lie in bed and lose money”. Do you want to simply buy new business for a lot of effort and no profit? Profit is not a dirty word – it’s what every business strives for and why we are there in the first place!

Offering a top class service for a bargain basement price is often the kiss of death. Adding value is the best way to tackle a price war. Also it’s a win win. You get your top price; the clients get an added value product.

14. Be in it to win it.

This is probably going to be the most serious year of your business life. And to succeed you have to be in it to win it. You have to be serious about developing your business and surviving. If you are not going to focus on developing your business you may as well close down now. Develop a serious mind set. Focus on the areas of the business that will make a difference: marketing, sales, client retention, relationship management, building a suitable network, and raising your profile.

16. Plan to grow in the down turn

Yeh, right I can hear you say. But hold on a minute. If you don’t plan to grow, what are you going to do? Stay the same (in fact you will probably shrink), or under perform last years figures. Positive mental attitudes are required here. You are going to be seeking new emerging markets, so what’s to stop you building your business in a downturn?

17. Deliver what you promise

In business you are as good as your last deal. In a recession people are waiting for you to fail. In this current market we can’t afford to make mistakes. As you are building your reputation and service delivery, always keep your promises. If you don’t it may be the last one you make. Customers want a service that is provided on time, on budget and does what it says on the tin. Breaking rules means breaking hearts.

This is a lot to take in and may be daunting. But just remember, to walk a mile you first have to take the first step and that’s where BlackChilli can help – We’ll not only support and walk with you on this journey but also ensure that you set out in the right direction and avoid many of the pot holes. For an informal chat about how we can help call 01256 861372.