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Special Report - Recession Proof

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How to Survive a Recession

Expert Advice To Build Your Business in Tough Times

by Sheila Ring Danzig

As a marketing professional I have seen the techniques that help business survive and grow during tough times. Savvy marketers know that they need to use these techniques at all times. If your business is doing well don't be satisfied with that - make it even better. The better you do in good times, the better your business will survive in hard times.

Strategy # 1: Making Your Ads More Powerful.

When times get tough you may need to save money. Look for places to cut back but the one place you never want to cut back is your marketing budget. Instead learn how to make your efforts more powerful. You do this by having ads that make a clear statement about who you are and what you do that makes you stand out from the crowd of all of your competitors. An ad must give the reader a reason to buy your products or use your services. The most important part of the ad is a great headline.

75% of the results from an ad are a direct result of the headline. The headline is the "ad for the ad." A headline that answers the only question that anyone reading your ad ever has, "What's in it for me?" You are reading this article because you were drawn to the headline. If the headline was my name and address you probably would be on the next page right now.

David Ogilvy , an early advertising genius, said the following about the power of headlines: "On the average, 5 times as many people read the headlines as read the body copy. It follows that unless your headline sells your product, you have wasted 90% of your money."

If you don't believe this stand near the check out at your favorite supermarket and watch as people are drawn to the headlines on the covers of the publications that are there such as Readers' Digest, Woman's World, The National Enquirer and others. A top headline writer earns up to $200,000.00 a year. While no one seems to admit to reading the National Enquirer it is the largest selling newspaper in the country. In fact the National Enquirer sells more copies than the top five daily newspapers in the country combined. They do it, in large part, with great headlines. Headlines that are so irresistible people have to buy The Enquirer and all of the other "check-out" publications to learn more.

But you and I are not the Enquirer. We are local businesses. How do we create a powerful headline? Let's look at another headline for guidance. One of the greatest headlines of all times was for a pizza shop. It was the headline that drove the success of the pizza shop into a national chain. That headline was, "Fresh Hot Pizza Delivered in Thirty Minutes or Less, Guaranteed" and the pizza shop is Dominos Pizza. They don't even promise great tasting pizza. They only promise that it will be delivered hot in thirty minutes or less.

» Now let's create some powerful headlines for your business.

You need to figure out what it is that you do better than your competitor and make that your headline. But what if you can't think of anything? One of the things you can create what I call a "Ten Ways Special Report" and then offer it free to anyone who asks. You make sure your name, address and phone number is on the sheet (which will cost you pennies to print) and then it can become your ad headline as well.

Here are some simple examples:

CPA: "Ten Ways to Save on Your Taxes. Call for Free Special Report."

AC Repair: "Ten Ways to Save Money On Your AC Bills" Call for Free Special Report."

Physician: "Ten Ways to Reduce Staff Sick Days. Call for Free Special Report."

Designer: "Ten Design Tips to Make Your Office Look Bigger. Call For Free Special Report."

The people who call you for the free special report are potential clients and customers. When they call you can use the opportunity to also offer the caller a free consultation. Even if they are not in the market for your product or service at the moment, the special report will be in their hands so that they can call you when they do need your services. Keep their names and addresses on hand and add them to your mailing list in the future. You are now building a relationship that will soon result in more business.

Start thinking outside the box to help you discover what it is that makes you special and how to make that part of your regular advertising copy.

Strategy # 2: Taking Care of Your Existing Customers

It Costs Five Times As Much To Get A New Customer, Client Or Patient Than It Does To Keep The Ones You Have.

Your current customer, client or patient base are the most likely to come back to use your services or buy your products. If you take good care of them and contact them on a regular basis your bottom line will grow.

Walt Disney said it best when talking about his goals at the California Disney Land. He said that he wanted to make the experience of being there to be so wonderful that people could not resist telling other people about their experience. The "Disney Experience" is now our standard of excellence for a vacation experience. We often say things like, "I had a great time but it was no Disney World." or "It was great, it was almost like being in Disney World." There is no higher standard of entertainment than Disney World.

How do you apply that to your business or practice? You must make your customers experience an excellent one. That means that you must be able to do what you do so well, that people will not be able to resist telling others about you. If you don't do that you may get by but you will never truly succeed. Great advertising and marketing will never make up for a bad experience in your office or store. Research shows that on the average, one happy customer will tell three people about his good experience and one unhappy customer will tell ten people about his bad experience.

If you are a doctor and I am your patient, that doesn't mean you only have to treat my symptoms well. It means that my entire experience at your office must be so positive that I can't help but tell other people about it. That means that when I come into your office your staff is not hiding behind a desk that is behind a glass wall and looking at paperwork or having a personal chat while I stand there. It means that someone will look at me and say "Hi Mrs. Danzig, good morning. I see that you have an 11:30 appointment today. The doctor is running a little behind so you should be called in about ten minutes. If you need to use the restroom it is the second door on the right. There are magazines on the table and a coffee machine and a water cooler in the corner."

If you are a plumber it means that you will arrive on time, fix the job properly and double check to see that the job was done correctly and completely. You will charge fairly and clean up after yourself. And before you leave say, "Mrs.Danzig, while I am here, do you want me to check your faucets and drains to see if anything is leaking or clogged? Are you happy with your hot water temperature? Can I look at your disposal to make sure it is running OK?" In other words, I want you to tell me about everything you might be able to fix while you are there because I don't want to have to call you out again (and pay another service call) because I forgot that the guest bathroom sink drips, and you will get more money for the call.

Be sure to stay in touch with anyone you do business with. If you increase your contact with your current customer base by 50% you should double your sales with those people. Send them a newsletter, a postcard announcing a "special customer" sale, or even a birthday card. The more you stay in touch, the more money you will make. It is as easy at that.

Strategy # 3:Make Use of Free Publicity

The best part about Free Publicity is that it is free.

Outside of "hard news" most of the articles and interviews that occur in the media are a result of a reporter or producer receiving a press release. It sounds complicated but it is really very easy. You don't need to be anything except who you are to get in the news. You are by definition an expert in your field. If you are a physician, you are an expert. If you are a mechanic, you are an expert. If you are a massage therapist, you are an expert. The press is always looking for interesting stories and you can make yourself interesting very easily and quickly. You don't have to be a super star to appear on the local evening news. But when you are in the news, people will think you are a super star. Press coverage is often perceived as a third party endorsement by the media. When Oprah had her book club the sales of the books that she mentioned soared.

You don't need to hire anyone to write and send out press releases. A letter with a headline is just as good as a press release for most local businesses interested in local press coverage. If you start off by saying "Local Doctor..." or "Local Woman..." etc., that will always get the local reporter's eye.

What makes you newsworthy? You can give a free workshop on an interesting or unusual subject, such as:

How Plastic Surgery Can Help Men Be More Successful in Business.

10 Ways for Women To Know If Your Electrician is Being Honest With You.Looking for a Used Car? How to Avoid Buying a Lemon!

Write a letter to the editor of your local newspapers (you can call the newspaper to get the editor's name) and to producers of the local radio talk shows (you can call the radio station and ask for the names and types of talk shows and the names of the producers) about your workshop seminar.

When writing to the newspapers you can include an interesting photo of yourself.

A letter to the newspaper reporter or editor would look something like this.

A letter to the producer of a radio talk show the letter might be more like this:

Radio talk shows are always looking for new people with new topics to talk about. Editors of local sections of the newspapers are always looking for interesting local stories. You can be the person that they write about or invite to speak on the air.

You may get coverage before and/or after your seminar. Make copies of the articles and be certain to frame them and hang them in your office or store. Give copies out to your clients and customers. If you have a newsletter be certain to put the article in the newsletter with a headline that says: Did You Read About Us In The News? If you are on a radio talk show or TV have a photograph taken of you being interviewed and use it the same way.

The seminar itself is a great business builder. Send everyone home with a printed sheet listing all the important points that they learned that day. Add a special "seminar" offer or discount as well as an invitation to call you if they ever have any questions. Don't hype yourself at the seminar just give out great information. Your knowledge and expertise along with your willingness to teach it to others will do all of your "hyping" for you.

For more ways to make you, your products, and your office and newsworthy, to visit http://www.ultimatepublicity.com/benewsworthy.htm

You can contact Sheila Danzig via email at sheila@danzig.com or by phone at 888.384.9528

(c) Sheila Danzig 2001-2002 This may be reprinted in full with no changes what so ever, or may be quoted in part in reviews and media pieces as long as credit is given to the author and how to contact the author is included.

 

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