2009 is over – its time to make way for success in 2010

The past year has been a real experience for all of us in small business. But what are we going to do to ensure next year is a year to keep the accountants (and us!) smiling?

Are we happy with just getting by, or is it time to get organised and bring in some quality profits for 2010?

Far too many businesses are reactive to approaches from pushy sales people, e.g. you may pay for magazine advertising purely because a salesperson is at your door and is waiting for you to sign on the dotted line. It’s now, it’s easy, it’s done.

Successful business owners plan ahead and are PROactive. These are the business owners who can confidently tell the salesperson that they already have a marketing budget worked out and they will be spending their money elsewhere for better, planned, results.

What do successful business owners know about their own marketing?

They know their goals. Once you have a goal for your company, whether it’s a 3 year goal, a 5 year goal or a 10 year goal, you have direction and drive – something to work towards.

They know their A-class clients. The clients who are easiest and most cost effective to sell to.

They profile their A-class clients, figure out what section of the market they appear in and so they know their target market. Your target market is not ‘everyone’! Having poor quality customers soaking up all your attention could mean that your real, easy-to-sell-to, profit generating clients could go elsewhere.

Design your marketing to target a specific market and you’ll see a far better ROI.

They have a budget and a plan. Setting a figure for how much you want to spend on your marketing for the year, and building a strategy of how you will spend that money, will ensure that your spending is controlled and accounted for. Your marketing will also be scheduled and far less time consuming to arrange.

What are you getting for your money?

If you’re spending your money on marketing opportunities just because they are on the table in front of you, your marketing could be heading in various directions and getting mediocre results.

There’s no way of knowing if you are using the right marketing channels unless you measure each marketing campaign. Whether it’s a simple Yellow Pages ad or a full direct mail campaign. Everything can be measured.

Need some assistance?

All of us small-business-types have got a job to do. We all specialise in a particular field and often have little time for other things. Well at Hot PJ our speciality is marketing!

With this in mind, we’re holding a seminar in late January 2010 and you’re invited! We will go over each of these points in detail, and much more. Because we present to small groups rather than halls of 200 people, we’ll tailor the presentation to include advice for your particular industry where possible.

If you are interested in hearing more about this seminar, please contact Mark for the lasted information or visit our seminar page.

Posted on December 15th, 2009 by Wendy Riley-Biddle
Filed under: Hot PJ Seminars, Marketing