C-R-I-S-I-S Spells Opportunity

There is opportunity in every crisis. The questions then are how will you identify it and react to it?

In the most recent Global Business Outlook survey conducted by CFO magazine and Duke University, it was reported that 65 percent of chief financial officers interviewed do not anticipate significant economic recovery to commence within a year.

So what’s the opportunity? It’s all around you. According to a Harvard Business Review study, companies that increase their marketing efforts during a recession, can improve market share and return on investment at a lower cost than during good economic times.

“Marketing budgets frequently end up on the chopping board during economic uncertainties,” said Joanne Rigby, marketing director for Premiere Global Services Inc. (www.premiereglobal.com), a global provider of communication technologies-based solutions.

Fortunately, it is not all doom and gloom, continued Rigby. “The fact is many do not have the luxury of increasing their marketing spending.” Nevertheless, most marketers know that in order to remain competitive and be able to emerge from a downturn, they need to deploy smarter and more strategic marketing approaches that will set them apart from their competitors.

The current economic outlook has resulted in many businesses turning to more cost-effective and quantifiable strategies, such as e-mail marketing, that ensure measurable and return-on-investment (ROI) driven results. A vast majority of companies see tremendous value in e-mail marketing and they continue to spend money on it throughout 2009. A recent Jupiter Research report noted that e-mail marketing is set to grow 75 percent by 2012, to become a $2.1 billion in the United States alone.

Maintain Your Focus

Not all customers are the same. Each of us has A, B, and C clients. While no one is getting rid of clients in this marketplace it can pay to focus on where you’re getting the most bang for your buck and who will be around in the future to continue doing business with you.

Customers who you can identify with a strong potential for future business should be high on your priority list. Try to identify the growth industries where demand will be strong once an economic recovery takes hold. Ways to identify promising prospects include looking for who’s got strong cash flow (pays their bills on time), spotting companies investing in equipment, personnel and technology, and identifying those clients and prospects with forward-thinking management, innovative product lines and a staff that regularly exhibits high morale and an upbeat attitude.

Be Prepared for Turbulence

Are your orders shrinking or coming in less frequently? Pay attention to what your customers are telling you and be prepared to improvise in response. What are you doing to fill the gap?

Every recession makes an impact on the survivors and many will not return to so-called free-spending ways of the past. Adjustments they make today for many will be permanent. You’ll need to react to this as well. Can you obtain new customers? Can you run a more efficient operation? Should you consider a merger or acquisition? What about new business lines, products or services? Outsourcing is a growing force. If you can provide graphic services or discounted shipping and as a result help clients save money, you’ll probably win a long-term relationship.

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