Don’t believe everything you hear in the media about the economy. While it is true that in the last two years, we’ve suffered a significant economic decline, you can’t wait for news broadcast saying “the worst is over” before your company invests in marketing again. The world is a more cautious and thrifty place now and it will take time and more companies to take that step forward before consumers will start to believe in the recovery. But again this presents a “good opportunity.” Let your company be one of those that consumers have been waiting for. Show them that in the face of what is still perceived as a down economy, you are strong and so are you services. Instill confidence now in the face of your competition and shape a clientele that will be with you through thick and thin.

The economy is recovering all around you, car sales are improving, homes are starting to sell and banks are able to allow for individual/business investments again. If your company doesn’t take advantage of the opportunities that are in front of it now, the only down economy in the near future will be yours.

According to an article in About.com:

“McGraw-Hill Research conducted a study of U.S. recessions from 1980-1985. Out of the 600 business-to-business companies analyzed, the ones who continued to advertise during the 1981-1982 recession hit a 256-percent growth by 1985 over their competitors that eliminated or decreased spending.”

“Similar findings were shown for the economic downturn of the mid 1970s. These studies reaffirm the notion that in good times and bad, it pays to advertise”.

“Customers will identify with and remember those companies who stuck it out during a tough economy”.

One major opportunity now exists in today’s economy, but only the savviest of entrepreneurs will seize upon it. The opportunity right now is for a business to be leader of the pack, a standard bearer who clearly tells consumers that the economic recovery is at hand. I must caution you that this opportunity will not last very long and in fact, while some business owners are still waiting for confirmation of a recovery, others are already getting a jump on their competition. It’s still not too late! No matter what the state of the economy, there is never a bad time to seize opportunities and build your brand; but it’s always the wrong time to stop.

AJ Ross Creative Media celebrating its 20^th year in business, is located in the Hudson Valley’s historic Chester, NY and was founded by Allan Ross. A former NYC session musician, jingle writer and producer, Ross parlayed that experience into the development of a full-service strategic marketing agency. AJ Ross offers brand development, print, radio, and TV advertising production, graphic design, website development, and public relations. Some of AJ Ross’s accounts include Orange County Tourism, Hudson Heritage Federal Credit Union, Finkelstein and Partners, Jacoby and Meyers amongst others. To learn more about AJ Ross Creative Media, visit www.ajross.com, call 800-723-4644, or email info@ajross.com.

No matter what type of business you have, it is all about relationships and how people perceive your talents. Your fellow business people are a vast resource. Focus on the quality, not quantity, of your connections at networking events. You’ll get better results by making a few good connections then by handing out dozens of business cards indiscriminately.

Most networking veterans agree that it’s hard to beat a face-to-face meeting to make the best contacts. The best lead generator is a handshake — the human touch.

Networking may sometimes seem insincere pretentious or even manipulative. There are always going to be people that judge someone by their position or image but there are many people who really want to build a true and mutually beneficial relationship.

You might consider yourself shy or self-conscious to go out and meet people. Networking does require a degree of boldness. The more you do it the easier it becomes and you will enjoy the adventure. The key is to smile and take interest in other people’s interest. Listen to what they have to say. Listen and learn.

Some pointers about networking:

Go with a goal. Have a firm reason to be at the event and know what you want out of it. Are you looking to acquire new prospects, meet colleagues for possible collaborations, and create name recognition for you and your business.

When someone asks you what you do make sure you can communicate not only your business, but also its benefits, in a clear, concise manner in 15 seconds or less. Is your message crisp and to the point? Is it compelling? This is not the time to give a dull, dry description. This is the time knock people’s socks off and rally make your company shine

Leave the resumes and sales pitches at home. Networking is networking. Sales is sales. These are social events. If you are there to sell yourself, most likely you will fail. Nobody wants to be sold when the environment doesn’t call for it. Be genuine and sincere.

Remember networking is a good thing. It’s about building relationships. As easy as networking sounds—and it really is pretty straightforward—it takes time build and it takes time to be good at it but it’s worth the time and energy. It will help build your client base and you might even find some new friends.

Here are some tips on producing a good and effective campaign.

The Title or subject line is the most important part of the whole project. You have only about 40 characters to motivate your members to click and read on.

That’s why subject lines must be all about benefits. The best (if not the only) reason to open a message is to find a benefit within. The goal is to get people intrigued so that they’ll want to learn more. If you give them too much info or seem too aggressive, you risk pushing them away.

The recipient’s concern is literally, “What’s in it for me?”

Once your visitor does click onto to your mail one of the crucial elements of an email marketing campaign is a clear call to action. You want the reader to start reading and then, almost without thinking about it, scroll down and continue reading. Your copy needs to be concise and focused; it should be formatted with lots of white space so that it’s easy on the eye; and it should include a call to action with a link. Don’t distract with too many links or offers, and make not only the call to action clear but also what recipients can expect when they click through. This can be as simple as “Click here for a 20% discount on your next purchase.” You want them to go to your website.

Your email marketing strategy as a whole must be an integrate part of the overall marketing strategy. Similarly, the design (and the content) of your newsletter or email marketing campaign should reflect your corporate design.

Now you need a database list of people who give you permission to email them.

With a never-ending flow of spam on the Internet people are careful with every new message they receive. Some people immediately delete suspicious emails without opening them, others use anti-spam filters that block any email they consider as spam. Its great if you already have a list of subscribers, to which you are sending newsletters at a regular basis. People know who you are and most likely have your email address in their address books or whitelists, so your email is let through with no problems. As you meet new people at networking or other functions get their card and immediately add their email address to your database. Most everyone has their email address on their business card.

Finally, your presentation of your email marketing campaign needs to be professional and well thought out. It might be a good idea to hire a professional to design your initial template. You know the old saying “first impressions” and “you get what you pay for.”

The deeper our economy slumps, the more all size businesses that plan to stay around, will want to ramp up their exposure.The serious marketers with budgets will have ‘exposure’ advantage as they wisely invest their advertising dollars through these times…till the inevitable upswing returns.

The savvy types recognize
Investing in their brand with “Custom printed functional quality” items stretches and strengthens the brand recognition now, even more than in good times. (Ask yourself if you used a logo promo item used today?)

As business owners, marketers steeped in simple science, we hope for a cause and effect to our efforts; it is actually that domino effect with measurable rewards. No matter the venue- the sale, attendance at an event, a contribution to a charity, enrollment in a class, we all aim for Return on Our precious time, our psychic energy and emotional investment. (Ask yourself if you can recall the advertiser on your favorite promo item today?)

BRANDING can be as Memorable as the keepsake. A custom printed ‘gift’ doubles as a Reminder that soon penetrates the psyche, workspace, kitchen when Used handled and seen daily — it gets results. With prolonged exposure and experience with your brand – you can guess what can happen next. (Ask yourself if you have used the services from that promotional product you used today?)

SELLING is trackable – just ask your accountant. Invite your prospects repeatedly for a return dialogue, that test drive, that special offer, etc. The smart & serious avoids wasting time in this cycle. So, don’t start this advertising/marketing with out including a promotional product; And Don’t bother unless you are going to follow through from start to finish.

REPEAT EXPOSURE: Your promotional products will be hard at work repeating your message long after your personal encounter. (Ask yourself if you had to pick a promotional product for someone like yourself, what would you like to receive?)

The fun is crafting the plan, picking the item that fits budget, demographics and Distribution method – and tracking the action. Remember only those on the radar screen as ‘best prospects’ will see receive your promotional product

Promotional marketing items do not need to break your budget; their return is everlasting with the right product. Plus without waste, you can’t ask for a better medium.

PS This wildly popular industry has proven statistical results; if you are curious about how your answers compare to others or for the unconvinced or curious click www.ppai.org and find out how the mind recalls, remembers and how physical advertising effects behavior; Retention/ recalls studies are available.