Marketing 101 for small Businesses

Most small business entrepreneurs have very limited sales or marketing experience. They will usually start a business, because they have either invented some product, discovered some need, or are capable of offering a unique service.

Experience says they tend to start with limited financial resources, skip logical market research, and rationalize themselves into believing that every one will want what they have to offer. They seek the advice of family or friends, who may or may not have their best interest at heart.

Recognizing their dilemma, they will usually resort to all kinds of business publications, or national business magazines. They get impressed with whatever the so called experts have to say, and try to do the same. After all if the key people on Madison Avenue, or at companies like UPS, IBM, GE, or hundreds of others do these state of the art sales and marketing programs, it must be good, and certainly should get the results. If the retired CEO of a major company promotes an idea through some recent publication or book, it must be something that needs to be followed.

Nothing could be further from reality. The fact is, the more you listen to the big fortune 500 CEO type, the more your business will become history. Turn off the TV, stop reading all those national business publications, and stop trying to act as if you are a Fortune 500 company with thousands of employees.

A small Business is in a totally different world, and be assured, if one of those big executives had the challenge of building a small business, most likely they would totally fail. They are accustomed to loosing millions of dollars of other people’s money, and not worry about it. As a small business owner, you can’t afford to loose a dollar.

Small business marketing starts with a basic premise, which assumes your labor and effort have to offset the lack of financial resources available to you. It also assumes that the growth of your business will take time, so be patient, it is one of your most valuable assets. Small Business Marketing 101, has a few basic rules and steps, which you must follow.

Despite of what you see on television or in print ad, you do not need to use shock methods to get attention. It seems that our advertising and media world, has a whole new generation of people involved in marketing, who feel that everything must have some shock value. Marketing and Advertising is nothing more then a means of communicating with people. People prefer to be communicated with, in a calm and clear manner, it seems to get the best results.

Marketing has to be specifically directed at your specific audience. One of the most important steps you can take, is to carefully study your audience, and talk to them through your marketing, as you would, if you had a chance to meet them face to face.

No matter how limited your resources are, or how much you need to get results, never, ever use any negative type of marketing. This for some reason seems to be the trend for a new generation of marketing guru’s, and quite frankly, sooner or later they will find out, it never worked and never will work. People want to hear positive results, they want to hear what will benefit them, or what will make them happy. Seeing violence, destructive behavior, even if it’s at the expense of others, is not a way to sell any product or service.

As part of your small business marketing, be careful with any type of advertising. Avoid placing large and costly one time advertising, hoping to get the attention of a lot of people. It has never worked, and will not work. Advertising is a repetitious process, communicating your message over and over again. So if you do not have the resources to advertise on a regular basis, don’t advertise at all. Do not use your resources, on a few radio, television, or internet ads, hoping to get sales, before you run out of resources.

If you are starting an internet business, do not waste your money on some quick automatic marketing program, which claims to let the world know about you, they simply do not work. The internet is no different from any other business. Yes you have millions of potential customers, but you also have millions of potential competitors. For your business to get traffic, it will require the same cautious and patient method, as required by any other business which starts with limited resources. Be careful with things like pay per click. Make sure you carefully select the best keywords, and not the one’s that get millions of hits. Be certain to set limits on your spending. Never use unsolicited e-mail or faxes, they will accelerate you getting out of business.

Avoid expensive four color packaging or promotion, unless your package is the actual sales tool. In most cases once a customer makes a purchase, your black and white or four color wrapping will make no difference, but could save you a fortune.

Avoid the temptation to satisfy your business ego, by spending money on expensive signs, or promotion material. Yes you should be professional, but you do not have to look like a 20 year old business, with a huge customer base.

Marketing 101 simply promotes using common sense, limiting financial exposure, being patient, a willingness to exert lots of labor, and building your business step by step.

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Copyright 2007 Abundant Systems

Nick Barth, founder of Abundant Systems, has over 45 years experience as entrepreneur, personal and business consultant, coach, and speaker. Recognized in national publications, his specialty is finance, personal achievement, business formation, sales and marketing, and management training.

For tips on small business marketing, marketing campaign or sales promotion, all to gain financial freedom, and make extra money