How can we afford consistent marketing for our small business? Part 2
Posted by Dale Berkebile on Wed, Jun 24, 2009
This article is continued from yesterday's post. Enjoy!
Develop a strong plan and create an ongoing system.
The true key is setting up a system that changes your current
habits. This is extremely hard, but it is also extremely worth it.
Let's say this year you save 2.5% and you start marketing with that
budget. Then next year you put back 5% and invest all that into your
marketing, the following year 10%. As you can probably imagine, this is
a system that would start to work for you. This is based on the same
premise as compound interest, why not get it working for you instead of
against you when you borrow money. Imagine, starting a small marketing
program and then increasing it a little each year. How much more
effective would you and your sales team be at closing deals if you had
a strong brand awareness and your marketing presence just got better
& better each year. This is a system worth building and making a
habit out of.
Look at Coca-Cola, their goal was to have everyone
in the world drinking one of their drinks. So how did they do it? Not
with the marketing budget they have now. No, they did it one step at a
time and just building each year until 50 years later they have become
one of the most easily accessible brands around.
It is the same
thing for any business, big or small. Just commit to changing your
habits. Stop trying to get a single brochure to fix all your marketing
problems over the next 5 years. You need to be consistently growing and improving and refining your marketing presence. Marketing
your company should be thought of as just as important as your
telephone, or internet. Just like you pay for those items every month,
put money aside to invest in your company in exactly the same fashion.
If you do this, you will be amazed at what your company will start to accomplish!
If
you need help setting up a system for your marketing hire a
professional. We would prefer you hire us, but really know that a
systematic approach with any professional would completely change your
company for the better.
So good luck and we hope you get started today!
