Marketing on a Smaller Budget-189

When times get tough, marketing budgets seem to be the first thing to be impacted. This is generally the case because upper management doesn’t see a direct return for the dollars being spent. This is unfortunate but the fact of the matter is that many marketing professionals have not done a good job of measuring the effectiveness of their marketing results. And as a result, their marketing dollars are seen as unnecessary.

Keep in mind that you’re not the only company facing a smaller marketing budget. In fact, recent studies show that almost all businesses have been impacted in the marketing area. One thing to note is that your vendors for online and offline marketing are feeling the strain. With smaller budgets, many companies are cutting back on their traditional advertising. This creates a tremendous opportunity for you to get more of what you need at a reduced cost.

One of the easiest ways to evaluate where you can improve your marketing value is by evaluating each campaign you plan to do in the coming year. When considering these campaigns, what are their components? As you break down each campaign, you may find that you are working with one vendor or multiple vendors. Essentially, you want to identify the vendors you do the most business with and then negotiate with them for a more favorable rate. Trust me, they don’t want to lose your business. As a result, they will be willing to lower their costs and save you money.

The next step is to focus on your Internet marketing budget. We all know that online marketing is a fantastic way to measure results and control marketing spend. Review your campaigns and determine where you can eliminate wasteful spend. Do you have campaigns that have been running forever that are just breaking even? Forgo the revenue in exchange for a larger spend on profitable campaigns. Review your metrics and make wise decisions. If you do not have tracking software in place, invest in some. It will make your ROI easier to comprehend and give you specific information on where to invest in the future.

After a thorough review of your marketing expenses, your are in a much better position for determining how you can group promotions to lower costs and improve sell through. Consider how you might take advantage of your current campaigns. Do you ask customers to forward a promotion to a friend? Are you communicating to your mailing list on a regular basis? Are you collecting information about your consumers that can help you customize your campaigns and improve conversion rates? Think through each touch point and how you might improve your sales.

In order to survive during this difficult time and still be successful with a smaller budget, you really need to consider how you can manage the balance between a smaller marketing spend and the need for increased results. Sticking with the marketing basics is paramount. Focus on the needs of your market and offers that get people to respond.

There are a number of ways to impact your marketing success regardless of budget size. Improving your results requires an in-depth review of your previous marketing efforts and a full understanding of what has worked for you in the past and what is likely to work for you in the future. Focus on leveraging your existing campaigns by asking for referrals and marketing in a viral way. By doing so, you can have others market for you. This eliminates significant costs and can certainly help you grow your business. Improving results with a smaller marketing budget is more than possible. Just give it some thought, apply what you know works and eliminate the rest.

Start your evaluation today. Find the marketing that has provided tangible results and make sure you’re disproportionately focusing on them this year. This should help you manage costs and improve results. Just what the marketing pro ordered.

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Marketing on a Smaller Budget-189

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