Have you fallen into the trap of reducing your marketing efforts during the recession? Although this may seem like a wise way to free up some more cash for your business in the short term, in actuality you may be passing up on an immense opportunity to grab valuable market share – while your competitors scale back.
Let me elaborate on this point a little bit further.
If you study the most successful people and businesses, what you’ll start to notice is that they’re actually more unconventional than you might initially think.
Take Warren Buffet for example.
While most think of Warren Buffet as a relatively conservative blue chip investor, he’s more contrarian in his strategies than he appears to be. For recent back up evidence, simply look at his multi billion dollar investments in Goldman Sacks and GE when markets were extremely volatile and uncertain. His recent investment in late 2008 totaled 8 billion dollars in these two companies (a huge chunk of his net worth) when many people were liquidating their investments from fear of further loss.
At the point in time when most of us were petrified of increasing our exposure to unstable stock markets, Warren Buffet made his play. He moved back into the markets with a massive investment.
You simply can’t expect extraordinary results by doing ordinary things. Warren Buffet does things that most of us won’t do, and these actions provide him with great financial upside.
Similarly, shrewd businesses also see this market downturn as a land grab opportunity that can offer high financial rewards. While their competitors slash marketing budgets and cocoon into a near hibernation, street smart marketers are engaging in a veritable market share land grab – and they’re topping up on cutting-edge web site marketing services at their disposal to help get the job done.
Why web site marketing services as a tool for lead generation? Online marketing offers several benefits over traditional marketing including:
1.) Online marketing, is generally more cost effective than more conventional forms of marketing – and is often able to deliver a better return on the marketing dollars you spend.
2.) Internet marketing can be tracked and tested quickly and easily. (often with a nominal expenditure).
3.) Investing in online marketing methods often present a long term payoff, in contrast to many traditional marketing methods. (ex: SEO and Affiliate Marketing partnerships often carry long term residual lead generation benefits vs. campaigns in radio, television or print which carry short term payouts – and spending must continue in order to draw additional payoffs).
4.) Internet marketing is flexible and easy to update.
The list goes on and on…
Amidst the current economic climate, I invite you to think out-of-the-box and go on the offensive with your marketing. Be smart. Think like a contrarian, and go against the grain – because that’s how big gains are made. Experiment with new forms of marketing like the many web site marketing services available to you and take a data driven approach to your spending. Seek to aggressively gain market share while your competitors are putting their business growth on hold.