SHIFT YOUR MARKETING INTO HIGH GEAR

SMBs OUTPERFORM THEIR BIGGER RIVALS AND YOU CAN TOO!

Many business owners and marketing managers of Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) have proved during the past three recessionary years that smaller can often mean better when it comes to business adaptability and bottom-line results. Here, we’re going to focus on the Marketing Strategies that have propelled these businesses forward, while larger, established companies have experienced massive layoffs and declining profits.

SMBs, defined as those with less than 500 employees and also referred to as SMEs (Enterprises) are now widely accepted as the real engine that drives employment and Economic growth. This is true in most developed countries and particularly so in both Canada and the US.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), SMBs representing 99.7% of all employer firms have generated 60 to 80 percent of net new jobs annually over the past decade. They also hire 40% of high tech workers and produce 13 times more patents per employee than larger firms. The Canadian Federation of Independent Business and Profit 100 report equally impressive results for Canadian SMBs.

FIVE MARKETING STRATEGIES TO GROW YOUR REVENUES AND PROFIT

1. INNOVATE AND DIFFERENTIATE
The key to success for most SMBs is in creating, nurturing and growing innovative products, services and marketing strategies. A prime example of this is Facebook, which Mark Zuckerberg started in his dorm as a student at Harvard in 2004. It was a totally new concept but also, there was not even a remotely similar alternative. Today the company is estimated to be worth $4 billion!

This strategy is not limited to new technology or social media but applies equally to long established industries such as women’s apparel. Stacey Bendet founded the wildly successful Alice + Olivia line of women’s clothing in 2002. It’s known for its sophistication but also sense of fun and quirkiness. The company brings in annual revenues of around $50 million. Another example of innovation in an established, mainline industry is Groupon, the national online coupon service offered in cities across the US and Canada. The company’s coupons provide discounts at local businesses of up to 70%, but with a major difference – if there aren’t enough customers taking up the offer at a store, it can pull the offer! Founded 2 years ago, Groupon is no longer an SMB and has a current market value of $1.2 billion.

These examples underscore that while a totally new business concept like Facebook can be a runaway success, SMB’s can also achieve great results by developing a new and innovative twist to older, established businesses and the way they’re marketed. Alice + Olivia’s website reflects perfectly the Marketing Strategy that made the clothing line so successful … http://www.aliceandolivia.com/

2. DEVELOP, TEST AND HONE YOUR MARKETING PLAN
An innovative product or service that’s better than the competition’s is a good start, but does not guarantee you will have a successful Marketing Program or Campaign. There are several Action Steps that will improve your probability of success.

• Identify your target market and the niche you intend to go after i.e. If you were an Active Sportswear Retailer….“Young families, with minimum household income of $100,000, who are very active in outdoor sports.”

• Develop a clear, written Unique Selling Proposition (USP) which is also the Unique Value Proposition your customers can expect to receive when they purchase from you.

• Finalize a Marketing Plan that is based on and fully reflects the USP. It should include:
- Your target Revenues and the budget you have available to spend
- All the advertising, sales and promotional strategies your business will employ
- Who will be responsible for executing every aspect of each strategy
- What Research will be conducted to determine which strategies are most effective and how success will be measured

• Evaluate the effectiveness of your Marketing Plan on a pre-established regular basis and make the necessary changes where you need to improve.

3. ESTABLISH, ADVERTISE AND REINFORCE YOUR BRAND
Branding is just as critical for the SMB as it is for the large corporation and a strong and positive brand image can pay huge dividends. David Chang, one of the most successful restaurant owners in New York City has proved this many times over. His original Momofuku noodle bar, opened in 2004 and has since expanded into a chain of line-out-the-door restaurants across the city. One of his restaurants, Momofuku Ko has just 12 seats and accepts only online reservations, 6 days in advance on a first-come first-served basis. Many fine-dining types forced to wait their turn, are infuriated because of its excellent food and reputation. Even so, like his others, the restaurant is always packed!

Many SMBs overlook branding but it’s important to remember that branding is how your customers perceive your product, service and company and it is at the core of your relationship. Branding consists of every image and perception that customers have of your company from your logo, store and product displays to the way sales people greet and serve them. Research has confirmed it is even influenced by receptionists, telephone answering, voicemail greetings, business cards and emails.

4. BUILD CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIPS, UTLILIZE CRM
An area of real potential strength for SMBs is Customer Relationship Management (CRM). They have not typically invested in formal systems or technology such as that offered by Avaya or Siebel, but their smaller size and easier customer access to the owner and other key managers positions them well to excel in this area.

Moreover, fully functional automated CRM systems are now being offered at very affordable prices specifically to attract the SMB market.

Larger corporations have had great difficulty delivering consistently good customer service and building loyalty due to their size, employee indifference and inconsistent quality standards. The opposite is true of successful SMBs – they are focused on creating a Great and Unique Customer Experience.

CRM presents an exceptional opportunity for SMBs to build strong, even unassailable positions in the market niches where they establish a major presence.

5. LEVERAGE INTERNET MARKETING AND SOCIAL MEDIA
It has recently been reported that SMBs actively engaged in some form of web marketing will soon be generating as much as 25% of new business from Internet and Social Media sources. While that seems like a very high figure, already 44% of US adults research SMBs online according to Small Business Search Marketing! This lends a lot of credibility to the idea that SMBs will continue to rapidly grow their online business as a percentage of total sales.

There are many excellent reasons why SMBs should actively embrace Internet and Social Media marketing as part of their growth strategy:

• As reported, this is where an increasing number of prospective customers look for sellers and service providers.

• 85% of US and Canadian households have internet access and average about 50 minutes per day on the internet! This provides tremendous “reach” to any business selling its products or services.

• Internet marketing, and particularly the Social Media – Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter are very cost effective and provide an increasingly high return on investment. It is a fraction of the cost to advertise on TV, Radio or in print.

Frankly, most SMBs simply cannot afford to advertise in the traditional
media, nor do they need to as they get better results at lower cost on web
and email campaigns!

Phil Richardson, President
BizGrowth Coaching Inc.