Bullet Proof Your Business
I recently read an article about small businesses being affected by big company closures and layoffs. In this case it was Merck Pharmaceuticals who has decided to sell their plant in Albany, Georgia . There were two main take away points in this article that I need to share with you.
One: The plant will not actually be sold right away. They figure it might take at least a year to sell the plant. But the announcement came as a result of Georgia’s economic development commissioner touring the Albany plant to help come up with a marketing plan to sell it.
They are going to use a marketing plan to sell the plant! Now I am not really in favor of small business marketing plans (I prefer small business owners use a simple marketing action plan – less fluff and more booty slappin’.)
The take away here is that you need an action plan to get anything you want done. You need to know what the goal is, the time line for achieving it and the steps you’re going to take to get there. And it better include marketing.
Most small business owners don’t have a marketing plan or let alone an action plan. They just wing it and hope for the best. That is leaving your business success up to chance and we don’t buy it. Chance doesn’t make you successful or make your life E.S.P. – Enjoyable, Simple and Prosperous.
Two: That last point leads me to the second take away item of this article. Why you need to be a master of your own marketing.
And the reason is because marketing is the single most important duty you can master to ensure the long term success of your business. It’s the only way to bullet proof your business from outside occurrences beyond your control.
You see, the people who understand the power of their marketing understand that it’s all about influence. You must have the ability to influence your customer base and prospects in order to have control over your success.
During slow economic periods the people who have mastered their marketing and have consistently made it their top priority always grab the lion’s share of the business and their businesses don’t suffer while everyone else is dying on the vine.
