Note: Our
seven sickly cows articles are a series of posts dealing with moving past the
bad economic conditions that defined business since late in 2008. In
particular, we are talking about marketing for an emerging economy. To see our
previous articles,
week one
week two
Last week I talked about defining who you are as a
business. To review, this is answering a fundamental question about the way
your company will go about its business and, in particular, the premise from
which you market to your customers. This week I want to talk about your
customers. In particular, I want to talk about what your customers look like
coming out of the past six years of the worst economy in 70 years.
The seven sickly cows (2008-2014) came with the cost
of lost businesses, specifically small businesses that are the supply chain of
enterprise. Between 2008 and 2010, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that over
220,000 small businesses employing 3.1 million people closed their doors*. That
just covers the first two years of the six years of the bad economy. Who
replaces those products and services as we begin to pick up the pieces and move
past all of this? Here is where your customer base needs to be redefined. There
is an emerging opportunity to become part of the new supply chain if you are
smart enough to find the gaps in that supply chain and expand to meet them. This
is where marketing comes into play. Expansion of product lines or service offerings
have to be clearly communicated to potential customers.
But let’s say your customer base is still the same old
people. You might be thinking, "I have been doing business with the same
customers for years.” That may be true, but historically, whenever we come out
of a recession of any length of time the expectations and demands of your
customers will also change. Doing business with the same people in the same way
you did it before the Great Recession is different than the way you will do
business with them afterwards. There are two areas of concern coming out of
down economic times. One is pricing - in other words, when can I or should I raise
my prices? The other has to do with quality. These two push and pull against
each other; great quality OR lower costs. That is the thinking of the pre-Great
Recession business. As we emerge from the Great Recession years, it is not an
"either/or” proposition with customers. It is a "both/and” proposition. In
other words, the market demands that the price is low and it is great quality.
For instance, one of the demands coming out of a
recession is that low prices will remain in place. The internet has made it
very easy to shop for the lowest price. We have apps to help us find the
cheapest price on all kinds of products and services. We also have social media
in place to read reviews on the quality of your offerings. In the emerging
economy, Price and Quality have to work hand in hand, not as polar opposites to
each other. How is this achieved? It is all built with marketing. If you are
not involved with social media and internet marketing tactics that are driven
by public opinion, get there. Don’t let price be the only consideration of your
customers. Your marketing has to convince them to value quality. You build that
through customer reviews, case studies, and followers on your social media
sites that truly like your products and services. On the flip side of the coin,
social media is a great place to announce sales and special pricing. Give your
target market a reason to follow you.
The
bottom line is that bad economies demand all of us to change if we are to
continue in business. It is not only about surviving the bad years, it is about
recognizing your new customer base when the economy picks back up. That requires a change on your part. Your marketing has to communicate all of this.
______________________________________
* Economy lost more than
200,000 small businesses in recession, Census shows, Fox
News.com, July 26, 2012