GET MORE FOR YOUR ADVERTISING EXPENSE

The return on your advertising expense will shrink during bad economic times unless you take specific actions to prevent it. Look for ways to keep your sales volume growing without increasing your advertising expense. For example:

** Negotiate Price With Advertisers

Advertisers are hit hard during an economic slump. Many are willing to negotiate a special discount to keep your business -- or to get it away from their competitors. Take initiative when you're placing an ad. Ask for a discount ..or a bigger discount than one already offered.

** Trim Your Ads

Reduce size of your ads so you can run more ads without increasing your total cost. Don't be surprised if some of your short ads generate a bigger response than your long ads. The most effective ad I ever used was only 11 words.

** Generate Free Publicity

Start a publicity program for your business ...or expand one you already have. Publicity produces sales for a much lower cost then advertising. For example, find something newsworthy about your business. Write about it in a news release and distribute it to publishers.

TAKE ADVANTAGE OF YOUR EXISTING CUSTOMERS

Your customers already know you and trust you. It's easier and cheaper to get more business from them than to get any business from new prospects. Here are 2 ways to use your relationship with customers to generate additional business.

1. Offer Them Related Products Or Services

Amazon had books locked. Committing major bucks, they successfully branded name. Most who think of Web and books at same time, now think of Amazon. It's difficult to identify a Web based business as successful in branding as Amazon has been.

Heck, at first I had trouble spelling name. But I learned. And I don't even have site bookmarked. Entering Amazon.Com into browser works fine.

They Have Top-Of-Mind Awareness

I asked around among my friends. "Who do you think of on Web when you need a book?" All said, "Amazon." When I asked if they knew that Amazon now sells other stuff, most asked, "What?" Some asked more important question, "Why?"

Apart from books, they now offer Electronics, Toys, DVDs, Video, Music, Health & Beauty, Wireless Phones, Camera & Photo, Computer & Video Games, Software, Kitchen, Tools & Hardware, Lawn & Patio, Cars, Auctions, Gifts, and Outlets.

They have made mistake of believing they could extend their successful methods in selling books to selling most everything. In doing so, they overlooked a couple of points.

Niche Marketing Is The Only Way To Go

How does Amazon's expertise with books assure me they are also experts with hardware? Or cars? Actually it diminishes my confidence in their overall business expertise. I now have doubts they know what they are doing even with books.

Malls Don't Work On The Web

Shopping malls work great offline, particularly those under one roof where visitors can wander in comfort without concern for weather. Once you've parked your car and gotten inside, it is only a few steps to shop next to one you are in. And not that far to a competitive shop at other end of mall.

Amazon has overlooked fact that Web is one grand shopping mall. Creating a sub-mall on a single site won't work because it brings no additional benefits not offered by Web itself. Given URL, you can visit another shop in seconds. And you don't have to drag your kids and purchases with you.

Are They Done For?

It isn't possible to be all things to all people. Amazon can't make this happen however much they try. Even Sears & Roebuck gave up on their awesome catalog business as an increasingly urban population found shops relatively close by.