One of the positive outcomes of an economic slowdown is the innovation that can come out of it. As businesses big and small scramble to capture precious consumer turf, what has emerged is a bold, new attitude in business marketing. All the sluggish sales and depleted consumer confidence were no doubt the driving force behind a recent flurry of marketing promotions that are more creative and daring then ever. Here are a variety of examples of some of the most unusual and creative marketing campaigns over the past couple of years.

Guerrilla Marketing At Its Best

Guerrilla marketing thrives on the unexpected and unconventional, the goal being to create an impressionable, viral buzz.

Heineken Beer:

A prime example of a well executed guerilla marketing campaign is Heineken’s boldly staged fake event held on the same date and time of a UEFA Champions League match between AC Milan and Real Madrid on 21 October 2009. Instead of watching the soccer game, over a thousand unsuspecting people (from boyfriends to employees) were basically forced to go to a classical music concert.

And also from Heineken is the famous Walk-in Fridge commercial.

Simultaneously, some big Walk-in Fridge cardboard boxes were put on the streets of Amsterdam on garbage day, suggesting that the huge fridge was really for sale and that people were buying it.

Burger King -WhopperFace:

This one’s from Brazil, highlighting a more personalize approach to receiving your burger: you get what you want… with your face on it.

The Mini Vs Porsche:

The CEO of Mini challenged Porsche to a well-publicized race…

And here’s the result. Who was the true winner here? You decide.

Life in the Fast Lane with Volkswagon

Not to be outdone, Volkswagon also entered into the guerilla-marketing fray.

German Wings

This was filmed on an Easyjet flight- one of their biggest competitors- bemoaning the economy-minded service. Gotta love their guts.

Chubb Nord Alarm Safety Systems

Check out this persuasive direct mailing campaign

Confused.com- An ounce of prevention…

Environmentalists may have not appreciated this online insurance company’s stunt (unless biodegradable bubble wrap was used) but it definitely made an unavoidable impression.

And here is a collection of some of the best guerilla and ambient marketing schemes from around the world:

KitKat

TV Series Trueblood

“Ugly Betty”

Ibuprofin

Nivea

Barbeque Sales

 Campaign against gaffiti 

Charity

 Campaign against smoking

Copenhagen Zoo

Nikkon Cameras

Volkswagon

Rock radio station

Exterminators

Hair stylist

McDonalds

Whiteout

Fitness Company

Monday Hot Wings Promotion

The Discovery Channel

Don’t forget to brush your teeth…

Body piercing

Coca Cola New Grip Bottle

Buy better dog food, or else…

Lipton Tea

Golf GTI

Ikea

Other Notable Examples of Unconventional Marketing

Retail Stimulus

Aside from guerilla tactics, numerous businesses are choosing other forms of unconventional marketing. For example, with government incentives winding down, some US retail chain stores are offering special discounts and unprecedented large-scale loans to get business rolling.

Sam’s Club, Target and Toys “R” Us are trying to regenerate sluggish sales via unconventional promotions. With the cooperation of the SBA, Wal-Mart’s Sam’s Club is about to launch a program that will offer shoppers loans of up to $25,000. Toys “R” Us is about to kick off a holiday fund program which augments shoppers’ savings, and for a cent or at no cost, Office Depot is giving away office products. Not to be left behind, Target will grant its credit card holders 5% discounts.

Target Bullseye Gives Campaign

Some businesses are taking a more philantrophic route. Retail chain Target gives a whopping 5% percent of its income to charity. In May of 2009, it allocated these funds to charities via its “Bullseye Gives” campaign on Facebook. The company announced that it would dole out the money – which totals about $3 million every week – to charities that were selected by Facebook users.

Ikea’s Facebook Furniture Giveaway

At the end of last year, Ikea chose to harness the power and reach of the social media mega site, Facebook, to promote a new store in Malmo, Sweden. In the campaign they created a Facebook profile for store manager Gordon Gustavsson. They uploaded images of furnished and decorated showrooms to his photo album and promoted a photo tagging giveaway. The first person to tag an object got to take it home. The enthusiasm knew no bounds – users embedded the link on their profiles, with their newsfeeds stoking the viral epidemic. Ikea may have given away a couple thousand dollars of merchandise, but it also successfully advertised the opening of their newest store and generated worldwide recognition for their brand.

All in all, marketing efforts in the past few years have become increasingly out-of-the-box for obvious reasons: When it comes to fighting the aftershocks of an economic earthquake, conventional just doesn’t cut it.

Sources:

http://blogof.francescomugnai.com/2009/11/the-80-best-guerrilla-marketing-ideas-ive-ever-seen/

http://blogof.francescomugnai.com/2009/11/the-80-best-guerrilla-marketing-ideas-ive-ever-seen/

http://weburbanist.com/2010/01/13/guerilla-marketing-22-ads-from-bizarre-to-brilliant/

http://weburbanist.com/2010/01/13/guerilla-marketing-22-ads-from-bizarre-to-brilliant//

http://weburbanist.com/2010/01/13/guerilla-marketing-22-ads-from-bizarre-to-brilliant/

Collective buying, or group buying, is a new trend that benefits businesses and consumers alike. Group buying websites, such as www.groupon.com, offer discounts on goods and services. Unlike traditional coupon sites, they encourage consumers to spread the buzz and bring in other customers by guaranteeing the bargains only if enough customers take advantage of the promotion.

These sites, which are quickly gaining in popularity, offer a cheap way for businesses to advertise and drum up business. For example, www.buywithme.com writes up the information provided by the business, and then promotes the deal with online contests and email blasts. Potential buyers use social networking to encourage others to sign up for the deal. One website, www.livingsocial.com, provides buyers with a special link to send to friends. If a buyer persuades three people to purchase the voucher, that customer receives it for free.

Compared to other advertising methods, group buying offers instant revenue and brand promotion with a clear return on investment (ROI). Within one day, business owners know exactly how many people have taken advantage of a particular promotion. They receive immediate payment for purchase of their vouchers. Even if the buyers never redeem their coupons, business owners retain the payments.

As an added bonus, collective buying exposes your business to a new demographic. Group buying websites have a vast audience of deal-seekers who are motivated to spread news of a good offer.

Viewed from any angle, this business opportunity has a lot to offer. Dream up an offer that customers can’t refuse, and find a collective buying website to market it.

Smack in the middle of all the social networking hype that has been generated over the past few years there is Facebook- a site that lets users add people as “friends”, designate themselves as”fans”of other users, send messages, and update their personal profiles. With more than 400 million active users, many, including this blog, saw Facebook as fertile ground for businesses to interact with their customers, establish their brand, pinpoint their target market, and in short generate a profitable buzz.

But today, numerous business owners who sought to heed the clarion call to all things social networking are now left wondering whether it was all worth it. It turns out that Facebook, though it may be a popular way to connect with other people, may nonetheless be the wrong platform for many seeking to increase brand awareness and drum up business.

Here is a breakdown of the three major problems and drawbacks small business owners may experience as they work on building their Facebook following:

1. No distinction between personal and professional use. One problem is that Facebook causes business owners to cross boundaries and identities. This is due to the fact that Facebook does not allow one user to have two profiles. This means that users must merge their personal and professional networking. Sharing ones personal interests and photos with business contacts may not enhance one’s professional standing.

2. More fans do not equal more business. Facebook users are focused on socializing. The site additionally provides many interesting distractions, which make users less likely to pay any meaningful attention to business offerings- even when they have labeled themselves as friends or fans. Bottom line: increased exposure within Facebook among users in no way guarantees increased revenue.

3. Advertising a business on Facebook exposes it to fraud. Hacking and spam are prevalent on Facebook. Business owners certainly do not want someone sending strange messages to all their Facebook fans. In addition, because the Facebook audience is so vast and non-targeted, anyone can easily contact a business. Business owners can easily waste time responding to people who never intended to become customers.

In sum, while Facebook may offer unprecedented exposure, it is not truly a business tool. Business owners still interested in social media should consider other mediums, such as LinkedIn or Twitter in order to generate business growth and get a decent return on investment.

Generating publicity is a major part of any small business marketing campaign. But when tight budgets meet up with lack of know how, many excellent opportunities can go to waste. Small business owners looking to expand their marketing tactics on a shoe string may want to consider these options: 

• Send out a press release. Expanding your business, launching new products or services, gaining new clients, or sponsoring an event are all examples of newsworthy events that can be the focus of a press release. You can send out press releases to local newspapers, magazines, or radio stations, who attract the attention of people in your target market. Alternatively, for a small fee you could use the services of an online news release agency such as PR Web or PRLeap.com. Not only will this help to get your name out there, but it will also temporarily help your website’s Google ranking.

• Sponsor and/or host an event. Associating your company with a special event, such as a workshop, a lecture series, or some form of entertainment may generate positive interest in your business and drum up sales. You should try, however, to be involved with events that are both relevant to your business and directed to your target audience. 

• Book yourself for public speaking engagements. If you are comfortable speaking in front of others, offering to be a speaker on a topic within your area of expertise can generate a lot of good publicity for your business- even if you are doing it pro bono. If you are having trouble finding places to speak, there are even public speaker brokers who can help hook you up with groups in need of a speaker. 

• Get involved in community service project. Your company’s involvement with local charity or community service organization, such as a shelter or a soup kitchen, can generate a tremendous amount of good will and build up a positive reputation for your company, not to mention help those in need.

• Conduct promotional events. Promoting events, such as giveaways, theme nights, special “value” deals, can generate a buzz among your customers, increase brand awareness, and encourage people to use your products or services. Keep in mind that creativity and planning are central elements to running a successful promotion.

• Hold a contest. Holding a contest is another easy and fun way to promote your business. Here are a few examples: Have customers send in videos using your products; hold a contest for the best customer-generated t-shirt or logo design. Conduct a lottery for all those who patron your business on a particular day.

• Create a viral marketing campaign. With a little creativity and know how, a well executed viral promotion can greatly increase brand awareness and generate an increase in sales. Viral promotions typically involve short videos, interactive Flash games, ebooks, software, images, and sometimes email or text messages that are quickly spread among the users of various social networks. To see some examples of the most successful viral marketing campaigns over the last decade, check out this post at Ignite Social Media.

• Build an engaging online presence. In 2010, developing a business’ online presence can mean more than just maintaining a website and getting listed in local online business directories. It may also involve producing an engaging blog and using social networking sites, such as Twitter and Facebook as well as social bookmarking sites, such as Digg , Delicious, and StumbleUpon. Learning how to effectively integrate these sites into your marketing campaign can generate a tremendous amount of interest in your company and make your business known to people you would be unable to contact otherwise.

• Build a useful and informative online presence. Aside from being engaging, if you consistently offer useful and valuable information, products, and/or services to those who reach you online, you can also generate a great deal of publicity. Writing articles to e-zines, offering a free e-book or white paper, and posting to or moderating forums are all ways to spread your message and generate leads to your site.

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The prolific growth of the Internet and Web2.0 has been a boon for market researchers in that it has simplified the process of collecting and generating quality market data.

To run a successful small business these days, conducting effective market research is a must. Market research is a dynamic process focused on understanding the relationship between consumers and a particular product or company. It involves the systematic collection and analysis of consumer and economic data including economic reports and industry trends as well as consumer attitudes and behaviors.

Armed with this information, businesses can adjust their policies and strategies so that they are in line with current market realities. Here are a few ways, small business owners can use the Internet to conduct market research:

Researching “Secondary” Data
Secondary data refers to any information about the market or the economy that has already been collected. It is called secondary because you are not directly interacting with your current or potential base market. Examples of places to go to get secondary data include: government sites (check out my previous post on free government resources), trade journals, and surveys conducted by other businesses.

Keyword Research

Keyword research goes beyond a simple Google or Yahoo search. See how different keywords are performing and get an idea of what your customers are looking for. Use Google’s free keyword analytics tools, such as the Google Adwords Keyword Tool, to measure keyword usage.

Keyword research also includes monitoring social networking sites, such as Twitter and blogs for any mentions of your company.

Keeping Tabs on the Competition
The Internet makes it easier for business owners to find out what their competitors are doing. A simple Google search of a company’s name, for example, will provide a snapshot of who is linking to their site  and what people are saying. Check out your competitor’s website to get a feel for the customer’s experience and get information on the kinds of products and/or services they are offering.

Webtraffic Analytics
Small business owners with a strong web presence can measure and qualify how current and potential customers are using their site. As mentioned above, Google provides a fully featured web analytics package, Google Anaytics, which is free.

Conducting Online Surveys/Focus Groups
The best way to know what your customers are feeling or doing is to ask them directly, and by far the cheapest way to do this is online. Enter online customer surveys and focus groups.

For those who want to conduct an online survey, there are several sites that offer software to help you create an effective customer questionnaire- some of them for free. Those interested in a survey creator should check out Survey Monkey and Question Form to start out with.

With online focus groups, a company can invite several individuals to participate in a structured discussion with a moderator for about an hour. Conducting focus groups online generally requires at  least some conferencing software. There are also several programs available specifically created for online focus group moderation with some nifty features, such as video, drawing tools, and remote website navigation.

I saw a recent post at womenonbusines about how important it is for small business owners to seek out public speaking opportunities- even if those opportunities are unpaid. I couldn’t agree more.

With all the emphasis these days on online social networking and hyper-connected, mobile technology, still nothing beats a face-to-face meeting. In the business world, as in other areas of life, the human contact factor weighs heavily, and can create a bigger, more lasting impression on potential customers and business partners.

But if the thought of getting up to speak in front of a group of people leaves you feeling a little weak in the knees, then consider these tips:

1. Most important rule… be yourself!!! Don’t try to be something you are not. My general rule: get to know your public speaking strengths and weaknesses. Where necessary compensate for weaknesses, but put more emphasis on building on your natural strengths and abilities.

Everyone has talents and/or abilities that are unique to them. The first place to start is to get in touch with them. Some people are funny… Some people speak very clearly and logically… Some people are charismatic and can work up a crowd… Some people are sensitive and can feel where their audience is holding… Each one of these abilities can be used to connect with the people who have come to listen to you speak.

2. Don’t go overboard with public speaking “techniques.” There are many, many public speaking techniques designed to make the experience more interactive and engaging for your audience and to keep you on track (for example, the use of visual aids, humor, outlines, etc). While they each have importance, keep in mind that you do not need to use all of them to be a good speaker. They are meant to cover up small “deficiencies” in your presentation and to enhance your natural abilities. If you are in touch with your strengths and weaknesses as a speaker then it will be easier to pick out which techniques to use and to decide how and when to use them.

3. Do your homework before hand. Though many public speaking advisers emphasize thoroughly knowing what you are speaking about and the message you want to give over, don’t forget to also learn about who you are speaking to (i.e. what are their interests? Ages? Are they there voluntarily or are they forced to be there?) as well as when ( i.e. In the morning? At the end of a long day?) and where you are speaking (i.e. What is the size and layout of the room?). All of these factors should influence the way you will deliver your presentation.

4. Rehearse your presentation. If you have time and a listening ear you can practice giving over your presentation to someone and ask for feedback. You can alternatively record yourself speaking, whether via an audio recording or video tape. What this does is puts you in your audience’s point of view so that you can get an idea of what their experience will be like and make any necessary adjustments.

5. Get some perspective. Unless you are making a career of public speaking, most speaking engagements begin and end within an hour and they may be clustered around certain times of the month or year. Even if you make mistakes during your presentation and even if it was a difficult experience (which happens to even the best of public speakers), the engagement will come to a close and life will go on (even if it doesn’t feel like that at the moment!). Just try your best and try to let yourself shine through. In the end, it’s what counts the most.

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In a previous post, I listed my picks for the top small business blogs. But as the economy continues to sputter along and the credit markets remain tight (especially for small businesses), I wanted to highlight those blogs that are specifically targeted to those small and home-based business owners committed to bootstrapping- those who seek to avoid outside financing, while focusing on how they can use their available resources creatively and efficiently.

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The following business blogs offer a vast collection of techniques, advice, and knowledge on cost-cutting, raising capital, creative marketing, and efficient operations:

1. SOHO Tools, News & Technology. This blog hosted by Wendy Piersall offers a a collection of ideas, business book reviews, product reviews, technology tips, coupons, and freebies to help the aspiring entrepreneur build and run a business on a shoestring budget.

2. The Entrepreneurial Mind. Hosted by Jeff Cornwall, director of the Center for Entrepreneurship at Nashville’s Belmont University, this blog discusses various topics in entrepreneurism such as, Bootstrapping, Global Entrepreneurship, and Learning from Failure.

3. Toilet Paper Entrepreneur. Mike Michalowicz offers a “get real” approach to starting and running a new business with a collection of helpful tips and resources.

4. Duct Tape Marketing. Hosted by John Jantsch the founder of Duct Tape Marketing, this site focuses on marketing techniques and methodology for small businesses operating on a shoe string. The blog contains insightful articles and commentary by several small business marketing gurus.

5. Neville’s Financial Blog. Follow Neville Medhora as he documents his business goals, strives to increase his net worth, and even conducts “experiments.”

6. The Simple Dollar. The Simple Dollar is an insightful personal finance blog offering advice on managing debt and living cheaper.

7. Productivity501. This site offers an abundance of information and tips and help people increase their personal productivity.

8. Free Money Finance. This comprehensive personal finance blog offers information and advice, commentary, news, resources, tips, and tricks.

9. Wise Bread. Wise Bread is a valuable forum for personal finance including tons of advice on frugal living, consumer deals, as well as a section dedicated to small businesses.

10. How to Change the World. Guy Kawasaki, co-founder of Alltop, offers on practical tips on technology, marketing, and innovation.

11. Vest Pocket Consultant. Blogger Rosalind Resnick offers her expertise and insight in the areas of business planning, finance, and marketing to start-ups and growing small businesses.

12. College Startup. This blog offers advice for entrepreneurially-inclined college students trying to make money while they study.

13. FiveCentNickel. A clear, and highly informative blog about personal finance and general money matters.

14. Mint Life. This blog offers a lot of useful information on personal finance tips, trends, and news.

15. I Will Teach You to be Rich. Ramit Sethi offers advice and tips for saving, investing and negotiating as well as how to live a richer, happier life.

16. Practical Ecommerce. This site offers blogs and articles on a variety of topics affecting online merchants.

17. Gulliver. Gulliver is a valuable source of business travel news, service reviews, and thoughtful discussion

18. Seth Godin’s Blog. This blog written by marketing expert, author, and entrepreneur Seth Godin, is in itself a lesson in branding and image development. It will challenge the way you think about marketing yourself or your business.

19. Small Business Growth Strategies. Blog Hosted by Stephanie Chandler provides thoughtful commentary, advice, tips, and news related to running and growing a small business.

According to recent research, retail sales have fallen over the last month even as the back-to-school shopping season gets into high gear, and industry forecasters claim that this does not bode well for the upcoming holiday season either.

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So the looming question for retailers big and small continues to be how to maintain or even increase sales in such a dismal economic environment.

A month ago I posted this article that briefly examined how some restauranteurs were managing to succeed despite the weak economy. In a similar vein, although the retail industry as a whole is suffering, there are several hot pockets of consumer spending that continue to draw brisk sales. A few big discount retailers, such as Wal-mart, have been able to capitalize on these trends and are focusing on several strategies to keep these consumer dollars rolling in.

Though small retailers may be more limited in their scope then the big discount chains, by studying their strategies, there are several valuable lessons that small businesses can learn and implement. Perhaps the most important of these strategies is that retailers are paying close attention to shifts in consumer attitudes and behavior and then adapting to them.

Here is a brief look at what some of the successful retailers are specifically doing:

1. Focusing on value. Today’s consumers are tech-savvy, bargain hunters looking for the best bang- i.e. value- for their buck. Retailers are concentrating their inventory on what people still need to buy, and then providing it at a low-cost or with some other added value, such as extensive customer support.

2. Promoting a unique brand. It has become increasingly important over the past two years for retailers to differentiate themselves and/or their products and services from those of their competitors.

3. Using aggressive, low-cost marketing tactics. The role that the Internet is playing in consumer decision-making and spending has not been overlooked by retailers, and it is all the more attractive given its low cost. Successful online marketing campaigns include: sending out emails, maintaining a website, offering online coupons, and registering with online directories and Point of Interest databases.

4. Offering promotions. The goal of a successful promotion is to get customers in the door where they will either spend money on other items or services or they will remember the experience and be more likely to frequent the business later on. Some promotion ideas include hosting or promoting events, offering a themed sale, or providing free products or services.

5. Focusing on customer convenience. Retailers are paying attention to how customers are choosing to make their purchases and then building up these areas. Are customers, for example, using cash as opposed to credit or shopping online as opposed to physically showing up at a brick and mortar location?

6. Initiating cost-cutting tactics and tight inventory management. Even the most profitable retailers out there these days are paying close attention to wasteful or redundant spending and are making sure that capital is not being tied up in unnecessary inventory supplies.

7. Forming partnerships. Some stores are forming partnerships with each other, whether banding together to pool resources or reduce overhead costs or offering discounts to each other’s customers.

A few weeks ago, I posted this article offering a few tips on how small business owners can grow their businesses during the recession. As I noted in the post, even in this dismal economy some businesses are thriving.

But for the majority of smaller businesses the focus has become just trying to hunker down and survive the economic storm while remaining somewhat intact.

One of the best examples of small business survival has been in the restaurant industry. The restaurant industry as a whole has seen both ups and downs over the past two years. Price increases in products and supplies, lower consumer confidence, changes in consumer behavior and demand, and less available credit have all had their impact on food services businesses. Yet many are proving to be surprisingly resilient and are successfully weathering the storm.

What’s their secret?

Successful restaurant owners are paying close attention to changes in the market and then adapting to them, they are also focused on developing and defining their brand..

So what specifically are some restaurants doing? Here’s a brief rundown:

Paying attention to quality:

Many restauranteurs are focused on the quality of the experience their customers have when they come to their eateries. This translates into the quality of the food, the service, and the overall level of hospitality. By providing an enjoyable experience, restaurant owners are giving their customers the opportunity to break away from all the dreariness and are in the processing cashing in.

Creating the perception of value:

These days as people look for ways to save money, they need a lot more incentive to spend it on eating out. Put simply, customers are looking to stretch their hard-earned dollars as far as they will go. One successful strategy used by restaurant owners is to focus on their customers’ perception of value. 

But communicating to customers that they are getting a good value (in terms of food quality, portioning, or ambiance) while at the same time not cheapening the perception of the business is actually a delicate balancing act.  It requires sound pricing strategy, menu planning, and marketing. Several restaurants have begun bundling meals, increasing portion size, or adding extras, like a free dessert, to add value while avoiding the appearance of discounting.

Using promotions to draw customers:

Many restaurant owners are also trying to draw customers with a variety of promotions and specials. Some examples include: having a night where kids eat for free or for a small charge, having a theme night, or setting aside slower times of the day or week for special value deals or unique events. Other restaurant owners are experimenting with cooking classes, dietary workshops, or birthday promotions.

Using the Internet to advertise:

The Internet can be an effective and often cheap means of advertising a small business, and this has not gone unnoticed by many restaurant owners. Many restauranteurs rely on a conscientious email marketing campaign, are making sure their business is listed on the popular online directories, and are a maintaining a website.

Emphasizing their unique brand:

All of the previous points are included in this one. The most successful restaurant owners understand the experience and the occasions that their business (i.e. their brand) is positioned for and are focused on building up these areas.

In short, whether you run a foodservice business, or another kind of small business, there are definitely a few lessons to be learned.

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I recently came across this article in the English Observer that put words to a new cultural and economic reality that is taking shape here in the U.S.:

…The era of individualistic consumption that swept aside the Great Society of the 1960s has come to an end. For three decades, American culture has celebrated the glories of unabashed capitalism and the ideals of the rich. No longer. From Hollywood movies to celebrity culture to television, frugalism is taking hold. Consumers are cutting back… A national belt-tightening is having an impact on everything from restaurants and books to a collapse in the demand for cosmetic surgery. The recession is reshaping the cultural landscape in which ordinary people live their lives.

For many small businesses to succeed in this changing environment they will need to change or improve the way that they operate. With a new year beginning it is the best time for business owners and management to take stock of their business performance in order to plan for the future.

To help get you started, here are my picks for the top small business resolutions in 2009. Some may apply to your business; others may not. But the main thing to keep in mind is that to be successful in this new environment any resolutions that you set for your business should stay within, yet at the same time optimize, your available resources.

1. Make a plan. Before you can make any resolutions, you need to be focused on where you want your business to go. Look for areas of improvement and set realistic goals. Do you need to strengthen sales, improve customer service, smooth out your cash flow, increase efficiency? In the end, your plan will be an outline of sorts for all of your resolutions.

2. Improve communication and collaboration with your employees. Your employees are one of your greatest assets- and you should treat them that way. Not only are they intimately involved in the nitty-gritty operations of your business, but they are often your link to your customers. Invite your employees to offer their ideas, questions, and comments for how they can do their jobs better and how the business can improve. Even if you do not get any implementable feedback, make sure your employees know that you seriously considered their suggestions, and they will automatically be more motivated and more productive at work.

3. Strengthen relationships with your customers. In the current economic climate, customer loyalty is a precious commodity. Make sure that you are checking in with your customers about their experience doing business with you. Their feedback, comments, and suggestions may also help you to provide a better quality and more focused product or service. And like your employees, let your customers know that you considered what they had to say, even if nothing was implemented. You should also try to look for ways to reward or acknowledge your repeat customers.

4. Research and implement cost-cutting techniques. Look for simple and effective ways to reduce expenses. Some examples: 1. Buy energy saving products, such as CFL light bulbs and look into other resource conserving practices. 2. Improve product and supply inventory management so that capital is not unnecessarily tied up in overstocked on unused items. 3. Join a discount shopping club or make joint purchases with other businesses. 4. Look for ways to reduce employee benefits and health care costs.

5. Improve your cash flow. By smoothing the flow of capital in and out of your business, you will be able to run more efficiently and be in a better position to make decisions that can enhance your business, such as whether or not to purchase new equipment. Basically, you will need to take a look at your inventory, your accounts payable and your accounts receivable. In my previous post Keeping Your Business Out of Debt, I included some details on how to improve your cash flow.

6. Make quality control a priority. Make it a point to establish methods of assessing the quality and reliability of the products and/or services that your business provides. Put simply, the greater the quality of the products and the more reliable the service that your customers can get for their money, the more that your customers will want to use your business. Here also it is important to get customer feedback.

7. Pursue creative and low-cost marketing techniques. In two of my recent posts, I outlined several marketing strategies to promote your business without taking a big bite out of your budget. Some additional ideas: attach an informative signature on your outgoing emails, send a press release when your offer a new product or service or if you make an event that involves the community, write online articles for ezines.

8. Seek out advice and support. With a challenging year up ahead, it is important that you build a “support system” that will help you focus, clarify, and actualize your business goals. This support could come from coaches, mentors, hired professional consultants, or other small business owners. For starters, you can check out your local SCORE chapter or Micromentor.org, or join your local chamber of commerce (to connect to other business owners). You could also join an online small business community.

9. Assess your progress. Make sure to set aside a few minutes every week to assess how your business is doing. What you chose to focus on in that time will be specific to your business, but some common areas to look at include: sales and inventory reports, cash flow statements, and ROI on current marketing strategies.

10. Remember to have fun! Running a small business usually involves a great deal of responsibility and and a great deal of stress- especially these days. Knowing how to lighten things up for yourself and your employees is an invaluable tool to improve productivity and build a loyal workforce. If you are a bit challenged in the creativity or sense of humor department, here are some common ideas: planning an inexpensive employee get-together, outing, or event (Why not go to the local park for a potluck picnic or invite someone to give a seminar), running contests that showcase employee contributions, let employees creatively decorate their own workspaces, or play music at work. And for some business humor.. check out this page.

Image credit: nicolas.boullosa