Top five ways to grow a business during a recession.

Phil Akin, President/CEO at Hellman.

Don’t spend. Hunker down. Wait out the downturn in the economy. Sound familiar? Many companies – including your competitors – are taking the safe, “quiet” route through the recession. Meantime, others are turning up the message volume on their unique products and services.

While many companies are spending less on advertising and marketing these days, others are investing in market share growth. According to an online guest post by Neil Belenkie on the Small Biz Bee, there are 10 key ways to keep your business thriving during a recession. Of those 10, here are the top five tips I found most valuable:

1. Plan well. The marketplace has changed, is your business plan still relevant? Spend time analyzing how your customer’s needs have changed and ask yourself if you have changed with them. If not, you need to make sure that you have a plan to bring your business up to date. If you are doing well, then make sure you have a plan for the next phase of this evolving marketplace. Stay ahead of the wave and the water will always be ripple-free.
2. Be strategic. Success is not luck. Think hard about why your customer would want your products or services. The marketplace has evolved, make sure that your message is relevant and that your communications resonate with your target audience.
3. Be unique. Do not try to be all things to all people. Be all things to a few people and they will all buy.
4. Innovate. You need to find new ways to make money. Create new applications for your existing products, find new customers who would benefit from your services, and find new products that your existing customers will also need. Do not accept that what you’re currently doing is all that can be done.
5. Invest in low-risk ROI opportunities. Money is tight, but that doesn’t mean that you can afford not to spend. Keep seeking out new business opportunities. With each opportunity, assess the investment versus the forecasted revenue, and don’t be afraid to go after an opportunity when the numbers work.

What is your company doing to grow during the recession? What’s working and what’s not? Comment below and share your challenges and success stories.

Phil Akin is President/CEO at Hellman. If you have a question about how to build a sound advertising, marketing, public relations or social media strategy, contact Phil at p.akin@hellman.com.

Tags: Advertising, brand development, communications, customer development, Marketing, marketing strategy, Neil Belenkie, product awareness, Public Relations, recession, ROI, smallbizbee.com, social media, target audience