I know you are thinking, “Easy for you to say”.  Well, I say, “Quit making excuses”.

Advertising icon David Ogilvy did some research on the success of companies in post-recession eras. No surprise to me but maybe to you, just about all the companies that continued to market through a recession emerged stronger with improved revenue and market share. Those that cut back went belly up or at least had a ton of ground to make up.

The two ways to create money is to utilize marketing and innovation. So use your leverage to take advantage of better rates. Someone in ad sales today called and told me he had an 8/10 ad for the FRONT page in COLOR for only $375.  An effective ad in that kind of position is likely to pay for itself. So ask. Negotiate. Or go somewhere that will. You also need to get creative.

I made business cards with a movie star’s picture (she won’t ever know it was handed to 50 people), I’ve made pens with headlines taped on them and told everyone they were ‘personalized pens’. And today some guy had a cookie shaped like a phone with a business card attached which sold his telecommunications business. This is the time to get creative folks. Push yourself. Look around. You are not going down in the sinking ship without a fight. You may have to be out there more, advertise smarter, try strategies you’ve never tried before. But the cool part is that you’ll do things you remember later that worked.

And keep this in mind. This from Gordon at the copywriter’s board. Said so succinctly and it is paraphrased.

For your ad, online sales letter or eBay listing, you need to do EVERYTHING in  your power to interest your target market.

Not just the headline and copy, but all the way through to the point of sale.

What are people interested in?

1. Themselves
2. How your product/service will benefit them
3. The importance of those benefits
4. Not being ripped off

Then you need to make sure you have worked up to the point of purchase and stated a reason why they should buy NOW. Maybe you make it irresistible by adding things or offering a deal with an expiration. But you don’t do all that work and then not push them over the edge. Then there is the fine line between being pushy and knowing when to stop and let it marinate so they come back to you. The boomerang sale. That can work, too.

The key to a better economy is for you to be proactive instead of desperate or depressed. Funnel that wasted energy on depression and desperation into something productive. Inspiration. Innovation. Persistence. Creativity.  Now get to it and quit moping or hyperventilating.