hich means ineffective and costly Marketing. Businesses without a plan usually end up placing advertising in a variety of mediums (southern Alberta has more than 75 to select from) but they can’t actually see any results from these ads. The business owner knows some of the advertising is working but some isn't. Unfortunately they don't know which is which.

Phew, all this planning sounds like a lot of work. It is, but how important is making your business succeed? Sp

This is a good time of the year to review your previous year's Marketing and think about what to do for this year. From the rumours on the street, customer loyalty is down 25 - 35%. Ouch. This means you've got to always be finding new customers and that makes planning your Marketing more important because you want to make sure every dollar spent will be effective.

For many people they cut their Marketing budgets when times are tough. This is not a wise thing to do since the only way we can invite people to do business with us is to remind them we are here, and open for business. When you stop your Marketing, you stop reminding them you are in business and people just simply forget about you.

So what exactly is Marketing? For many people, Marketing is throwing a few ads in a media and waiting for people to come flying through the door. When this doesn’t happen, then that Marketing activity becomes a huge and frustrating expense. Contrary to what many people think, Marketing is not just advertising, nor is it just sales, nor is it just customer service. These business activities are only a few components that fall under the Marketing umbrella.

The purpose of Marketing is to find out who wants, or needs, your product or service, and then find the most cost effective way to talk directly to those people. Recognizing that not everyone is your target audience is the first step. It’s also the one of the hardest areas to make business people accept. The bottom line is, you can't afford to talk to “everyone”.

How do you get started? Most business people spend more time planning their vacation, than they do planning how to Market their business. Yes, that statement is true, so it’s not surprising that halfway through the year, those businesses begin to struggle and get frustrated with their advertising. No plan means no direction, which means knee-jerk marketing, which means ineffective and costly Marketing. Businesses without a plan usually end up placing advertising in a variety of mediums (southern Alberta has more than 75 to select from) but they can’t actually see any results from these ads. The business owner knows some of the advertising is working but some isn't. Unfortunately they don't know which is which.

Phew, all this planning sounds like a lot of work. It is, but how important is making your business succeed? Spe

ce the only way we can invite people to do business with us is to remind them we are here, and open for business. When you stop your Marketing, you stop reminding them you are in business and people just simply forget about you.

So what exactly is Marketing? For many people, Marketing is throwing a few ads in a media and waiting for people to come flying through the door. When this doesn’t happen, then that Marketing activity becomes a huge and frustrating expense. Contrary to what many people think, Marketing is not just advertising, nor is it just sales, nor is it just customer service. These business activities are only a few components that fall under the Marketing umbrella.

The purpose of Marketing is to find out who wants, or needs, your product or service, and then find the most cost effective way to talk directly to those people. Recognizing that not everyone is your target audience is the first step. It’s also the one of the hardest areas to make business people accept. The bottom line is, you can't afford to talk to “everyone”.

How do you get started? Most business people spend more time planning their vacation, than they do planning how to Market their business. Yes, that statement is true, so it’s not surprising that halfway through the year, those businesses begin to struggle and get frustrated with their advertising. No plan means no direction, which means knee-jerk marketing, which means ineffective and costly Marketing. Businesses without a plan usually end up placing advertising in a variety of mediums (southern Alberta has more than 75 to select from) but they can’t actually see any results from these ads. The business owner knows some of the advertising is working but some isn't. Unfortunately they don't know which is which.

Phew, all this planning sounds like a lot of work. It is, but how important is making your business succeed? Sp

ntrary to what many people think, Marketing is not just advertising, nor is it just sales, nor is it just customer service. These business activities are only a few components that fall under the Marketing umbrella.

The purpose of Marketing is to find out who wants, or needs, your product or service, and then find the most cost effective way to talk directly to those people. Recognizing that not everyone is your target audience is the first step. It’s also the one of the hardest areas to make business people accept. The bottom line is, you can't afford to talk to “everyone”.

How do you get started? Most business people spend more time planning their vacation, than they do planning how to Market their business. Yes, that statement is true, so it’s not surprising that halfway through the year, those businesses begin to struggle and get frustrated with their advertising. No plan means no direction, which means knee-jerk marketing, which means ineffective and costly Marketing. Businesses without a plan usually end up placing advertising in a variety of mediums (southern Alberta has more than 75 to select from) but they can’t actually see any results from these ads. The business owner knows some of the advertising is working but some isn't. Unfortunately they don't know which is which.

Phew, all this planning sounds like a lot of work. It is, but how important is making your business succeed? Sp

the hardest areas to make business people accept. The bottom line is, you can't afford to talk to “everyone”.

How do you get started? Most business people spend more time planning their vacation, than they do planning how to Market their business. Yes, that statement is true, so it’s not surprising that halfway through the year, those businesses begin to struggle and get frustrated with their advertising. No plan means no direction, which means knee-jerk marketing, which means ineffective and costly Marketing. Businesses without a plan usually end up placing advertising in a variety of mediums (southern Alberta has more than 75 to select from) but they can’t actually see any results from these ads. The business owner knows some of the advertising is working but some isn't. Unfortunately they don't know which is which.

Phew, all this planning sounds like a lot of work. It is, but how important is making your business succeed? Sp

hich means ineffective and costly Marketing. Businesses without a plan usually end up placing advertising in a variety of mediums (southern Alberta has more than 75 to select from) but they can’t actually see any results from these ads. The business owner knows some of the advertising is working but some isn't. Unfortunately they don't know which is which.

Phew, all this planning sounds like a lot of work. It is, but how important is making your business succeed? Spend the time now and you’ll save time, money and frustration later.