Most people believe creating, launching, and maintaining a marketing campaign requires an endless stream of money. Not everyone can be Coke, Chase Bank, or Nike. Honestly, most companies have to spend their marketing dollar effectively and aren't marketing with a sea of money. Whether you are looking to improve or begin you marketing campaign, you can find effective ways to stretch your bottom without relinquishing quality. You can be just as effective as those larger companies with less money, and here are five ways to do just that.
1. Don't perpetually change your marketing campaign. A great way to stretch your bottom line is stick with your marketing campaign. Employees, family members, friends, and you may all be sick of your marketing campaign, but it only matters when your accountant says its time. Stay committed to your campaign for the savings!
2. Barter. In today's society, the barter system is basically nonexistent, yet it is alive and well in the world of marketing. TV and radio can be very expensive media outlets; however, these companies do accept services or goods in exchange. Say you sell cupcakes for a living, and the radio station provides birthday parties to disenfranchised children. Making an agreement to provide your cupcakes at retail price for payment will save you money and allow you to get your marketing done effectively. If the TV station needs new video equipment, find a way to exchange your cupcakes for video equipment. You may not have what they want at the beginning, but you can barter your way there.
3. Cooperative advertising funds. Larger companies will pay you to mention their products in your advertising, allowing you to allocate your money more effectively. Each company has different requirements so ask the vendors you use if they offer these services--most likely they do.
4. Use per inquiry or per order agreements. Like the bater system, media companies will arrange per inquiry or per order agreements in exchange for advertising space. How this work is for every inquiry or order you must pay the media company a set amount. Suppose five TV commercial for your car dealership will cost $250 each, and you offer them $250 per car sold (per order). If you only sell three cars, then you not only sold three cars but got $1250 in marketing for $750. And even if you sell twenty cars, you now know this is a strong way to sell cars, and you can change your payment method to a more traditional one.
5. Talk to your customers. This is the cheapest way to get information about your marketing. They will tell you where they found you whether that be through a questionnaire, face-to-face conversations, key codes, unique URLs, or online responses.
I hope you found at least one way to help stretch your bottom dollar without sacrificing effective marketing practices!
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