During an economic recession small and medium enterprises (SMEs) often adopt a survivalist mentality by focussing on cost cutting strategies that ensure short-term success but, ignore long-term prosperity. According to Gugu Mjadu, Executive Manager of Business Partners Limited, marketing tends to be one of the first spending areas to be cut when times are tough. “Marketing is not only one of the most vital functions of a business, but, counter-intuitively, the slower the economy, the more your investment in your marketing efforts needs to be.”
Mjadu however indicates that such an investment does not have to be in cash. “SME owners can cut their marketing budget provided they increase their marketing effort in other ways, such as increasing their team’s focus on marketing, or spending more time on it themselves.”
She offers the following insightful marketing tips to SME owners looking to succeed in 2013:
Cut the waste, but be careful not to over-prune:.. more This principle undoubtedly applies to marketing efforts, in which 80% of a business’s success can be derived from 20% of its marketing efforts.