Therefore, while the mailings were beginning to take effect, we started retail marketing to local residents. First we had to survey customers and local residents. We found out what they needed and wanted in the way of art and what we would have to do to make them our customers. Then we did a "positioning" survey to work out how to position our retail activities in the mind of the public so that we would be well accepted and instantly popular. We found that what they wanted was an "Art Warehouse." This was very fortunate, since being a major art wholesaler they already had a huge warehouse. So we added all we discovered into the existing promotion they were doing, which really boosted the results.

Now we are working on a TV commercial to let people know that we are "The Art Warehouse" and give them an incentive based on what has proven well in other promotions to come in and buy now. Many of this company's competitors are going out of business at a time when this company is suddenly doing great."

Keith Legg: "The first and foremost thing that must be done in a changing market is to know before you go. In other words you must survey. Whom do you survey? Those people who will buy your products and or services, in other words, your publics.

Unfortunately surveying is not just 'knowing your customers' or even asking people questions and getting answers. It is asking specifically designed questions and listening and noting down the responses. Then tabulating the responses, and from the tabulation results creating promotional pieces that will grab that particular public's attention and get them to pick up the phone, walk in the store, etc. ordering your product or services.

If you try it and still don't get a good response, then it's usually the surveys or the promotional pieces themselves that were not done correctly.

Unfortunately, how to survey is little understood. You surely don't want to feed people the answers when surveying. Surveying is a very exact technology. You ask, listen, tabulate and then from there you need someone sharp to put it all together in a piece that works and gets sales.

So, during tough times should one cutback on his marketing dollars and activity? This all depends how you want to survive. If you are smart you will pour on the coals to the marketing area when things get tough. This is the smart thing to do--even when it is very tight financially.

Initially you reinstate formerly successful campaigns to keep business going and the doors open but then you must finally survey your publics or otherwise spend a whole lot more on marketing activities than you would otherwise.

There is a technology of surveying and it can be learned quite straight forwardly with study and practice. Unfortunately it is too involved to be taught in a single writing. There are books and inexpensive, quick courses available to learn how to do marketing surveys (contact us for specifics).

Any promotion is better than no promotion but surveyed promotion wins big, time and time again.

You need to market your business during these tough times more than ever. Don't cut back on your marketing activities. Strengthen them with surveys. You will also find if you do surveys that your promotional pieces will work better and you have to spend less to get more and that is the best of all.

So market your business out of a recession or a tough time to a point of many happy successes.

David Sanders and Keith Legg are National Business Consultants with offices in the Glendale, CA area.

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