With the credit crunch having more of an influence on what we spend our money on it seems it's not just the man on the street that has to tighten his belt. Businesses, both large and small, are having to re-adjust there spending and find ways to save money. One of the first areas to be affected looks like it could be advertising and marketing. Some advertisers, particularly the big players, cannot afford to completely slash their advertising budgets, but even they are toning down big budget campaigns and giving their advertising a narrower focus in the hope that they can make as big an impression with less resource. It's vitally important to remain at the front of peoples minds when they need the product or service you offer. This is never more important than in an economic downturn. Companies that maintain strong brand awareness during difficult times are better positioned when things improve and so are immediately able to capitalize on any demand; there is little need for expensive and time consuming ground work to be done. Whether this is achieved by clever product placement, TV adverts or leaflet distribution is down to available resources and the nature of the product. Whichever direction the advertising takes it pays to invest in becoming a familiar name, even when your product is experiencing a falloff in sales. Large businesses are able to do this relatively easily as they often have multi million pound budgets or can divert funds from other areas as and when they need to. These same businesses can organize a TV campaign or national newspaper campaign almost as quickly as they can organize a leaflet distribution campaign. But it is worth noting that they do continue to advertise in this way, an indication that even the largest companies see advertising during difficult economic times as worthwhile. Smaller businesses will have to look at alternative advertising methods. Leaflet distribution, local radio and newspaper advertising all become viable alternatives to national campaigns which can include TV, national newspapers and billboard advertising. The route that any company chooses to follow will be determined by what it wants to achieve long term, what resources it has available and where it wants to target any advertising. If the correct balance is achieved between these three factors then success will follow. The three most successful areas that small businesses look at are: Newspaper advertising - Local newspaper advertising is still a strong way of getting your message across. However the rise of the internet and internet advertising has taking away from the power of a newspaper advert. It is still a worthwhile consideration but as with all advertising it is worth making sure it is the right medium for you. Radio advertising - Most local radio stations will produce a commercial for you, the cost of which will be based on the number of listeners the station has. There is also the option of sponsoring a programme or segment. It is worth remembering however that most people listen to local radio stations for the music so this type of advertising might not be of benefit to a business looking to reach a lot of people in a short space of time. Leaflet Distribution - There are many advantages to leaflet distribution. It's quick and can be targeted at a specific area for a specific time. The results are also usually very easy to quantify. Leaflet distribution is also an area that a price can be negotiated which differs from other comparable forms of advertising which adds to its attraction.
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