NO MARKETING BUDGET

That statement is false. There is no small business owner that doesn’t have a marketing budget. My definition of the term “budget” is anything that has value that can be used to grow a business. The most precious commodity in a small business is time. When no funds are available, it tells me that the rest of the enterprise is also cash short.

Self-management and systemization (see session in the education section under operation titled BizQuack Success session 3) can help you create more time which you can convert into your marketing budget.

When time becomes your marketing budget it is critical that an efficient action plan be developed, one that can produce fast results. The steps are simple but rather “scary” as it will require stepping out of your comfort zone.

• First and foremost you have to have a specific definition of your target market.
• The next step is to determine where they are located; name,address, e-mail and phone.
• Establishing contact is the next step. Where urgency is an issue then all contact methods have to be used and the focus placed on the two that can yield the desired results.
• Make sure you have the foundation in place as per the BizQuack Vision Based Business Plan.
• Contact methods include:
  • Cold calling
  • Telephone contact
  • E-mail contact
  • Using your data base (all contacts) to obtain an introduction.
  • Reach out to past customers (if they exist) to ask for a referral or to sell them additional services.
• All contacts other than e-mail outreach are most effective if done in person.

With the BizQuack recommendation that at least 40% of your time should be spent on marketing, you should be able to touch, in person, at least 5 to 10 prospects a day. Digital outreach should increase that by an additional 10 to 20 touches a day.

Nobody ever said that survival in a business or growing a business are easy undertakings. Success is a matter of choice and very hard work. How important is your business?