How’s 2009 Treating Your Business?

By Chelsea Junget

Hows 2009 Treating Your Business? We’re through the first month of 2009 and many folks are getting a true feel for what the year holds for small business. (I know we are here at Strategic Guru). The results of December’s 2nd Annual Small Business Leadership Summit suggested the theme for the year among small business owners is pragmatic optimism. Here’s a few highlights from their Outlook 2009 survey:

54% felt the economy would be better or significantly better by the end of 2009.
39% expected revenues to grow, 54% expect revenues to drop and the remainder expect them to go flat.
65% expected staffing levels to either remain the same or grow.

The survey did not address the expected change to small business marketing expenditures in 2009. Although many organizations will need to scale back to stay afloat, it’s important to remember that strategic marketing initiatives can be the light to lead you through what looks to be a difficult 2009. The key is here is strategic – tough times demand targeted efforts that are measurable. Can you reasonably measure the amount of business your current marketing plan is netting you? We always advise our clients to market with sharpened purpose and now it may be more important than ever.

More food for thought: a few big businesses got their start during a downturn!

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