There are all kinds of business statistics out there and people parrot them regardless of their veracity. 90% of new businesses fail! Or is it 50%? We’ve seen and heard both. One issue is time frame. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an estimated 20% of small businesses fail within the first year. By the end of the third year, it’s 30%. After a decade, only 30% of those businesses will still be around. So, statistically, an estimated 70% of businesses will fail after ten years. Another issue is context. What do we actually mean by fail? A business that closes after ten years because its owners want to retire isn’t a failure. A business could technically close after five years because it was bought out by a competitor. Failure might be the wrong description in that case, too. Whatever the case, it’s not easy to keep the doors open. There are some basic tenets of today’s marketing and advertising that can help push the numbers in your favor.
Be the same but be different
This is the kind of advice that can have you reaching for Advil. It actually does make sense. If you are opening a hamburger restaurant, you want there to be at least some similarities to other hamburger restaurants. Customers feel more comfortable in familiar surroundings. So, you have tables and chairs and a counter and a menu board. You hope what makes you different is that your burgers are better. Or maybe your burgers are plant-based. Differentiate with a difference that’s compelling, not one that doesn’t make a difference. Stand out with substance.
Reinvent good ideas
Someone, way back when, came up with, “Buy 1, Get 1 Free.” There have been millions of variations on the theme. Don’t copy someone else’s promotion verbatim. Twist and tweak and make it your own. Someone originated the fried chicken sandwich and now everyone seems to have their own variation.
Exist in the moment
Even if you are an antique store, you should be in the moment. It’s 2022. You should be on social media. We’re not going to go through the long list of benefits being on Facebook, Instagram, or what any of the other platforms can deliver. We are simply going to say that whatever business you are in, most, if not all your competitors are active on social media. If you are not on social media consumers will think of you as an antique. Being at least somewhat active will increase your brand awareness and can improve your brand perception. Increases in those two areas typically translate into more business. And more business keeps the doors open.
Update your website
If your business doesn’t have a website, 1980 is calling and wants its business plan back. In 2020, 2 billion people made purchases online, and online commerce generated $4.2 trillion in sales. Establishing, maintaining, and cultivating an online presence can help your brick-and-mortar business stay open!
Paying particular attention to these fundamental aspects of marketing can help you navigate economic downturns and take better advantage of the upswings. If you’d like to learn more, we highly recommend an agency we know of that’s celebrating a quarter century in business this year. That would be us.