Economic Downturn? Advertise Better.

Is your business prospering or suffering in the current uncertain economic environment? It doesn't really matter. What does matter is that your potential customers or clients are probably either feeling the hurt already or they're cutting back on their spending just in case. Now is a perfect time to rethink your online marketing efforts. Seek out that specific customer. You know - the one who will only hand over their plastic if they know they've found exactly what they want. But they need to know that you exist. Aiming right between the eyes of today's cost cutting consumers ensures that you aren't wasting time trying to be seen by everyone when only a select group of people are really on the verge of buying from you.

If I were to walk down any major street in any large city and say "Hi, I'm Steve. Here, check out my latest blog entry!" to every single person I passed, people would think I was annoying, crazy or some combination of both. Most would avoid eye contact or otherwise ignore me. So why do so many companies try the "spray and pray" approach online, when it so obviously doesn't work offline? The seasoned subway commuter quickly adapted to the noise of advertisers. Same goes for the veteran walk-to-work folks. They soon learn to brush off those yahoos peddling flyers on every street corner. They're not about to buy your band's CD-R for $10 either. A phone call from a trusted friend, however, who screams "You gotta hear this band!" into the phone is much more likely to sway them. Be the trusted friend. Don't be the irrelevant noise.

Ready for the bad news? Ultra-specific targeting is time consuming. Ultra-specific targeting involves following "“ even pioneering - variable, uncertain processes. Ultra-specific targeting is not going to go over very well in that meeting with your boss later today. Ultra-specific targeting won't initially make you look like the rock star of your team. Ultra-specific targeting doesn't result in easily analyzed metrics at first. Despite all this, ultra-specific targeting is the best way to build a loyal, enthusiastic, repeat customer base who is both relatively cheap to obtain and who isn't shy about spreading the word about your company.

So how do you do it? If you're not ready to get your hands dirty, hire someone who can. In an economic downturn, it's more important than ever to be vigilant when trying to get people to fork over their hard earned cash. Consumers are going to be more skeptical about you and generally less excited about buying things. But if your company is able to stand right in front of the right people "“ even if it's a small group (don't worry, if your company and your marketing is authentic, they'll tell their friends) "“ then you're golden.

What kind of online forums do they belong to? Which blogs do they read? What kind of web design makes sense in their eyes? How do they search for you online if they know your name? How do they search for you if they don't? How are they going to crosscheck your company's claims against the opinions of other people? Will they be impressed with the magnitude of your online presence? Will you look like another company just trying to "do that Internet stuff"? Make no mistake; most consumers today will scurry when they detect the use of scams, shortcuts or otherwise unenthusiastic marketing "efforts".

Ultra-specific targeting means rubbing shoulders with your customers. The days of hiding behind a computer screen, an inbox or a web site are gone. Interactive marketing means figuring out exactly what customers need from you, how they're going to find it and how they are going to react once they do. It means being an active part of their learning and buying experiences. When people are pinching every last penny in a less-than-exciting economic environment, interactive targeting is the best way to get noticed by people that matter without spinning your wheels (and draining your own wallet!) unnecessarily.