by Kevin Mcinturff

Created on: September 27, 2008   Last Updated: October 07, 2008

While working as an advertising executive for a local television station, I usually got one of two answers when approaching business owners about placing ads with my station. They would either say that they have all the business they need or that business is slow and that they cannot afford to advertise at this time. Both answers could not be further from the truth. No one ever has too much business and when times are tough like this current economic downturn, you cannot afford not to advertise.

Even though money is tight, there are ways to stretch your advertising budget with a little creative marketing. A number of years ago a fellow by the name of Jay Conrad Levinson came up with the concept of Guerrilla Marketing which is a way of promoting products or services in a non-traditional, low cost way. The philosophy behind Guerrilla Marketing is not to sell, but rather to uncover the hurt, pain, upset or illness that your product cures and use that product to render aid.

Guerrilla Marketing requires thinking outside the box. For example, every time you send out a letter include a business card. The card is free advertising and more accessible when someone needs your service. Also, never use metered mail with customers; always use a stamp which makes it more personal.

Creating and maintaining relationships is essential to Guerrilla Marketing. The key to survival is through constant prospect and customer follow-up. While dealing with vendors, work with the ones who understand your needs and want your long-term business instead of the ones who just give you the lowest quote.

While there are possibly thousands of ways to use Guerrilla Marketing, the important thing to remember is that any way that you can leverage your time and money more efficiently is an advantage you will have over the competition. So get creative and if you need more help, there are plenty of resources over the internet. Just realize that during tough economic times, your business does not have to suffer. You can work to your advantage the power that is Guerrilla Marketing.

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