Guidelines for surviving -- and even thriving in -- the online recession

As a Baby Boomer in good standing, I've seen recessions before --
lots of 'em. The first recession I remember was 1958 and the
effect it produced on the Republican Party. (I sure hope George
W took American History at Yale, but I doubt he remembers much.)

Anyway, as a Recession Veteran, I've been watching the economic
prognosticators, commentators and opinion-makers struggling with
the current economic reality. Everybody wants this thing over
yesterday. Because this is what they want, lots of people are
dishing out a lot of "it's going to end in about five minutes"
predictions on the belief that to say it is to have it.

Well, it's time for some economic reality. These "doldrums" are
universal; they effect every single industrialized country
on earth... and there's no way in the world you can turn this
worldwide phenomenon around in a couple of months. What's more
NOBODY know when things will end and get better, so we can all
break out into a rousing chorus of "Happy Days Are Here Again."

What I suggest is that you stop wondering when it's going to end
and prepare to do the best you can to make maximum profits now and
emerge from these troubled waters in the best shape possible.
The truth is NO ONE knows when this will all be over and only
one thing is certain: in time things WILL get better.

#1 Cut Every Expense

One key to weathering a recession is to take your outgoing expenses
and put them under both a microscope and a knife. You need to look at
each item you spend money on and ask yourself whether you need this,
whether you need it at the current levels, or whether you could not
get along with less of it or arrange your activities to cut back on
this expense. In other words, you need to get total control of all
your outgoing expenses, including (importantly) personnel, which is
for most businesses the largest single expense. Remember your objective:
to survive the bad times with as little discomfort as possible,
cutting expenses to the greatest amount possible, while leaving the
infrastructure of your business intact so that you're ready when the
economic turnaround eventually comes.

The silver lining in the economic cloud is that all businesses spend
at least some money unwisely. During economic times, when everyone is
fat and happy, there's no incentive to make changes. "What me worry?"
is the Alfred E. Newman approach to expenditures during boom times.
Thus, an economic downturn may actually have a salutary effect, causing
people who are determined to survive to develop their MONEY CONSCIOUSNESS
by putting every single expense under the microscope and asking,
"Do we REALLY need this?"

#2 What's Selling The Best? What Needs To Be Done To Sell More Of It?
Do not accept diminished revenues as an immutable inevitability!

All businesses have best-selling products/services. A recession means
you sell fewer of them. Is that acceptable to you? It certainly isn't
acceptable to me! Thus, you've got to look at your best-selling items
and then do what's necessary to sell at least the same amount of them,
if not more. Ordinarily this means cutting prices; certainly you should
review your price structure. But you shouldn't only review your price
structure. For instance, you can add more of the product for the same
price, add extra time (like an extra month to a one-year service), or
otherwise improve the perceived value the customer is getting. People
don't stop buying in a recession. But they do put their buying decisions
under a microscope. However, by understanding that they continue to
respond to value and to bargains, you can structure your offers
accordingly to counter diminished sales.

#3 Increase Your Prospect Lead Flow

All businesses are based on a sales formula: X number of prospect leads
produce Y dollars. In a recession to maintain or even increase sales
you must increase the number of prospect leads. This can be done in
several ways.

First, return to every single lapsed customer from your past. Make them
a spectacular offer. Be direct: "We want your business!" Make it very
clear to them that you are offering incredible VALUE for the chance to
serve them. Again, in a recession people cut their spending... but they
remain on the alert for increased VALUE. Let these people who already
know you know that you have something very special for them.

Look at the ways you currently get your prospect leads. What can you do
to increase their number? At Worldprofit, we offer Lead Source, which is
a prospect lead service for people with an online business opportunity,
affiliate program, network marketing opportunity, etc. Lead Source enables
cost-conscious entrepreneurs the chance to get unlimited FREE prospect
leads. This kind of service is valuable at any time, of course, but
during a recession it's worth its weight in gold. It offers entrepreneurs
a vital service they MUST have... while making it available at a price
that just cannot be beat anywhere, anytime: FREE!

#4 Outmaneuver Your Competitors

Recessions follow good times. This means that a recession (a time of
economic challenge) follows a time of prosperity (which means a period
of sloth, laziness, and a pervasive lack of paying the closest possible
attention to detail.) The people who get through recessions develop money
consciousness and pay attention both to what's happening with them and
what's happening to their competitors. One reason for this competitor
consciousness is so that you can outmaneuver people who may not yet
be as alert to the economic situation as you are, people who are still
half sleep and are therefore easier for you to outdistance.

Your goal is to get through this recession in the best possible order.
Your competitors ought to have the same objective as you do, may even
SAY that they do, but may not ACT as if they mean it. This is an
advantage to you. Your job is, first of all, to pay close attention to
what your competitors are doing, the offers they are making, the
messages they are sending customers and prospects. You must then go
to these same people with a better offer, with more VALUE. In short,
you must go with the objective of making other people's customers
YOUR customers. Again, remember that during a recession people don't
stop buying, but they do look more closely for VALUE. By offering VALUE
you weaken your competitors and strengthen your own position.

Last Words

Properly understood, a recession may be regarded as a blessing in
disguise. Anyone can run a business and make money in good times. But
only the smartest people, the most determined, the best prepared can
prosper during a recession. If you do what's necessary, that'll be
you, prospering now so that you can prosper still more when the next
good times come, as they inevitably will. Or you can act like Chicken
Little and run around shouting that the sky is falling which it
will surely do -- on you!