Increase your targeted advertising. You can probably get good advertising deals in a slow economic period, so here is your opportunity to increase market penetration. Challenge your staff to find and use low-cost, no-cost marketing methods. Don’t let anyone forget that the digital age is here. Press for effective and creative uses of all marketing channels with an emphasis of “online” activities. (This effort toward on-line sales and the resulting changes may become big parts of any corporate repositioning you might undertake as you develop your longer-term marketing plans.)

Emphasize service and quality. In your advertising and in your marketing across the board, remember that the key to survival for many small and mid-sized businesses is service. By emphasizing quality and service, your business will not only survive in a recession, but will boom in the good times as well.

Hire if you need to. If you need a crackerjack salesperson or another key employee, do not be reluctant to hire one now. There are always plenty of good people out there who are unemployed or underemployed in a depressed market. Also, do not forget about that whole group of talented (but inexperienced) college graduates searching for jobs in an inhospitable marketplace. By hiring that much-needed salesperson or key technical person, you will give your business just the jump-start it needs to stay on the road to survival and success!