Is the mainstream media taking your business on a kamikaze flight?

From the desk of Roy Furr, Tuesday, April 29th, 2008

It’s funny. I read and hear and see every day about the economy being in shambles. The looming recession. How we’re headed for the toilet.

Yet I look around, and can’t find evidence of it in my business, or those of my clients.

Where I’m involved, we’re breaking sales records everywhere.

Business is better, not worse.

But then I hear about this:

FedEx Kinko’s survey finds small businesses concerned about economy

Mainstream media is scaring the piss out of everybody — and if we’re not headed for a recession already, they’re ready to go on a kamikaze mission to fly us straight into one!

FedEx Kinkos released it’s “Signs of the Times” small-business survey, and here’s what they found:

• 89% of small business owners are moderately to very concerned about the economy’s impact on their business (their life, their livelihood)
• 66% said they foresee flat or declining profits this year
• Here’s the interesting thing — 92% will spend as much or more on marketing this year than they did last year!

That survey doesn’t say where their marketing money is going — but I’ve seen data coming out of other surveys earlier this year.

And…

What I find most interesting is where they’re putting their marketing moolah to hedge their bets:

DIRECT MARKETING — The only accountable form of advertising there is!

When times get tight, business owners get smart. They start spending dollars where they know their dollars will go out, and bring friends back.

That’s fine by me, because that’s the only type of marketing I do. (I’m a bit dogmatic about it, in fact.)

I can’t wait — because 2008 is going to be my best year ever, even if the stock market tumbles another 10-20%.

- Roy

P.S. — If the mainstream media wants to really focus on something important — how about genocide (which goes on every day) or government sponsored torture (which also goes on every day) or mass hunger or disease? Something to improve the human condition… They’re in a position of incredible power — for good or evil — yet they abuse it daily with meaningless stories and misdirection (and flat out assault on your pocketbook)! That’s my 2 cents.

This entry is filed under Business, Entrepreneurship, Marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.