Starting a new business?

By Jeffrey Wotton - VP of Spectrum Marketing Group

Thinking of starting a new business? Well, as you know by now starting your own business is never easy. You need a plan, space, capital, employees etc. Most importantly you need to align your self with the right people to help you make the right decisions and make your business a success.

Aligning your self with professionals such as accountants, insurance brokers, IT firms, business bankers, payroll companies, bookkeepers etc. It also pays to align yourself with a good marketing firm, even if you plan on doing a lot of the work yourself. Think you can't afford it? Think again. You can't afford not to.

Your time is best spent working on your business not in it. In most cases business owners are experts at what it is they do, not marketing and advertising. Just as you can't expect to become an expert in accounting, taxes or software, you can't expect to become an expert in graphic design, web design, internet marketing etc..

If you are looking to start a business align yourself with professoinals who can help you become a success. Consider engaging a marketing firm like ours for help in some aspects or all aspects of your marketing plans.

Common questions from new business owners.

How much should I invest in marketing / advertising?

Every business is different, but in general businesses spend between 5-10% of their projected gross revenue in marketing and advertising.

What types of media should we use?

Again, every business is different, there is no one formula for each kind of business. When considereing a media buy you should first establish a budget. Then you must identify your target market. Are they new homebuyers? Retirees? College Students? Business Owners? etc. Look to engage in a medium that has the greatest number of your target market in their demographics. Then consider your budget and cost of the campaign and divide the total audience by 1,000 then divide that by the cost of the campaign to find your total cost per 1,000 impressions. Click here to learn more about cost per 1,000 impressoins or cpm.

Start up marketing tip:

Do not ignore the power of networking and aligning yourself with individuals and companies we refer to as "strategic partners." Those are individuals and companies who have a similar target market as you and although may overlap in some areas does not compete directly with you. Some people call this your "sphere". For instance one or our target markets is business owners. So, we have mutually beneficial relationships with other businesses that service business owners such as, IT firms, Accountants, Insurance Brokers, Business Attorneys, Business Consultants etc.

Spectrum Marketing Group is a multimedia marketing agency located in New Bedford, MA serving clients throughout New England and the entire country. We are a group of professionals who help businesses, individuals and non-profit organizations leverage their marketing efforts. Contact us today for a free consultation.