*A Book Review*
Guerrilla Marketing
By Jay Conrad Levinson
by Michael C. Gray
December 29, 2006
How can a small business effectively promote itself without the financial resources necessary for "traditional advertising"?
In what is now a classic book, Jay Conrad Levinson describes many techniques that can be used to market a business with a "shoestring" budget.
Jay Conrad Levinson is a former advertising executive who worked at the J. Walter Thompson agency. He decided to have his own business helping entrepreneurs market their businesses successfully.
The first mistake of many small businesspersons is not understanding the vital role of marketing in building a successful business. Many of them are good at "doing" what the business does – auto mechanics, chefs, inventors, accountants, chiropractors, dentists, hair stylists, etc. If they don’t have customers to "do the work" for, their businesses will fail.
Another mistake is not knowing what marketing initiatives have the best results, and what marketing initiatives have no results at all. The "marketing plan" often originates with an advertising salesperson from the yellow pages or a local newspaper. The businessperson may rely on the salesperson to write the advertising, when the salesperson doesn’t really have the necessary skill. The businessperson may not know the critical elements of a successful advertisement to look for.
Levinson recommends using marketing techniques for which results can be measured.
A third mistake is not making a sufficient financial commitment to marketing. The business that is able and willing to spend significantly more for marketing than its competitors has a significant advantage.
Levinson also explains how the demographics of the marketplace are changing, creating opportunities for businesspersons who design their businesses to satisfy the needs of growing customer niches.
Guerrilla Marketing is a worthwhile book to study for any businessperson to learn many different ways of effectively marketing his or her product or service.
Buy it on Amazon: Guerilla Marketing: Easy and Inexpensive Strategies for Making Big Profits from Your Small Business
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