25 Ways to Overcome this Recession in your Business

We all know that almost all the countries have been hit by the economic slowdown. Most people confuse recession and economic slowdown. Job cuts have been on the rise. People are seeing lesser incentives and the whole world is experiencing a financial crisis. Anyway I will use the word recession throughout this article to avoid confusion. Is it so bad that we cannot recover from it in any way? I don’t think so. The main reason I believe that grows this recession is that most of us just sit and think about it alone.

Think about what you want always. Here are 25 tips to recover from recession and cut down on your costs, improve your conversions and more.

1.Do not worry or panic

Most business entrepreneurs, professionals are too much worried. There is a saying that worry is a prayer for something you do not need or what you do not wish for. Agree that the times ahead is the recession hit economy. We have to pass through those situations however reluctant we are. Take this as an opportunity given by God (If you believe in God that is) or any other supreme power you believe in, as a chance to prove your mantle. Think how you can operate successfully in these times.

2.Don’t spread negative thoughts on your share holders and employees

In most business establishments and companies, senior managers hold regular meeting with people below them in designation. These regular and irrelevant meetings are not at all motivating and will only help spread the panic among employees. At the end of the meeting, they too will have their own worries which will result in them thinking only about their problems. This will lead even small issues grow large.

3.Do not publicize your cost cutting methods

You can’t fight poverty to eradicate poverty!!! If you can see, most developed countries tried this method and failed. The solution is not to fight, but to find ways to make/raise money. Also concentrate more on making profits rather than on cutting the costs. Just do your cost cutting methods under anonymity.

4.Gain the trust of employees and share holders.

Make them understand the present economic situation. Educate them completely about the financial crisis the world is facing. You have to cultivate confidence in them. Motivate them to think about ways to accumulate more wealth. It is just not enough to have ideas and ideologies. You must also be able to implement and utilize them effectively.

5.Increase marketing tactics

Focusing on yourself, customer satisfaction, keeping finances are all important. But when coming to this recession time what you must keep in mind to strengthen or to increase with full vigor is your MARKETING efforts. Marketing is what drives customers to your business be it small or large. Who knows for sure, maybe this recession time will turn out to be the best year for your business. It is not only necessary that you derive the maximum value out of each dollar you spend but also to get the return. You learn new techniques; adopt new strategic marketing plans and so on. So get creative, increase your marketing and get the maximum out of it.

6.Get new customers to sustain your business

What makes a business a success? The customers of course!!! If you have customers you thrive, else you don’t. It is as simple as that. So what do you do to get new customers? Read how to get new customers for your business.

7.Understand that this is a fight against the crisis. Infuse this thought in others as well

Make each and every employee, share holders a part of this open fight. Motivate them to give the best operating results. Make them understand that it is in these times our true potential must come out.

8.Stay away from things that fill us with negativism

What we give our brain as input is what shapes up as our thoughts. So, during this recession hit times we must be selective in what we see and what we read. Get together with people who might inspire you and at the same way stay away from people who might have a negative influence on you.

9.Try to stay away from financial talks

If you are attending any seminars or meetings, try to ensure that the outcome of the meeting/seminar increases your creativity and productive power. Try to stay away from talks which might include topics on how recession can adversely affect a business or what all business will be affected by this recession.

10.Do not run away

When I say that you must keep away from discussions relating to slowdown, I don’t mean that you must run away from it or be completely ignorant of the topic. You must have strong idea on how the recession has hit your business, how it may affect your business and how it has/will affect your business after you take methods to combat recession.

11.Think a lot about future prosperity

In this world most things are available in plenty. People are making more money and wealth than people used to make 10-20 years back. In future, 10-20 years from now people would make more money than even now. This shows that nature has what we need for prosperity. Think about that and try to make the most out of it. See how the gulf countries came up with nature’s gift, OIL?

12.Understand that in any dire situation there is an opportunity

Take the case of most companies today. Most of them might have catered to a different business when they started off. When they faced hard times they took advantage of the new opportunities by tuning their business to suit the new needs. Find such new niche markets.

13.Fix your target

When challenges and hardships come most people turn their attention from their actual goal to their day to day life. This is not the right way. During this recession it is your responsibility to uphold your mission and attain your target

14.Make your “Mission” and “Vision” clearer. Convey it to your employees.

These techniques will motivate your employees during the recession. This will also empower them and help them stay away from negative thoughts. Make posters about your mission and vision and stick them on various places in your office. Be creative with the posters; include some elements of fun and creativity in it.

15.Publish motivating articles and stories on your company newsletter/magazine

Let your employees derive inspiration after reading these stories and articles.

16.Uphold your company achievements

You heard me right. Just brag about your company achievements however small they are. When all the thoughts are related to recession and slow down, then our eyes and ears will crave for more negative news. That’s human psychology. Your brain will like to think that your business will be impacted negatively. This will indirectly reflect on your companies standings. Just go about flaunting even the minutest achievement of your company.

17.Make of core team of similar thinkers

If you are the owner or CEO (Chief Executive Officer) of any company, try building a team of people who share your same wavelength. Critical events must be discussed among this core team before it goes into implementation.

18.Improve human productivity

This is the time to provide top class training to your employees and take their morale to an all new level. Do not think the cost incurred in training your employees mentally as an overhead. Just think as an investment which will yield the best results in the future.

19.Even your managers need training

How you overcome this recession will depend on how well you think. For the same reason you must consider training your top level management staff as well. This may prove more costly and time consuming, but eventually this is what will pay off
more as the decisions which make or mar a company are usually the result of this section of your company.

20.Have a clear idea of what you want from your business as well as your life

What you think is what attracts you. If you think the recession is going to bury your company deep down, well I must say with utmost regret that it is going to happen in no other way.

21.Find a mentor or a coach

You need a mentor or a coach who sees problems and down times differently and one who motivates you. Imagine going to a gym for work out (You are running a company). You are not alone in the gym (There are lots of similar companies). You have fear of the dumb bells dropping on your chest (Recession hitting your company). Yet you want to exercise because your profession demands it. (You have a company with many employees and you want to move forward). You see people around you on whom the dumb bell fall and die (Recession hit companies going bankrupt). How dedicated will you be? How much effort will you put into each of your sets? How much concentration will be on your work out? Now imagine there is a trainer for you (A mentor or a coach) who has a vast amount of experience and he guides you. He will support you in each set of work out ensuring that even if the dumb bell slips from your arms he is there to catch you. Now how much MORE confident will you be? How much MORE dedicated will you be? You can take the service of mind parlors which offer training for CEO’s and business owners.

22.Read books that inspire you

You can read books such as The Magic of Thinking Big by David Shwartz, The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Pale or The Power of The Subconscious Mind by Dr Joseph Murphy.

23.Open your eyes and ears

No opportunity must pass by you without you knowing about it. Only if your thoughts and attitude is positive will you be able to recognize these opportunities and make the best use out of it.

24.Remember that for every fall there will be a rise

Don’t crumble during this crisis. Stand up till you are back on track. This is the time to think and implement tactics which will take your business to new heights.

25.Find out ways to cut cost

Research how you can provide the same quality while cutting down on production and distribution costs. Try implementing virtualization, renting virtual office, cutting down on marketing etc. Surprisingly you may not even have thought of such things yet. Take this opportunity to implement maximum ROI (Return of Investment).

Start A Recession-Proof Business

It’s no secret that the economy is in trouble. Professionals debate daily as to whether we are in a financial recession, or whether we are just headed in that direction. All of a sudden, we feel insecure about our jobs, our savings, and even our retirements. With so many businesses failing, it’s hard to imagine that starting a business
of your own would be a good idea. The fact is, there has never been a better time to start your own recession proof business at home.

How Can A Business Be Recession Proof?

One characteristic of a recession-proof business is that it provides a product or service that will not go out of demand. Certainly, plenty of people are having to make sacrifices on how much they spend not only on the “extras”, but also on the necessities. Finances for many of us have taught us to set up priorities on how we use our money. That means giving up unnecessary purchases but not the things we need in order to survive. If you provide a necessary product or service, you will have a recession-proof business.

It also depends on your target group for which you provide you product or service. Not everyone is in the market for the same things at the same time. Everyone’s finances aren’t affected in the same way and by having the right target group, you can recession-proof your business.

Some Advantages to Having a Home-Based Recession-Proof Business

Flexibility is always one of the most attractive features to any home-based business. For parents of young children, this could mean not having to pay for child care while getting to spend more time with your children. If a student has classes and needs to work around them, a home-based business will let them work around their own schedule without worrying about someone else’s priorities. Whatever you need to find time for, a home-based business will give you the freedom to spend your time where you need to spend it. A home-based recession-proof business will not only provide flexibility of your time, but will also provide you with financial security.

Another advantage to having a home-based recession-proof business is that you will never have to pay for the gas to drive back and forth to the office again. Many people commute long distances for their jobs and over the last couple of years, this has gotten to be a financial burden for many. When you work at home, there’s no fuel used, no wear and tear on a vehicle, and you don’t even have to go out to eat lunch!

Of course, one of the biggest advantages you will have from starting your own home-based recession proof business is not having a boss to answer to. You don’t have to worry when the economy worsens that you will go into the office one morning to have your boss tell you that he is “letting you go”. A recession-proof business is one that will give you the security to make your own decisions and to benefit from your efforts.

Ways to Recession Proof Your Business

First, let’s not panic. True, payrolls shrunk by 17,000 in January. But at the same time, the Labor Department adjusted December’s numbers upward, reporting that 82,000 new jobs were created that month – a far larger figure than the government’s initial estimate of 18,000. Unemployment, now at 4.9%, is just 0.9% higher than the 4% level that economists consider “full employment” (meaning that everyone who wants a job has one).

Still, with the ripple effect of the mortgage mess still spreading, consumer spending in a sulk, and companies like Citigroup, and Sprint Nextel  announcing big layoffs, you’d be smart to start thinking about recession-proofing your job – or, failing that – devising a plan for landing on your feet somewhere else. Here’s how:

Think of ways to generate revenues or cut costs. That brilliant idea you had that would open whole new markets for the company, but require substantial spending to get started? Scrap it for now. Concentrate instead on finding places to pinch pennies, or identifying cheap new sources of revenue. Or both.

Be visible. “This isn’t the moment to take an extended vacation. Your position could be eliminated while you’re gone,” says Dale Winston, CEO of New York City-based executive recruiters Battalia Winston (www.battaliawinston.com). “It’s also not the time to come rolling in at ten o’clock.” If you possibly can, figure out a way to stand out and distinguish yourself. She adds: “If you’re in sales, get your numbers up. Nobody will be laying off star salespeople.”

Talk up your contributions. “Make sure you’re adding value at work by going above and beyond your basic job responsibilities,” says Christine Price, principal at staffing firm Ready to Hire (www.readytohire.com) “Then make sure your boss knows it, without being obnoxious.”

Keep a broad perspective. “Don’t get a reputation as someone who only does what he or she is told to do,” advises Richard Bayer, chief operating officer of career counseling network The Five O’Clock Club (www.fiveoclockclub.com). “Pick your head up, look around, and get in on the action. Volunteer for crucial responsibilities, including tasks for which your boss is responsible.”

Just doing your job well isn’t enough. “The question is,” says Bayer, “when your organization is making a list of who has crucial skills, will you be on it?” If you suspect not, now’s the time to hustle.

Get your skills up to date. “Companies get rid of people whose skills are obsolete and replace them with people who are already trained,” Bayer says. “Take classes, join trade organizations, and prove you’re plugged in.” Christine Price adds: “Consider going back to school, to show your employer you’re serious about your career and your performance.”

No whining allowed. Attitude does count – a lot. “Management wants people who can boost morale during tough times,” observes Dale Winston. Not only that, says Christine Price, but happy workers are less likely to get laid off than people who seem to dislike what they do. After all, the reasoning goes, if you grumble about your job all the time, then maybe giving you the sack would really be doing you a favor. Gulp.

Never stop networking. Of course, the day you get a pink slip is not the day you want to start calling old colleagues, asking former bosses out to lunch, and getting in touch to say hello to all the interesting people you’ve known over the years. No, the time to start doing that is now. Whether or not you move seamlessly (and relatively painlessly) into a new job after a layoff often depends on how consistently you’ve contacted – and maybe even helped – lots of people when you didn’t need them.

Update your resume, return headhunters’ phone calls, and start picturing where else you might like to work – just in case. If you’re mentally prepared for a move, you’ll make a wiser one than if you wait until you’re desperate (read canned).

One more thought: If we really are in, or headed for, a recession – and economists can’t even agree on whether or not we are – it may not be so bad. Every downturn is different. So who knows? If you’re not a mortgage banker or a home builder, maybe your current position is perfectly “safe.” But think about it for a while and you may find yourself wondering: Is “safe” good enough? Maybe it’s time to change jobs anyway — and heed the immortal words of Keith Richards, “I’m gonna leave while it’s still fun/ I’m gonna walk before they make me run.”

Recession Hits the Website Hosting Market

As businesses reduce spending in light of the current recession, one of the key areas targeted for cuts are IT budgets. By reducing infrastructure maintenance costs and streamlining IT (Information Technology) resources, the hosting industry anticipates a trend towards the adoption of hosted services. However, tight customer budgets mean that new customers are currently reduced.

At the end of 2008, the reduced number of new customers led to increased competition between hosting companies. This has led to website hosting plans being lowered, in addition to free upgrades and monthly pay plans being introduced. What’s more, non-traditional players such as telecommunication companies and search engines have entered the hosting industry.

This increased competition is compounding the problems caused by the recent economic recession. Some smaller web hosting providers are struggling to continue operations in what can only be described as an increasingly difficult and competitive market.

It is also a tough time to be an IT executive – costs must be cut to allow businesses to weather the recession, while the traditional IT demands placed on businesses must continue to be met. In addition, IT departments are tightening budgets and searching for technologies that can help reduce costs in order to deliver the requisite service delivery levels, resilient scalable server capacity and equipment requirements.

Businesses are aware of the benefits of managed hosting solutions which can ensure system performance, scalability, backup and redundancy without the expense of upfront investment and maintenance costs in infrastructure. However, the wide variety of hosting providers and solutions available can mean that it’s difficult to choose the best quality service for the business.

The services typically bought from managed hosting providers include: hosted email, enterprise application management, network security, disaster recovery, storage, IT outsourcing and help desk services. As IT executives search for the technologies to help reduce costs, hosting companies are making the most of new technologies to replace servers and provide cost effective hosting solutions to businesses.

What’s more, solutions such as cloud computing, cloud hosting and visualization have increased in popularity, as more businesses discover their capabilities. With both cloud computing services and the virtual server environment, you only pay for the resources you are using at any given time according to demand, which is why many businesses are keen to adopt cloud computing technology.

Despite the necessity of cutting costs, businesses will continue to require increased productivity; and what this means for hosting providers in 2009 is perhaps more interest surrounding cloud and utility computing. And of course, an increase with the interest in hosting solutions for small businesses should also be expected.

5 Tips to Market Your Business in Recession With No Money

Everyone is talking about recession, gas prices and rising energy costs. Top 500 companies are cutting back on their marketing budget and laying off workers.

How can your business survive tough times? How can your business grow while making sure it’s not losing money with bad advertising?

Most business owners still think that marketing is all about spending money to attract visitors. When I talk to small business owners about marketing they think I want their money. However, advertising is just a small part of marketing. Marketing is far beyond the advertising world.

The most effective form of marketing is optimizing your business, website and ads to instantly achieve higher profits. Optimization has been overlooked more than any other thing by most small businesses.

In this article I would like to share with you five solid website optimization techniques to grow your business without spending more on advertising.

1. Analytics – One of the first step to improve website conversion is to install analytics software on your website. Analytics software can provide you all the important information you need to understand your target customers including page view, buying habits, needs,wants, requirements and competition.

There are number of free analytics software available on internet with easy installation guide. You can integrate your website with analytics software in one hour or less for a 5-10 page website.

2. Guarantee – If you are not offering any guarantee or risk reversal on your website then you are loosing tons of customers. When you are selling face to face then its easier to put your clients at ease by verbal communication but its extremely difficult to do that on a website.

You must offer some kind of guarantee on your homepage. Guarantee is not limited to money back, you can offer price guarantee, fast shipping, fast service, best quality (verified by third party) and lot more.

3. Incentives – The easiest way to make your customers buy from you and not from your competition is to offer incentives. Incentives can be anything from free shipping to free trial, discounts, coupons, free gift, buy one get one, free product, free second time service.

4. Customer support or contact information – It is estimated that an average user spends not more than 8 seconds on a website. If your website cannot provide a visitor contact information in less than eight seconds then you can loose them forever. Add your telephone number and email on the top left corner of your web page to dramatically improve conversion.

5. Capture information – Setup a small email capture box on your web page. Offer incentive to encourage customers to leave their name and email. Once you have the customer information you can follow up with them easily.

Recession Proof Consulting

Most Americans surveyed by a 2008 Fortune Magazine poll believe the economy in the United States is on a downward spiral. They agree if a recession isn’t here already, it soon will be.

The poll of 1,000 Americans found that:18 percent are somewhat worried about losing their job in the next year, and 8 percent are very worried65 percent believe U.S. economic conditions are getting worse57 percent believe the United States is heading into a recession in the next 12 months48 percent have been cutting back their spending in the past 12 months15 percent have not been able to keep up with their credit card payments, and 9 percent have not been able to keep up with their mortgage, rent or other loan payments

In the midst of such tumultuous times, layoffs, unemployment and financial hardship are top worries on people’s minds.

“No question that if the economy goes into recession, or is already in it, unemployment and job security are going to get worse,” said John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas, a consulting firm that provides outplacement services for executives and middle mangers in an ABC News article.

“The risk of layoffs will grow and the number of layoffs will grow. That means often you can get caught without a job through no fault of your own,” he continued.

But, as the saying goes, every cloud has a silver lining, and in the case of a recession, the following jobs are it, Challenger told Yahoo! HotJobs. These are the businesses that will thrive no matter what the economy is doing, quite simply because they provide services that society in general cannot go long without.Health Care: Health services occupations including medical assistants, home health aides, physical therapists and medical records technicians account for close to half of the 30 fastest growing occupations.Education: Teaching is generally immune to a shaky economy, particularly if you’re teaching in an area with a high growth rate, such as the South and Southwest.Energy: Anything related to alternative fuel sources, oil and gas and other energy sources will likely flourish in coming years.Environmental: If you have “green” skills in sustainability and other environmental issues, you will be in demand.Security: Police officers, international security experts and others who fight crime will still be in need even if the economy turns sour.International Business: Working in another country, or simply being an expert about another culture or language, will work to your advantage during a recession.

If you currently feel your job is in jeopardy, or you’re looking for work, don’t despair — remember that certain skills, like dedication and perseverance, will always be in demand.

“I think there will always be opportunities for people who want them. If you’re hardworking, if you’re persistent, if you keep your skills current with today’s marketplace … you’ll be fine,” said Cathy Paige, vice president and general manager of employment service Manpower’s Northeast division. “The world is always looking for hardworking, good employees.”