Budget Advertising for Success

Appell Pie Feb. 2011

Budget Advertising for Success

Every business owner is faced with the same questions that have to be answered even before opening the doors to greet customers.  Let’s look at some of these critical components of opening a successful business.

We all know the three most important and most analyzed component of a new business, location, location, location. Choose the wrong spot and you are doomed before opening most of the time. Check traffic patterns in the area and find out if any street construction is on the agenda for the area. Is it easy to get to your store and is parking available?

Choosing your cuisine. What type of food will you prepare? Are you in the right neighborhood for the type of food you want to provide? Analyze the neighborhood. Know your potential customers. I am passing over the obvious, food quality, presentation and service. Without attention to these items all the demographic and traffic studies will mean nothing, failure will be certain.

Decor and Design.  The old saying is that “People eat with their eyes first” and success or failure can depend on the look of the business.

Of course the Budget is one of the most important components needed for a business to have any chance of success. More businesses will fail due to being under capitalized than all of the other items combined.  One of the budget items that is overlooked is advertising. I have heard so many new business owners say that “I cant afford to advertise now, we need to get some business first to pay for it” I promise you, this business will not survive or will always be struggling to survive because of a lack of budget planning and allocating of funds for Advertising and Public Relations.

Advertising should be an ongoing program and is as important as paying a salary to your chef. Eric and Robin Gagnon, founders of We Sell Restaurants, state in their article to appear in our March issue “ Marketing dollars are critical to the lifeblood of your business.  When times are good, every program seems like a good idea.  When tough times surface, some restaurants target this area first since they aren’t sure what’s working.  Smart operators measured every response over the past two years and reallocated critical marketing funds to the ones paying off.  Every marketing dollar invested should be directed toward winning programs and measuring return on investment is a key strategy to continue when the economy recovers.  Experiment with new methods but measure the results.  This keeps your marketing from becoming stale and insures you’re getting the most for your money.  

Even if you paid attention to every aspect of opening your new business you still would have to tell your potential customers where you are and what you serve and how to get there. “How can they beat a path to your door if they don’t know where the door is?”

Advertising today comes in many shapes and sizes from newspaper to Internet to mobile devices. Find the one that works for you and continue to do it.  Remember to allocate funds for ongoing advertising in your original budget so you are prepared. Don’t be the owner saying my products were great but we failed.