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It is a key question for cash-strapped small businesses and there are many reasons advanced for not embracing marketing investment, for example:

• ‘I know my customers and they know me. My marketing is all about having good relationships’
• ‘I cannot afford to invest in something where I have little idea of the value I get back’
• ‘I tried marketing before and it didn’t work’

And so forth…

All too often, a business owner thinks that he/she ‘gets’ marketing and does not like the idea that ‘outsiders’ could ‘do it’ better than he/she could.

All too often marketing ‘experiments’ are either ill-conceived or not given enough time to bear fruit. And here is the nub of the problem:

Business owners expect short-term sales results – their survival depends on it. Marketing investment generally gives longer term benefits – so the short-term return on investment looks unconvincing when compared to familiar short-term promotional and customer relationship work usually directly overseen by the most senior person in the business.

Here is a typical viewpoint of a very successful, entrepreneurial business owner:

‘Our “strategy” has been simple all along. To do a good job for our clients and to obtain recommendations and introductions from that….By the very nature of what we do, we have to be opportunistic rather than strategic. Without exception, all of our client relationships have begun in informal settings (often in pubs!) or through personal introductions’.

We could all agree with some aspects of this – up to a point. The approach is wholly dependent on the business development skills of (usually) one or two senior people. What happens if for some reason, the opportunist leads dry up? Or if one of the key players falls ill or leaves? Is there a proven Plan B emerging from a sustained marketing investment to open up new business channels? How will you stimulate awareness across a much wider audience that you might meet ‘in a pub’? How might you develop a strong presence in increasingly important social media?

It is relatively straightforward to develop a strong marketing plan, with gradually phased and affordable investment. It is also possible to measure changes in attitude to a sustained marketing campaign. It just requires business owners to recognise that professional advice does yield results given a measure of patience and understanding of the ever-changing range of marketing techniques available.

At CMC Business Advisers, we have the experience and tools to help business owners perform even better.