The economic turmoil is coming down strong and the stock market is leading the way.  It seems unstoppable and it looks as if it’s taking big businesses and small businesses down with it.  It’s a perfect storm of economic terror that is raining down on all of us whether you are big or small business oriented.

And just what do businesses do?

They tend to spend less money or heaven forbid even stop spending on marketing and advertising.  That makes no sense at all.  How in the world do they expect to get their brand, products, and services in front of their primary target market?

The answer is they can’t.  Marketing and advertising is a key aspect of being successful in good times and even more so in tough times.  As long as businesses cut back on their marketing they will suffer the wrath of the economic slowdown while it’s happening and after it’s over. 

That’s not something to look forward to, I’ll tell you that.

What can be done profitably is an evaluation of your current marketing.  How can you leverage your advertising dollar one or two times more than its being used now?

The answer is by focusing on local online search advertising.  Think about it, the internet is cheaper and in many cases more effective than print advertising.  The ROI, when used properly can catapult your opportunity to succeed through the down pour of economic fallout.

Many smart local businesses owners are starting to leverage local online search at a new level.  They’re investing in local city directories that focus on the needs of one city only.  It laser targets exactly what a local business wants.  Targeted marketing at its best and its cheap too. 

A local search business directory puts the right companies in front of the right prospects before they ever leave their home.  More and more people are performing local searches to do their research before they leave the comfort of their home and local businesses directories are taking advantage of this.

You’re probably wondering how.

Well, these directories are optimized through organic search and paid search for local queries only.  So you can rest assured that someone searching for a seafood restaurant in Miami will only find seafood restaurants in Miami and nowhere else.

It’s a great value to the searcher and even greater value to the local business when they leverage local search directories.   The cost involved is miniscule in comparison to print ads. 

The return to local companies is great and it helps them build a brand to their online prospects.  On top of expanding their reach they’re also improving their cost while maintaining a high level of engagement in their marketing efforts.  These businesses will make it through the recession.

What I would like for you to take away from this is to continue your local marketing even during the recession, look for ways to improve your return on marketing investment, and do it using local city directories.  Get out there and start marketing.