I agree that in an economic down-turn the design and marketing budgets shouldn’t be the first ones cut and, if anything, they should be beefed up. Never is it more important to refine your company’s message and put it out there in front of as many eyes as possible.
The best way to save money on design and marketing is through partnerships. Partnering with companies that offer services you need such as logo design, business card design, website design, online marketing and pr services is key. In the past, this has been called bartering but I caution you not to use that term as it calls up images of one or the other partner getting short-changed on the deal. Imagine the logo designer who did her best work to design a $1500 logo only to receive a hand-printed t-shirt in exchange. Not a good situation.
In a new partnership, both companies get to negotiate a deal that benefits everyone. In addition to getting what’s needed at a discounted rate, both businesses can get exposure to the other business’s network. This is priceless and should be included in every partnering deal. Taking advantage of the other business’s network might mean including the opportunity to send a message to their Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter network or email mailing list. The key to striking up good partnerships is to not be afraid to approach someone who you don’t know. It can be someone who’s work you admire. You can send a simple email introducing yourself. And both parties must be completely honest about the dollar value of their services/products. Otherwise, false judgements and assumptions might derail the agreement.
By partnering up with other businesswomen we can make it through this slow time. We can get what we need, make some money and maybe come away with some new friends. Best of luck to everyone!
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