Valpak Study Finds SMB Segment Ready to Invest in Growth
LARGO, FL—Jan. 31, 2012—While opinions vary on the pace of economic recovery, 55 percent of small- and medium-size businesses surveyed reported their business had either already recovered from the recession or they expected to recover within the next six months.
And those numbers are even more encouraging for businesses with 20-99 employees, as 62 percent reported recovery now or within six months according to a recent Valpak survey conducted by Research Now, an independent market research firm.
Business is picking up on Main Street. In response, businesses are thinking about what tactics to use to grow their sales—advertising, promotions, staffing and more.
An overwhelming number of businesses said they planned to increase their business marketing/advertising activities to grow.
When it comes to advertising, every dollar counts for SMBs and budgets are limited with an average spend of around $17,000 annually.
So how do they plan to market their businesses this year?
- 67 percent plan to create or improve their Web presence including SEO and SEM (an increase of 7 percent from prior year).
- 57 percent plan to use social media marketing (and increase of 7 percent from prior year).
- 54 percent plan to increase direct mail and e-mail marketing.
- 45 percent plan to implement a customer-loyalty program.
- 36 percent plan to increase use of deals, discounts and specials.
“What’s particularly interesting is the way our clients are adopting a multimedia approach to marketing their businesses—combining the best of direct mail, online, deals, mobile and social to create custom, measurable campaigns that fit their business and their target consumers,” said Michael Vivio, president of Valpak. “Business owners are savvier than ever, but they are busy and want help creating personalized programs that provide solutions to their individual business needs–and that’s what we have been doing for more than 40 years.”
As an industry leader for 44 years, Valpak continues to grow and evolve, providing digital coupons and free mobile apps, which allow consumers to save anywhere at anytime. Valpak, known for its hyper-local offers in 170 markets around North America, has more than 40,000 offers online at Valpak.com.
About Valpak
Valpak, one of the leading direct marketing companies in North America, is owned and operated by Cox Target Media, Inc., a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Cox Media Group, Inc. With nearly 180 franchises throughout the United States and Canada, The Blue Envelope delivers savings and value to nearly 40 million households each month. Annually, Valpak will distribute some 20 billion offers inserted in more than 500 million envelopes.
About Cox Media Group
Cox Media Group, Inc. is an integrated broadcasting, publishing, direct marketing and digital media company that includes the national advertising rep firms of Cox Reps. With $1.8 billion in revenue, the company operations include 15 broadcast television stations and one local cable channel, 85 radio stations, eight daily newspapers and more than a dozen non-daily publications, and more than 100 digital services. Additionally, CMG owns and operates Valpak, one of the leading direct marketing companies in North America.
Source: Valpak.
