Referring to Forbes top 100 companies list, we can notice that every company has a few things in common.
1. Their sales are in the billions! These top companies around the world sell so many of their products and services that they reach Billions of dollars in annual sales!
2. Their profits are in the Billions! Not only do these top companies sell Billions of dollars worth of goods and services, but they also profit in the Billions as well!
3. They advertise and market their business… all the time!
Let’s take a look at the top 100 company list for 2009 really quick:
1. General Electric
2. Royal Dutch Shell
3. Toyota Motor
4. ExxonMobil
5. BP
6. HSBC Holdings
7. AT&T
8. Wal-Mart Stores
9. Banco Santander
10. Chevron
Small and medium size business owners
Now, if you’re a small business owner, a local business owner, or even a medium size business owner, you might be asking, “well what does this have to with me and my company?” You might be saying, “well these top companies are all billion dollar conglomerations of investors, researchers, developers, engineers and high level executives, I’m just a 1 man, 10 man, or 100 man crew.”
I would understand your point, but the truth is that whether you’re a small business owner, an entrepreneur, or a large business owner, there is one common attribute that every company must enforce if they want to be any better than they currently are. And that is advertising!
How are they doing it?
This question has a complex answer, it requires much more than we’re going to get into today. But today, we will talk about the number one and most important attribute these companies have in common, that helps them, and any other company attract more clients, increase their profits, and expand their operations.
Where do you see these companies? And the answer is “everywhere.” I can say that 6 out of the top 10 companies are U.S. companies, but 8 out of the top 10 companies are everywhere you look in the U.S. So how are they doing it? They are advertising in every place they can! You will find these companies, alongside the other top 100 and top 1000 companies, in nearly every single effective advertising and marketing stream possible.
Internet
SEO – Search engine optimization. These top companies, if they find it beneficial, which most of them do, are implementing search engine optimization into their websites. I know that some of these companies spend between $30k-$120k per year just on seo. Now, in a small business owners case, obviously if you’re not trying to make 100 Billion dollars, you don’t need to spend as much money on search engine optimization every year. A general price for small – medium size businesses, if they want to grow using search engine optimization, is between $400-$1500 per month. And that’s on the low end.
Web Design – Every company you see has a website with regular maintenance, updates, professional graphics, and typically they are all custom. Not many of the top companies will use a template based free website designer. They mostly understand the importance of going custom when it comes to web design. Though some of them spend between $15000 – $100,000 for a website design, a small business or medium size business could get away with spending between $1500-$5000 for a professional, custom, search engine optimized website.
Offline Advertising
Banners – Many of these top companies are printing banners on a weekly, daily, and monthly basis. Printed banners and vinyl banners are great for doing promotions. These banners can be interchangeable, but they are typically designed as a temporary form of signage. Printed banners, and vinyl banners are great tools for sporting trade shows, swap meets, bbqs, events, conferences and so forth. You can bet that many of these large companies have reps hosting and managing trade shows and events year round. Even getting your small or medium size business to a few well targeted trade shows or events in one year can help you generate tons of new prospects and potential clients.
Signage – Basically every building these top 100 companies own has a business sign. Every company invests in their business signs and professional signs because they know they will return a profit. Using high quality signage for your business signs is very important. A typical sign, depending on size, style, lighting, etc… can range between $900-$25,000+. An investment even a small business owner can afford and shouldn’t live without.
Printing – Business cards are more important than many people think. Having a nice, professional, attractive design on a business card can lead to years of continuous new clients. Postcards are another great way of promoting a business, and you and I both know we receive postcards from many of the top companies week after week. There’s a reason… it works. And not only does it work, but there’s ways to design, print, and deliver postcards for under $1,000, and still be able to double or triple your profits per postcard campaign.
Vehicle Graphics – One thing we all see on a day to day basis are trucks, vans, and cars driving around with logo designs, phone numbers, pictures, and bright colors flashing from them. Are they just for show, or do they serve a purpose? Well, I’d say both. They show off your company so people make the mental imprint and repeated acknowledgment of your company, and at they same time, they work as an instantaneous driving billboard. Efficiently advertising with vehicle graphics and car wraps, is all about design! The good news is that the right vehicle graphic design, or an attractive car wrap design, plus the lamination and the installation of the car wrap, can be obtained all for under $3k!
Branding – If you review every company, you will notice that they all have professional logo designs. They all have memorable names. They all have a slogan, specific colors, advertising campaigns and continuously changing marketing campaigns. This is all part of the corporate branding and corporate image process. With the right kind of branding, logo design, and color psychology, you are on your way towards taking your business to “the next level.”
As a business owner, you may strive to be the best at what you do, and you may offer truly the best product or service on the market, but without the right advertising and marketing, too few people will know what you have to offer. Learn from the best, and emulate them the best you can. And though a small business owner or medium size business owner isn’t necessarily striving to become a Billion dollar corporation, it is important to note that the methods these companies are using are called principles, and principles can be used no matter who or what you are.
Source by Nate Crane