It is no secret that the economy is in bad shape. Not just in the United States, but throughout most of the world. And, to make things worse, experts are in agreement that there is no relief in sight.

That means that business owners need new strategies...especially new marketing strategies...to deal with the current economic ills. If you do not have a relatively new and comprehensive marketing plan designed to take you through the current "bad times", you need to get started on one. The sooner the better.

The best way to start is by asking and answering a few basis questions. The first is, who are your customers? The second is, how are they likely to be impacted by the economic downturn? The third is, how will that impact their need or desire for your product or service? From there, you can find a clear path forward.

You may find that you can benefit from increasing your marketing efforts, even while others scramble to reduce their marketing expenditures. But, whether you expand or reign in your advertising and marketing, a change in your primary message(s) may be a good idea.

If you are selling a home-based business franchise, a struggling economy and the anxiety it produces may bring you more potential customers than you have in normal economic times. However, instead of emphasizing the possibility of people earning enough to support a luxurious lifestyle, as may be the norm in your messages during good times, messages about economic security might be far more powerful today and in the near future.

If you are selling high end luxury items, your best course of action may be far different. You may want to concentrate on reaching a very targeted group of customers; people able to afford luxury items even in the most dire economic times. Or, you may want to focus on promoting your lower cost products. A CEO who may be unwilling to part with $300,000 for a new yacht may not be reluctant to spend $25,000 for a new mast or a new set of sails.

Lowering prices is always tempting when sales are down, but it is not always a good solution, especially if lower pricing will produce only a marginal gain in volume. Always think of all of the implications before reducing your prices.

Monitor your competitors activities closely when times are difficult. A bit of competitive research will tell you what kinds of marketing mixes and messages are working well in your industry, and which are less successful. If competitive research is new to you, a simple internet search will show you how many low cost tools and programs are available to you. And, none require exceptional technical or analytical ability.

All you have to do to develop good, strategic marketing strategies and integrate them in a well coordinated plan, is to ask yourself good questions and do whatever it takes to get well-conceived answers. You need not be a NASA employee, I promise. But, you must think analytically or get help from an experienced marketer.

Remember that a bad economy does not turn a good product or service into a bad one. If you provide something people needed or wanted last year, it is almost certain that they still need or want it. All you have to do is find the best way, under current economic conditions, to market it. Discover that, and your business can only be stronger, both now and in better economic times.