New data from the US Census Bureau has optimistic news for Metro Detroit companies that sell business-to-business.
There are approximately 83,556 businesses in Southeast Michigan, according to the Census Bureau. Indeed, many of these businesses have suffered since the onset of the Coronavirus, especially in April.
Census information is now showing positive indicators that the fortunes of area companies are improving. This includes those with 500 or fewer employees. These small businesses account for 95% of all Detroit area firms.
During the week of April 26, 60% of Detroit area small businesses reported temporary closures. By July 1, the number dropped to 15%
Also, during that same week, 81% of Southeast Michigan small business owners were reporting decreases in revenue versus the prior week. By the end of June, that number fell to 30%.
In both June and July of this year, national data shows all retail and food services spending significantly outperformed the prior year by between two and three percent.
As the business climate improves in the Detroit area, the fortunes of B2B companies will accelerate as well. These include those businesses that sell office supplies, restaurant supplies, cleaning services, legal services, accounting services, transportation services, banking services, technology, and commercial real estate.
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small business,
small business owner,
best way to advertise,
return on investment,
ROI,
small business marketing,
small business advertising,
detroit radio,
business to business advertising,
advertise on detroit radio,
b2b advertising
Despite all of the media options available for small business owners to market their goods and services, advertising on Detroit radio is still the best way to reach local consumers.
Adult consumers are spending 741 minutes per day consuming electronic media, according to a new study by Nielsen. This is 7.8% more time than they spent last year and 11.2% more than in 2018.
The typical daily media diet consists of radio, live TV, time-shifted TV, DVD/Blue-ray devices, game consoles, internet-connected devices, as well as internet via computers, smartphone apps, and tablet apps.
According to Nielsen, despite all of these media options, local radio reaches the most consumers every week.
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small business,
small business owner,
radio advertising,
best way to advertise,
reach,
reach and frequency,
retail,
return on investment,
ROI,
retailer,
retail sales,
retail store,
advertise on radio,
advertising reach,
small business marketing,
small business advertising,
effective advertising
There is good news for Metro Detroit retailers and restaurants.
As a result of the pandemic, one-third of consumers indicate they will pay a premium for local brands and products, according to a recent study by Ernst & Young
However, before consumers will buy from a local business in Dearborn, St. Clair Shores, Farmington Hills, or any town in-between, they must know they can do so without risking their health.
Advertising is the only practical way to let Southeast Michigan shoppers and diners know about the precautions and practices your small business has taken to reduce potential health threats.
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small business,
small business owner,
best way to advertise,
restaurant marketing,
restaurant advertising,
retail,
retailer,
retail sales,
retail store,
restaurants,
writing a commercial,
small business marketing,
small business advertising,
effective advertising
During July, 1.6 million adult listeners spent 1.75 hours per day listening to their favorite Detroit radio stations, according to Nielsen. Despite an avalanche of pandemic induced disruptions, the daily time spent with radio is down by only by one-quarter-hour from a year ago.
Some advertising experts had predicted that as consumers spent more time at home because of COVID-19 concerns, the hours devoted to radio listening would dramatically decrease. That, however, was not the case.
In July of 2019, according to Nielsen, 26.3% of radio listening occurred at home. During July of this year, in-home listening jumped to 34.5%. Despite the reduction in out-of-home activities, though, consumers still spent nearly the same amount of time listening to Detroit radio.
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small business,
small business owner,
radio advertising,
best way to advertise,
pandora,
spotify,
corona,
coronavirus,
covid 19,
advertise on radio,
small business marketing,
small business advertising,
podcasts,
sirius/xm
Car radios came to Detroit in June of 1930. For just $120, about $1200 in present dollars, local drivers could install these early mobile devices into their Fords, Studebakers, Packards, and DeSotos,
The first car radios were built by the Galvin Manufacturing Company of Chicago. They named their invention, and eventually their company, Motorola.
Today, more than 2.9 million car radios fill ears of area drivers with music, news, sports, and information. As a result, local radio reaches more consumers than all other media.
In a typical pre-COVID-19 week, according to Nielsen, 89% of adult consumers would tune-in to a Detroit radio station. This is significantly more than were reached by local TV, cable, social media, newspaper, or streaming media sites Pandora and Spotify.
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small business,
small business owner,
radio advertising,
best way to advertise,
advertise on radio,
in-car audio,
vehicle traffic,
small business marketing,
small business advertising,
radio commercials
If you were one of the 2.9 million adults who tuned-in to a Detroit radio station last week, then no doubt you heard multiple commercials that included phrases like 'troubling times', 'uncertain times', 'unprecedented times', 'new normal', and 'we're in this together'.
In March, as the pandemic began to disrupt consumers' lives, using these phrases was a powerful way for Southeast Michigan small business owners to acknowledge the severity of the crisis and to exhibit empathy. But 120 days later, these words have become cliche and have lost potency.
A cliche, says the Oxford Dictionary, is "a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought."
According to the Writing Center at The University of North Carolina, the dependence on cliches could create a harmful perception of a business that uses them. For instance, these overused phrases can make an advertiser's message seem boring. They can be perceived as vague. They can be interpreted to be a sign of laziness. They can also result in a lack of credibility.
The words a Metro Detroit small business chooses for its advertising will have the most significant effect on sales. That's why eliminating cliches is critical.
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small business,
small business owner,
radio advertising,
advertise on radio,
writing a commercial,
commercial length,
small business marketing,
small business advertising,
effective advertising,
radio commercials,
creative,
scripts
This year, according to Nielsen, 3.5 million Metro Detroit consumers will spend $1.9 billion on eco-friendly goods and services. Sales for sustainable products have grown 20% since 2014, a trend expected to continue into 2021.
Tensie Whelan and Randi Kronthal-Sacco of the New York University Stern Center for Sustainable Business write in the Harvard Business Review, "Consumers are voting with their dollars against unsustainable brands. The legacy companies that will thrive are those that accept this shift and are willing to pivot.”
For Southeast Michigan small business owners who are skeptical that sustainability affects purchase decisions, retail analyst Stacey Widlitz provided this advice, recently, in Forbes.
"Retailers only need to look to IBM's recent study, in association with the National Retail Federation, to understand just how fast consumer priorities are changing," says Ms. Widlitz. "Findings from the study revealed nearly 60% of consumers surveyed are willing to change their shopping habits to reduce environmental impact. For the nearly 80% of respondents who said sustainability is important to them over 70% would pay a premium of 35% on average."
To compete for a share of consumers' spending on green goods and services requires local small business owners to advertise.
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small business,
millennials,
small business owner,
radio advertising,
retail,
retailer,
retail sales,
retail store,
advertise on radio,
small business marketing,
small business advertising,
green products,
sustainable,
eco-friendly
Before the onset of COVID-19, more than 568,000 Metro Detroit households were planning to spend $1.2 billion on furniture, according to Nielsen. Unfortunately, many of those plans were put on pause as consumers sheltered in place to help slow the spread of the virus.
A recent study by Elevate | SmithGeiger suggests that the fortunes of home furnishing retailers, however, are about to improve.
According to the study, 32% of consumers who had been planning to buy furniture will do so within three months of the pandemic easing. Fifty percent will do so within six months. The numbers for mattress shoppers are even stronger.
To capture a significant share of the post-pandemic sales of furniture and mattress will require retailers to advertise. The most effective way to reach the customers who are ready to buy is on Detroit radio.
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Topics
small business,
small business owner,
best way to advertise,
retail,
retailer,
retail sales,
retail store,
small business marketing,
mattress,
small business advertising,
furniture