# How much money does it to make money?



## Redlightpacket (Dec 12, 2007)

How much money does it take to spend on advertising to get a great amount of customers and make a great amount of money, if you have great products?


----------



## SoloStampede (Aug 4, 2007)

that depends on multiple factors: how good is your marketing plan, how good are your products for your select market, etc, etc.
It's not something that can be exactly measured. Every person has their own marketing avenues. And the cost of marketing can be absolutely free or costly, again it depends on what marketing avenues you take.


----------



## TripleT (Apr 29, 2007)

What kind of advertising are you talking about?


----------



## gp1305 (Oct 17, 2007)

Rule of thumb is.. that 50 percent of all money spent on advertising is wasted.. unfortunately no one has pinpointed with 50 percent :/


----------



## authenticboricua (Oct 23, 2007)

keep in mind that what ever marketing you decide to choose, that just advertising for a short period of time won't work. You need to burn your brands images into their head. So you may also need to consider multiple marketing streams.


----------



## charles95405 (Feb 1, 2007)

best advertising you can get is a satisfied customer...not just one that content with your product..but one that is happy with it


----------



## SoloStampede (Aug 4, 2007)

In other words, don't put all your eggs in one basket. I myself have 4-5 marketing avenues.


----------



## karlking85 (Sep 26, 2007)

Exactly, keep your name in as many locations as you can afford. And truly, word of mouth is the cheapest AND most effective marketing you can ever acheive. It works wonders. 

And I hate to disagree with you gp1305, but although it is usually true that most advertising may go unseen-or at least has little impact on actually increasing your business-A good solid marketing plan, and an attentive owner should be able to track which methods are working and which are not.


----------



## highstyleinc (Apr 4, 2007)

I have known quite a few people who had started with little or no money used to market, only word of mouth and handing out products. They made connections with the right people. I find that the less money someone has for marketing the better, because it forces you to be more creative, to think out of the box with a marketing approach. So, my answer is $0.


----------



## gp1305 (Oct 17, 2007)

karlking85 said:


> And I hate to disagree with you gp1305, but although it is usually true that most advertising may go unseen-or at least has little impact on actually increasing your business-A good solid marketing plan, and an attentive owner should be able to track which methods are working and which are not.


I completely agree!! You wouldnt advertise your new vegetarian cuisine at a steakhouse!!


----------



## TripleT (Apr 29, 2007)

highstyleinc said:


> I have known quite a few people who had started with little or no money used to market, only word of mouth and handing out products. They made connections with the right people. I find that the less money someone has for marketing the better, because it forces you to be more creative, to think out of the box with a marketing approach. So, my answer is $0.


Well, I don't completely agree with that (handing out products costs money for example), but there are many ways to market at little or no cost.

Check out _Guerrilla Marketing_ by Levinson and Lautenslager (I think they have 6 books out now) - everybody on this board who is interested in marketing should be using their techniques.


----------



## Rodney (Nov 3, 2004)

> I find that the less money someone has for marketing the better, because it forces you to be more creative, to think out of the box with a marketing approach


I sort of agree with this as well. 

Sometimes people try to fit their marketing into how much money they have. Like "I have $5000, where should I spend this money for advertising"

I think that's a bit backwards. I would rather people think "where can I get the most effective advertising and marketing for my company" or "where can I get the best exposure for my product/service".

Then take that info and go from there.

Sometimes you can get free (or low cost) advertising that will bring you more sales than a magazine ad for thousands of dollars. 

Sometimes putting your product in the right targeted magazine at the right cost will be a smart move.


----------



## karlking85 (Sep 26, 2007)

gp1305 said:


> I completely agree!! You wouldnt advertise your new vegetarian cuisine at a steakhouse!!


 
Ideally, no!  haha


----------



## EIPC (Oct 22, 2007)

The answer to the thread title isn't as simple as it seems.

First just money wont do it.

You also need planning and hard work.

For formula purposes I would say something like:

Money + Planning + Hard work X 2 = Amount of success you want.

But I could be wrong.


----------



## rockwellindustry (Nov 25, 2008)

charles95405 said:


> best advertising you can get is a satisfied customer...not just one that content with your product..but one that is happy with it


That is so true.


----------



## spudlauncher (Aug 9, 2007)

You can have $0 and have a sound marketing plan that'll get you business, and you can have a $1000 and get the same results.

The first thing you should ask yourself is how much capital you have. That will determine what you should do. Don't be discouraged if you're low on funds, the recession is taking a toll. If money is a problem, guerilla marketing is the way to go, that and word of mouth never hurts.


----------



## EnMartian (Feb 14, 2008)

It isn't about how much money you do or don't have. It's more about where you spend those funds. You need to do some research and determine who your target audience is and where those people go. Then you need to advertise in those places. 

You can spend all the money in the world and still not sell a thing. If your message isn't reaching your target customers, it doesn't matter how much money you spend.


----------



## dmfelder (Oct 25, 2008)

I agree with EIPC. Minimize your upfront expense and first see if your products will sell.

Find a fulfillment partner. Google "direct to garment printing" or "screen printing" and find the big names who can do things inexpensively to start.

...then, consider making some capital investments.


----------



## esentuals (Sep 4, 2007)

A simple way to to do promotionals is to build your client list. Word of mouth, business cards, decals on your car or truck telling people what you do, wearing your own business name with with you do,

Decal for car around 50 dollars
Business Cards 50 dollars
Shirt examples estimation 40 dollars
Word of mouth 0.0 dollars
wearing your own shirts 10.00 dollars depends
Email list provider 120 per year- remember easy to sell to those who have purchased from you.
the money is in your list.

In all honestly my best marketing tool has been word of mouth and my business cards.
Remember me passionate in what you do and the money will follow.


----------

