“Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.”
Benjamin Franklin
For most small business owners, the day-to-day job duties that you have can be so overwhelming that you may think that you don’t have time to ponder, much less execute, the future success of your business. But, as some have pointed out, “failing to plan is planning to fail.”
Now that 2018 is here, it’s the perfect time to begin thinking about what kind of goals you want to achieve and a strategy to achieve them by the year’s end. Here are some suggestions to help you and your small business achieve growth in the new year.
First, begin to leverage your customer base to understand how your business can improve. Your current customers are often the best tools you have to utilize as a growing business. Talk to them. Ask questions on how you can do better or offer a better product.
Secondly, it’s important to have a clear understanding what type of objectives are realistic so that you can start taking bite-sized steps to get there. If you make too much of a stretch goal, you may end up either using too many resources to achieve an unattainable target or get discouraged when you don’t meet it.
Lastly, it’s beneficial to think about what kind of resources are available to help you achieve your goals. Utilizing the support from other professionals in your community is paramount to the success of your growth strategy. At first, it may seem like a challenge, but using all available systems of support will increase the chances of obtaining your definition of success.
To better serve the Charlottesville Metro Area and Central Virginia, we are proud to announce our newest radio station, The Oasis 94.1, “Today’s Christian Hits!”
Pam Garrison, a Program Director, radio personality, and host on 99.7 CYK (and, most currently, The Oasis) is head of the project. Garrison, a radio veteran in the area, is thrilled to be hosting and is excited about the newest offering from Monticello Media.
The Oasis is the region’s only local contemporary Christian radio station featuring positive hits with artists such as Casting Crowns, Crowder, Newsboys, Natalie Grant, and Mercy Me.
Tune in weekdays from 3-7 pm to connect with Pam, either on your radio or stream online. For a list of upcoming events, be sure to check out our website.
There are available resources and incentives to encourage entrepreneurship here in Charlottesville and in Virginia as a whole.
It is Charlottesville Business Innovation Council‘s mission to “educate, celebrate and advocate for Charlottesville’s technology community” by giving support to the high-tech businesses in the area.
Central Virginia SCORE is a resource that serves the counties of Albemarle, Culpeper, Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, Madison, Nelson and Orange by providing mentoring and other assistance for those looking to start a business or improve their existing business strategy.
BlackOwnedCville is a resource that allows you to look for goods and services sourced from local businesses owned by black residents of Charlottesville.
Although Radio Advertising remains a solid part of advertising budgets in 2017, local advertising spend on online marketing is continuing to grow. According to a new article on the RAB (Radio Advertising Burea) blog, digital spend is predicted to surpass print media by 2018. However, radio does continue to be an important medium especially for local advertisers due to the exposure to captive audiences during commutes as well as the growth of streaming content from desktops and smart phones.
In the article entitled “Radio’s Place in the New Local Media Advertising Marketplace”, the author states that “According to the recently published 2017 BIA/Kelsey U.S Local Advertising Forecast, which provides a five year national forecast and 12 individual media forecasts, radio does reasonably well”. And the article summarizes by stating, “radio’s position in the local advertising marketplace continues to be solid. The growing influence of online/digital advertising opportunities will prompt radio to be flexible and be broad in the types of services that they offer and focus on new and distinct offerings that increase digital revenue opportunities.”
Whether its the hippest, happiest, healthiest, most exciting or one of the best cities for entrepreneurs, Charlottesville has much to offer “locals” as well as its multitude of annual visitors.
Awards and Recognition for Charlottesville from charlottesville.org website
Every year local businesses advertising in Charlottesville, Albemarle and surrounding counties experience an influx of prospective customers that are not familiar with their brand. Considering why people are coming and who they are, can inform how a local business may choose to advertise in this transient marketplace.
They’re Coming to Charlottesville
The University of Virginia
Increase in new enrollment www.virginia.edu/facts
Residents in Charlottesville and local businesses no doubt are aware of the fact that the University of Virginia brings new students, graduate students, faculty and staff into the area each year. The ebb and flow each semester can be felt anecdotally as anyone driving up and down US 29 can clearly see. Charlottesville’s population of over 46,000 adds over 15,600 undergraduate students, and over 6,300 graduate students throughout the school year and these students change and are increasing every year providing a steady stream of newcomers into the local market.
Healthcare – Top Hospital in Virginia
Another contributor to local visitors, The University of Virginia Health Systems, is nationally ranked in the “Best Hospitals” and “Best Children’s Hospitals” by U.S. News across many specialty care services. They are also listed as the #1 Hospital in Virginia serving more than 840,000 outpatient visitors in 2015 alone. Needless to say this is another catalyst for visitors to the area. Not only the patients but friends and family will also visit the area due to the healthcare services provided.
Central Virginia Tourism – Historical Locations, Vineyards and Changing Leaves
Local businesses are also aware that tourism brings in the visitors however, the growth of tourism and actual numbers may be surprising. In 2015, the greater Charlottesville area experienced almost $1B in revenue from tourism according to a recent article in The Daily Progress. And according to Forbes.com, over 500,000 people visit Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello each year. This is just one, albeit the most famous one, of three nearby homes to former U.S. presidents with Montpelier and Ash Lawn also drawing their fair share of tourists.
Agritourism, wineries, breweries, distilleries and cideries are gaining popularity throughout the region with the young professional and other crowds. Thousands line Skyline Drive every year to take in the majestic beauty as fall begins in the Shenandoah Valley.
Fall foliage along Skyline Drive
Also, concerts, festivals and other shows continuously bring new visitors to the local market. The LOCKN’ festival alone had over 30,000 in attendance this year in neighboring Nelson County.
The fact remains that whether by VW van or jet airliner, large numbers of people are traveling to this area throughout the year. In fact, The Daily Progress article states that, “according to the CHO website, the airport has seen a 63 percent increase in passenger traffic from 2008 to 2015, with 549,521 traveling through the airport in 2015.”
How Does This Influence Advertising A Local Business?
There are many reasons for the growth and dramatic change in the local demographic throughout the year in Charlottesville. This ever-changing base of potential customers presents unique challenges to the local business and entrepreneur. Some traditional approaches to advertising may not be as effective.
For example a business that invests in building a brand to a static population, though continuing to invest in feeding the top of the funnel, may be able to shift dollars away from branding and over to other tactics including promotions and discounts, retargeting and customer loyalty. They may even rely more on word-of-mouth referrals. The business may also be able to leverage past experiences and proven channels to consistently market the business in a stable and effective way. In reality, they may even be tempted to rest on their laurels and just do that what they have always done since it continues to work. For this business, perhaps nothing more is needed in order to maintain a profitable enterprise.
In a dynamic environment, the business owner must remain vigilant in order to be successful. A transient customer base may require additional branding efforts as new people need to be introduced to your business, product or service daily. Also, each attraction to the area brings a different demographic. The millennial University of Virginia student will have different interests, needs, and behaviors than a retired historical sight-seer or an international patient’s family. Wise advertisers will keep in mind seasonality, locations, audiences, and interests within the local market in order to be the most effective. Proven methods from the past may need to be revisited with each entering class to the University.
Where to advertise will continue to evolve. What local radio stations or other traditional media will visitors most likely be exposed to while in the area? What print resources are these visitors picking up and reading? What is your digital strategy? Are you considering more mobile advertising as smartphones and tablets are much more likely to be used than desktops for entertainment, content consumption and researching local businesses by the visiting population? Having an awareness of the local economy and changing customer base provides business owners the information they can use to develop the most successful advertising plan.
Dozens of lawmakers said in early June that they oppose revising the tax code in a way that could drive up the cost of advertising.
“Changes that will make advertising more expensive cannot be justified as a matter of tax or economic policy,” Reps Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), Kevin Yoder (R-Kansas), and 85 other lawmakers write this week in a letter to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.).
Currently, companies can deduct 100% of their ad expenses the same year they are incurred. The House is considering revising that long-standing deduction by allowing companies to deduct only 50% of ad expenses the year they are incurred. Companies would then have to amortize the remaining 50% of ad expenses over a period of 10 years.
