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(April 2006) posted on Tue Apr 04, 2006

Create your own momentum in times of uncertainty.

By Bob Klausmeier

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On top of an already looming recession, the crisis of September 11 has created an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty. For industries deriving business from discretionary spending budgets, finding new sales opportunities will be a challenge in the immediate future. Such is certainly the case for the moving-message industry.

History has shown that uncertainty has a powerful, negative effect on advertising spending. For the current year, prior to the cataclysmic events of early September, advertising spending was already down significantly, compared to the previous year. As a subset of the advertising industry, the electronic-message-display industry is likely to take a hit.

Thus, it's time to retrench. Our approach to the marketplace dictates a great deal of forethought that's unnecessary during less troubling times.

Many traditional message-sign users, such as hotels and shopping centers, are suffering profound setbacks, although there are strong exceptions to that rule. The question then becomes, who might buy message signs during a downturn, and why?

Seize the momentum

The booming economy of the '90s hasn't lost all its wind. Momentum remains from deals made prior to the downturn. Current retail projects under construction include pharmacies, fast-food franchises, casinos, convenience stores and supermarkets. Each of these highly competitive industries maintains an appetite for electronic-sign advertising. The impending drop in new construction makes these projects critical.

Those involved in signing these new buildings should introduce, or re-introduce, electronic-sign advertising to customers as a vital competitive tool in the market-share fray.

Go back to the basics with your customers -- reaffirm traffic count, translate that count into exposures per month and compare that exposure to other media opportunities. Remind the customer that current crises have motivated Americans to stay close to home, and message-center signs effectively reach people in their primary, "close to home" market. Electronic-message ads reach a point-of-purchase audience ready to act on an impulse generated by the ad.

Evaluate your market

Keep your eyes and ears open. Utilize nonproductive time to speak with customers and prospects. Ascertain who's suffering, who's maintaining and who's doing well. Remember that every economic disaster means an opportunity for somebody. Likewise, a disaster in certain geographic regions might be less impactful in others.