"Show Me The Money" 12 / 24 Marketing Plan Part 3

Biggest Opportunity To Grow Your Business In Your Lifetime

As you can see from my previous Marketing Prescription Newsletter posts, we are most definitely headed for a recession or possibly worse a full-fledged depression. If you haven't read the earlier installments, look in the right column of this blog. You can find the link to read the first two installments.

You have a 12 - 24 month window to prepare and put your business in a position to thrive and grow during the extended recession that could last 3-5 years . . . or more if congress succeeds in getting their grubby hands on it.

Now that we've resigned ourselves to the coming recession or worse, we can start preparing our business. We should immediately refine and target our marketing to those in the economy who will still have money to spend.

Affluent households and affluent and emerging industry businesses in the United States are the smart target markets for us going into 2010 and on. If you aren't already targeting this prospect market, you should start moving your company or sales territory that direction as fast as you can possibly move.

I'm going to invest the next couple of posts defining this group and explaining how to market to them and how to connect your business to the households and businesses that will still be spending money.

First, lets lay down some definitions for you to put your arms around and understand where we're going. Let's start out with the consumer market. By the way, this also applies to businesses because the people who make the buying decisions in businesses are also affluent consumers.

I will primarily discuss three groups, Ultra-Affluent, Affluent, Mass Affluent. Later I will use the term affluent to refer to all three groups unless I specifically designate one of the groups individually.

There are also Specialty groups within the affluent such as Affluent Boomers, Mass Affluent Boomers, Affluent Entrepreneurs & Business Owners. The reference for the following definitions come from Dan Kennedy's new book, "No BS Marketing To The Affluent."

First the Mass-Affluent group has a household Income range between $85,000 - $150,000 and/or net worth above $250,000 not including their primary residence. They are generally younger and more diverse than previous affluent populations in history. They shop at WalMart as well as upscale stores like Saks 5th Avenue and Neiman Marcus.

The next group up the ladder is the Affluent group with household incomes $150K - $250K and net worth above $1 Million not including primary residence.

Then there is the Ultra-Affluent group with annual incomes in excess of $250,000, Net worth $3-$10 Million.

Believe it or not, those that have a net worth of $1 Million or more represent 10% of all U.S. households - 11 Million, and hold 36% of all income, 70% of all net worth, and 89% of value of all publicly traded stocks and mutual funds in U.S.

Being a millionaire isn't quite the exclusive club it used to be 30 years ago.

There is also an Ultra-Ultra-Affluent group: Incomes above $1 Million, Net worth starting at $10 million. If you can find a product or service to successfully market to this group, you will be joining this exclusive club very quickly.

In my next newsletter post, I'll review some of the keys to marketing to the whole affluent population. And, how to set up your business to prosper during a down economy.

If you would like to learn more about marketing strategies that will carry your business through this new economy, then you need to be studying the guy I study, Dan Kennedy. He's the top small business marketing consultant and thinker in the country. If you aren't a member,

click here and go to this website and register for your 2 months of free newsletters and a whole lot more. Then start implementing what Dan teaches. It will be the best action step you've ever taken for your business. It was for mine.

Then to study more on the Affluent Marketplace, Dan has an add-on newsletter dedicated to strategies for marketing your products and services to this lucrative market. It's his "NoBS Marketing To The Affluent Letter." You have to be a member of his regular marketing letter to subscribe.

Email me at info@MarketingStrategiesRx.com and I'll send you a special invitation with a free report and one free month to test it out.