The results of the latest Statistics Canada survey of household spending have just been released. Canadian households spent an average of $53,016 on all types of goods and services in 2010. Of this total, shelter accounted for 28.3% of spending, transportation for 20.7%, and food, 14.0%. Spending on clothing represented 6.5% of the total, health care, 4.1%, and communications, 3.3%. This information might be key to understanding your customers’ buying behaviour. If your business doesn’t sell products or services in any of these “necessities”, you’ll be glad to know that, in Ontario, the spending in these categories tallies to just 71.2%, leaving 28.8% for “miscellaneous”, perhaps including the goods and services you offer.
It is important to note that distribution of spending by income group varies greatly. For example, shelter costs for the lowest income group represent 51.8% of spending (total spending is $28,583.) The group with the highest income spent $139,001, with just 29.5% going to food, shelter and clothing – with this group, “just 29%” is still a robust $41,005 though.
Canadian homeowners spent an average of $17,268 on shelter, but Ontario had the highest share at 30.4% of total spending; costs are related to the size of the population centre, so naturally the GTA’s average would be higher than rural and all other metropolitan areas elsewhere in Canada.
Ontario households spent an average of $11,529 on transportation in 2010, and couples with children spent three times what one-person households spend, not surprisingly.
Canadian households reported spending an average of $7,443 on food in 2010. This total consisted of $5,377 on average spent on food from stores and the remaining $2,066 for restaurant meals. Considering lifestyles, it is not surprising to find that seniors spend more on store purchases, while those under 30 years old have the highest share of spending at restaurants.
Consider your customers and their demographics. How might their consumer spending levels/habits impact your business? Study the newest report on Canadian Household Spending, available at http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/120425/dq120425a-eng.htm and look at detailed spending by income group and province, to learn more about your customers.
Source: The Daily, April 25/12 http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/120425/dq120425a-eng.htm
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Marketing Tips to Rev Up Your Business - Part 2
Make 2012 your year to work smart. In this second part of a two-part column, you’ll find marketing tips that could inject new life into your business despite a stale economy. Pick a few to focus on this year, or try implementing a new one each month.
Start using social media. People are changing the way they want to communicate, so you have to too. Put together a social media plan; start small, adding a new tool every quarter. Consider LinkedIn, Twitter, a blog and YouTube. FaceBook can also be utilized effectively by small business, but separate personal from business.
Leverage traditional media. You are doing ground-breaking things, and are even a hero to some of your customers. Use public relations tools like media advisories, press releases and community TV to get a little free publicity when you have something special taking place.
Review your creative efforts. Do your marketing materials look like you mean business? Spell-checked isn’t enough – they need to look great to command attention. And, your branding needs to be consistent so your messages start to look familiar to potential customers.
Outsource. Marketing is a full-time job essential to your business success. Consider that it might be time to hire a pro and/or another set of hands, particularly for specialty areas like public relations or social media.
Get active in your community. Be a part of your community. Get to know your business neighbours, your customers and local community groups in a personal way. Find volunteer opportunities within scope of the time you have, even just a couple of hours a month.
Corporate Social Responsibility is a serious phrase for something that can be really fun. Join a bowl-a-thon or sponsor a worthy organization. Be smart about it and match your target customers with those of the charity’s. But don’t do it for business, do it out of generosity of spirit.
Take a (refresher) sales workshop. Hone your skills, learn some smart tactics and shortcuts, and set achievable targets. Inspiration needs regular refreshing even for the most motivated sales person.
Consider the impact of your personal branding; in very small businesses, you are your business. The way you dress, walk, shake hands and speak all make a statement. Make sure it’s a positive one for your business.
Use 12-15 marketing tools. Flyers and business cards won’t cut it. You need 12-15 different marketing tools perpetually at work to generate the kind of traffic you need to make a profit.
Boost your budget. Benchmarking says that established businesses need to spend 4-9% of their annual sales target on marketing initiatives. (New businesses: 9-12 %.) When budgets are tight, consider zero-cost tactics like public relations and social media.
Persevere. Perseverance is an absolute must. If you give up too early, you may miss out on the success for which your business was destined.
Start using social media. People are changing the way they want to communicate, so you have to too. Put together a social media plan; start small, adding a new tool every quarter. Consider LinkedIn, Twitter, a blog and YouTube. FaceBook can also be utilized effectively by small business, but separate personal from business.
Leverage traditional media. You are doing ground-breaking things, and are even a hero to some of your customers. Use public relations tools like media advisories, press releases and community TV to get a little free publicity when you have something special taking place.
Review your creative efforts. Do your marketing materials look like you mean business? Spell-checked isn’t enough – they need to look great to command attention. And, your branding needs to be consistent so your messages start to look familiar to potential customers.
Outsource. Marketing is a full-time job essential to your business success. Consider that it might be time to hire a pro and/or another set of hands, particularly for specialty areas like public relations or social media.
Get active in your community. Be a part of your community. Get to know your business neighbours, your customers and local community groups in a personal way. Find volunteer opportunities within scope of the time you have, even just a couple of hours a month.
Corporate Social Responsibility is a serious phrase for something that can be really fun. Join a bowl-a-thon or sponsor a worthy organization. Be smart about it and match your target customers with those of the charity’s. But don’t do it for business, do it out of generosity of spirit.
Take a (refresher) sales workshop. Hone your skills, learn some smart tactics and shortcuts, and set achievable targets. Inspiration needs regular refreshing even for the most motivated sales person.
Consider the impact of your personal branding; in very small businesses, you are your business. The way you dress, walk, shake hands and speak all make a statement. Make sure it’s a positive one for your business.
Use 12-15 marketing tools. Flyers and business cards won’t cut it. You need 12-15 different marketing tools perpetually at work to generate the kind of traffic you need to make a profit.
Boost your budget. Benchmarking says that established businesses need to spend 4-9% of their annual sales target on marketing initiatives. (New businesses: 9-12 %.) When budgets are tight, consider zero-cost tactics like public relations and social media.
Persevere. Perseverance is an absolute must. If you give up too early, you may miss out on the success for which your business was destined.
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