I had a disturbing conversation yesterday with a client and it absolutely blew my mind. 

Last week, he got a call from his long-time account rep at a ginormous company we’ll call Denture Virect… As you might have guessed by now, the guy was laid -off. And just like that, a stellar 20 year career with one of the biggest advertisers and spenders of online media dollars in the world was over — gone — right alongside about 40% of the rest of their staff. My client’s entire business relationship with them is now “under review” and could come to an unceremonious end any day, from either direction.

Yeah, it’s bad, bad, bad news out there… if you’re in the traditional big ad agency business, that is. Legendary ad-houses  like Ogilvy and BBDO are shedding staff while smaller agencies are closing their doors for good.

What this means for you, intrepid Internet entrepreneur, is that your skill and aptitude in effective direct response marketing is going to be more important than ever.

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Today, I want to give you some concrete ideas for building greater value in your offer – product, service, information, physical goods, whatever it is that you sell…

In my last post, we talked about the difference between Price and Value and how easy it is to get caught in the “discount trap”. Cutting your prices can often have precisely the opposite effect that the “price leader” is after. 

When times are tough, consumers are not so much after low prices as they are demanding of greater perceived value for their dwindling stash of money. 

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Today, I want to talk about a critically important issue as we head into 2009 and what many are worried will be a tough year financially.

What I want to discuss today is the difference between PRICE and VALUE.

In times of economic uncertainty, it is a common reaction for many marketers to start driving their prices downward. The hope is that by discounting their prices, they will appeal to the more frugal and cost-concious sensibilities of the financially strapped consumer.

On the surface, this can seem sensible. The thinking goes that if A costs less, more people will be inclined to buy A because B and C cost more.

However, what is not always self-evident is the unfortunate truth that competing solely on price rarely appeals to the BUYERS in most markets — at least not the ones that you REALLY want.

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