As the economy continues to shrink, marketing budgets get smaller and smaller. In tough times, marketing budgets should actually be getting bigger not smaller. Why? Because there are many bargains to be had. Now is the time to negotiate with vendors who are losing business due to the economy. Things are tough all over. That gives you a chance get more for less and enhance value you get for each dollar spent.

Now that things are difficult for online ad networks, magazines, and newspapers, it’s a great time to negotiate rates. Are you still paying top dollar for ads? Due to the difficulty in measuring the impact of a particular advertisement, many companies are cutting back on traditional ad spend. This creates more inventory and with more inventory comes lower prices. It really is all about supply and demand.

If you want to begin the process of making your marketing budget stretch, then start with a complete review of your previous year’s marketing spend. You need to account for each campaign and each component within the campaign. For example, if you take a direct marketing piece that you may have sent to a target group, what was involved? Printing? Paper? Distribution? Are you using a single vendor or multiple vendors? If you were to do the same campaign today, which vendors would be willing to lower their prices? Map out your campaigns and resources then begin the negotiation process.

Once you’ve reviewed your marketing campaigns, take a closer look at your online spend. Any online marketing campaign has profitable and unprofitable aspects to it. As yourself where you spend has been most effective. Reallocate your budget to the successful campaigns or others like it. Now it the time to pause those campaigns that just haven’t proven themselves successful. This reduces your expense and improve the effectiveness of your marketing efforts.

As you review all of your marketing expenses, consider how you can group promotions together, saving you money and improving effectiveness. During difficult times, its best to focus on leveraging all of your marketing touch points. For example, when you send an email, do you make it easy for others to forward to others who may be interested in a particular offer? Do you ask for referrals after each sale? Consider which touch points lend themselves to viral marketing and leverage them.

In order to survive during this difficult time and still be successful with a smaller budget, you really need to consider how you can manage the balance between a smaller marketing spend and the need for increased results. Sticking with the marketing basics is paramount. Focus on the needs of your market and offers that get people to respond.

A complete review of your marketing expenses can go a long way. When considering the initiatives you have underway and what you have planned for the remainder of the year, focus on those marketing methods that have generated positive returns for you in the past. Also, think about how you can get more from what you already have. Referral campaigns, loyalty programs and so on can help you get more from your existing customers. If new client acquisition is expensive, then ask you customer base to help you. Ask for referrals and recommendations. Applying these methods cost less and can improve the overall effectiveness of your marketing regardless of budget size.