Business as Usual During a Recession
There seems to be a lot of variance in how businesses are being affected by the recession.
For instance, a couple of my clients seem to be doing really well. A real estate agent, of all things, whom I write articles for is even reporting increases in home sales in his area — presumably because the deals are so good right now. And the online marketing company I write for doesn’t seem to have been adversely affected; in fact, online marketing actually seems to be more in demand right now, as it is considerably more cost effective than traditional marketing.
Conversely, a couple of my freelance writing colleagues have reported dramatic drops in their workload and income. One reported a drop of nearly 50 percent in January — which could be partly because January is usually a slow month for us, but still! That’s quite the drop!
And in some cases, I think the variances appear even in the same industry. For instance, I haven’t noticed the drops my colleague has — I’ve been trucking along just like normal. But then, I focus my writing efforts in different areas than she does — she’s more of an article and traditional marketing writer, while I primarily write online marketing types of materials.
But all these different reports have me curious — if you run a business, how is the down economy affecting you, or is it at all? Does it seem to make a difference whether you provide necessities or luxuries? For instance, if you offer sedation dentistry in Washington DC, have you noticed that necessary work still gets done at the same rate, while Washington DC cosmetic dentistry does not?
I’d be really interested in hearing how other small businesses are faring in this economy, and any trends other business owners may have noticed!
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