Don't Get Spooked Like Wall Street
              Part II of IV on Recession Proof Industries

Not long ago, a friend of mine gave me a great analogy on the stock market.

"The stock market is a horse," he said. "Only two things scare a horse: things that move and things that don't move." 

As comforting as that is, we all know when Wall Street gets spooked, Main Street feels it. Small business owners begin to panic. We can't change it. It's only human nature. 

Because of this, your SummitMedia Creative Services Network has done some digging to find recession proof industries. And, most important, find ways to help them grow their budget, thus growing ours. 

Health Services. 

People will always need medical care; dental, optometry, out patient services, or emergency care. Small health clinics are a sure bet. They have to position themselves against major network health care providers like large hospitals. People still have a tendency to regard emergency care as "Doc In The Box." This is an opportune time to redirect that misperception by helping the local clinic tout it's advantages. 

    - No crowded hospital ER waiting rooms full of sick people.

    - No long hospital ER wait times. 

    - Most operate after hours and holidays.

    - Many now offer virtual visits through an online portal.

Scenario: after hours and holidays

"Last Thanksgiving was almost a disaster. My husband, Carl, was about to carve the turkey when he accidently carved his index finger. It was a holiday. What were we supposed to do --sit in a packed ER waiting room for goodness knows how long? No. We zipped straight to Springfield Emergency Care.  There was no wait. Dr. Tim Elgin and his staff got Carl stitched up in no time. And because Springfield Emergency Care accepts most insurances, there wasn't much out-of-pocket expense..."

Scenario: virtual care.

"I know what the flu feels like. I don't need to go fight the weather and traffic to find someone to tell me what I already know. That's why I logged on to Springfield Emergency Care's Virtual Visit. All I had to do was give Dr. Tim Elgin my symptoms. He concurred and ordered my prescriptions for me. And, because it was a virtual visit, my insurance provider was real happy with that. No co-pay!"

Food Stores and Grocery Services. 

Everybody needs to eat. That's why national and regional grocery stores chains continue to boom throughout a recession. Granted, the one we're technically not in, but feeling it anyway, is as much supply chain driven as it is due to inflation. 

Local grocers, meat markets, and farm markets have going for them is the growing demand for local, local, local. 

Farm-to-table is now a common household term. 

Every SummitMedia market has a farmers market. And each state has some type of farmers alliance or agricultural centered organization. 

Idea.

Plan a partnership with your state's agri-business authority or farmers alliance. Find out which local restaurants do farm-to-table. Offer a farmer's co-op package to your local restaurants that participate. 

Scenario:

"Back in 1921, not many folks used the term fresh produce. It's was just maters, taters, greens, and purple hulls. What hasn't changed is where the best comes from: Alabama Farmers and The Alabama Farmers' Market. There's just something magical about this red dirt that makes the best produce --or maters, taters, greens, and purple hulls. The folks at Joseph's Table on The Green know that. All of their crisp and colorful vegetables are grown right here in Alabama. Make a reservation now at Josephs Table dot com. And -eat hearty, y'all." 

Information Technology Services

This nation's last recession was 2007-2009. Businesses had IT. But it was done mostly in-house. Because of breakthroughs in network technology and budgetary constraints, outsourced IT saw rapid growth from 2012 to 2019. COVID put it on steroids. Even though many have returned to the workplace, several industries have hybrid work schedules. Then, there are others that remain 100% remote. Because of this, many IT services are offering consumer home grade and remote work services. 

Scenario:

"With more and more people working from home your business may need to rethink how you manage your technology. Clear Winds Technologies can help. Clear Winds will design, implement and manage your IT needs so you don’t have to. Clear Winds is a Dell all in provider and can offer your business half off of Dell equipment. Let Clear Wind Technology focus on your IT so you can focus on your business. Go to clear winds dot net to learn more. Your partner in IT."

These are just some ideas of recession-proofing ourselves. It may seem challenging. But it is so worth the work and the fight. 

Please know that we are always available to you for brainstorming sessions with your perspective clients, existing clients -or just by yourself. Just contact your market's production manager for scheduling. And we'll take it from there.  

Mike -The Reel Architect.