Dennis McCrory

verything is different The ads, the programs, the events, the conversations all reflect the change. There has been a death in the family. We thought we had seen it all. Terrorists have attacked targets before. Planes have been hijacked, buildings destroyed, innocent people killed, but never has the nation felt the shock so deeply. To borrow a line from the action movies, “This time it’s personal.

And 26 days later, before we could adjust our business strategies, the retaliation began. We had to shift gears again. In the midst of grief and tragedy (a story whose ending hasn’t been decided) drycleaners must

open each day and life must go on. The president says to return to our normal lives, but that seems abnormal under the circumstances. It’s difficult to market our businesses, promote Grand Openings, celebrate an anniversary with lights and banners, offer a Fall Special. It all seems out of step with the mood of the country.

Each day’s news reports additional closings, layoffs and job-cuts. Against this backdrop, drycleaners must continue to be positive about their businesses.

Whether because of the uncertainties of the economy, the events of 9/11, or the existence of a state of war, one thing is sure: every drycleaner in the country is re-examining his marketing position and strategy. Drycleaners who have never advertised their services before are now inquiring how they can bring back their customers. And those who suspended their marketing because business was good are hurriedly reconsidering their decisions.

The question now is: How do you sell your services to a public that has never felt less like buying? And, the fact is, most customers are afraid to spend money at all, even on “necessities.” All of this kind of leaves you longing for the days when business was just slow.

To say that coming back in this kind of market is a challenge is an understatement, but survivors of past wars, recessions, mass business closing and even natural catastrophes, remember that shaking heads and groaning in resignation doesn’t start the turnaround. It only hastens the end.

Not too long ago, the chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank used the phrase “irrational exuberance” to describe the dot-com frenzy over huge stock market gains for unproven companies. That seems like a century ago. Today, most drycleaners are operating in an environment of genuine fear and uncertainty. As this article is being written, no one knows if the effects of war, much less the war itself, will be short-lived or not.

A plan with a clearly defined objective, strategy and budget is what is needed to survive this crisis. What will get your customers’ attention is something that is creative — a term we haven’t heard much about lately. Taking a unique and innovative approach to getting your message to your customers is what will work. Not doing what all the other guys seem to be doing.

Correctly positioning your cleaners is important during the best of times; doing so in a crisis is critical. Your customers make their choices based on price, quality, value and image, though not necessarily in that order. People like to know they can trust the people they are doing business with. For some cleaners, there may be no second chances.

Things will get better. What’s happening now was triggered by a series of abrupt and tragic occurrences and must be treated with sensitivity. The good part is, the public understands this, and is ready to resume a normal life. Our communications with our customers need to be carefully measured. That has always been the case, but in a recession and a time of crisis, the stakes are higher and the urgency is greater.

It is not easy to motivate people to spend money with you when they can’t stop thinking about the thousands of innocent lives that were lost so tragically. But a gentle offer to do business with you, in a persuasive wrapper, may be all that’s needed to turn things around. The solution is not running another ad with a sensitive poem or national condolences in it. It is emphasizing that what we do adds value to our customers’ lives.

Dennis McCrory works with The Golomb Group which provides direct mail and marketing services for drycleaners. They also produce the following book and video packages:

• “The Caplan Method of Stain Removal”

• “The Caplan Method of Shirt Laundering and Finishing,”

• Also available is McCrory’s “Pre-employment Screening Kit.”

To order any of these, call The Golomb Group, (800) 679-5856.