Confronting a decline in the economy

In an article entitled Panel offers survival tips for small businesses, Laura Copeland wrote recently in The Tennessean newspaper about the economy and the various ways to deal with the issues facing the world.

It’s a dry old subject I know, but it affects us all.

While in Nashville for the IBMA World Of Bluegrass Convention and Fan Fest, I had occasion to wonder about what we were doing and the costs involved. Apparently, those in attendance plowed nearly $4.5 million dollars into the local economy. That’s great for Nashville, but what were the costs to us individually? For me it was sometimes a surreal experience.

All of the people at the IBMA Convention are small businesses, or part of one, and many will have thought deeply about the consequences of attending or, on the other side of the coin, not attending.

Subsequently, each will have assessed how good it was for their business.

Economists have voiced their opinions and the experts have predicted a worsening of the situation or opined that it will be 2010 before the financial situation improves. Either way, those professionals in the bluegrass world have challenges to face.

The article can be located on The Tennessean web site.

I will leave you to pick out the salient parts and apply what is relevant to you and your situation, but the closing paragraph offers solid advice for good times or bad.

Know all aspects of the business. Manage them well. Be open and flexible. Seize opportunities. Take smart risks. Do all these things and a business can thrive even in tough economic times.

0 Comments
Leave a comment
Comments are open and unmoderated for our registered users, only your first comment will require approval before publication. Comments do not necessarily reflect the views of The Bluegrass Blog. Obscene, abusive, silly, or annoying remarks may be deleted, but the fact that particular comments remain on the site in no way constitutes an endorsement of their content by The Bluegrass Blog.

TrackBack URI

You must

  • Register
  • and Log in in to leave comments.

    Internet Promotions Panel Discussion

    Yesterday I participated in a panel discussion here at IBMA about Internet Promotions: Myspace and beyond. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the turnout. In past years the panels I've been a part of, whether as a speaker or a listener, were very sparsely attended. This year the turn out was...

    IBMA 2009 attendance figures

    IBMA has released preliminary numbers from this year's World Of Bluegrass and Fan Fest, held in Nashville September 28-October 3. As most people in the industry had expected, the economic downturn seems to have taken a toll on attendance, though perhaps not as badly as pessimists may have presumed....

    IBMA 2009 attendance figures

    IBMA has released preliminary numbers from this year's World Of Bluegrass and Fan Fest, held in Nashville September 28-October 3. As most people in the industry had expected, the economic downturn seems to have taken a toll on attendance, though perhaps not as badly as pessimists may have presumed....

    WSJ: Martin Guitars deals with the economy

    Wall Street Journal recently ran an article, in their business management section (July 6 edition, page B1), with the story of how Martin Guitar Company has dealt with the recently slow economy. The company was determined not to lay off any of its employees, and implemented a few measures to assure...

    Panel discussion and mentor sessions

    I thought I'd let all our readers know about a couple events I'll be involved with at IBMA next week. On Tuesday the 26th from 10 to 11:45 I'll be a panelist at a discussion entitled Internet Promotions: MySpace and Beyond! The focus of the panel is on maximizing your efforts at online promotion....

    IBMA 2005 cumulative figures

    The International Bluegrass Music Association has released the final attendance figures for last month's week long convention, the IBMA's first to be held in Nashville, TN. Dan Hays, IBMA Executive Director, reports that the cumulative attendance over the course of the week was 22,790 - up 21.2% from...

    On the road again

    Brance and I are on the road, heading for Nashville and the IBMA World Of Bluegrass Convention, where our Richard Thompson is already situated. We hope to arrive around noon Nashville time, and will be spending the rest of the day (and night) attending various shows and meetings in and around the...

    Fuel, Festivals, and CD sales

    CMT News ran in interesting story yesterday concerning the relationship between fuel costs, festival attendance, and CD sales. The story's primary focus is the affect on artists' bottom line produced by increasing fuel costs. The story is primarily based on an interview conducted with Keith Case, but...

    IBMA: First day impressions

    It's Tuesday morning, well it's after noon but I just got up, and I'm reflecting back on my impressions from yesterday of the new environment for the World of Bluegrass event. The exhibit hall here at the Nashville Convention Center is much larger than our previous location. Having attended the summer...

    Lowered festival attendance woes to affect IBMA?

    With IBMA's big week approaching, a lot of folks have been wondering how much the down economy will affect attendance and exhibitors this year. Their annual World Of Bluegrass trade show, Awards Show and Fan Fest serve as the primary income stream for the organization, which functions as the "special...

    Deering shutters Nashville showroom

    The Deering Banjo Company shut down their Nashville showroom this Monday, January 5. California-based Deering established this central US beachhead in July '06 to help make their product line more visible to both country/bluegrass pros living and working in Music City, and the many tourists who visit...

    IBMA exhibitor report

    Brance and I had a busy week at IBMA earlier this month, but were not able to stay for the Fan Fest which ran that weekend (10/3-4). Our impression of the World Of Bluegrass trade show was that attendance was down, and several exhibitors and vendors expressed that their sales and interaction were also...