Given the slow economic recovery and lower-than-expected GDP growth in the first quarter of this year, the National Association of Small Business Professionals wants to help entrepreneurs and startups with their marketing emergencies.

This week, NASBP launched a Marketing 911 Helpline where members can get free advice on issues such as how to attract more customers and what’s the most effective use of advertising dollars.

With the new Helpline, “we’re trying to say, ‘We thought [the economy] was going to recover a little bit quicker than it is, and we understand that you’re dealing with all kinds of issues every day in terms of how to grow and sometimes you just need to get a little bit of help, and this is a way to do that,’” said NASBP Executive Director Kimberly Kelly.

Aimed primarily at entrepreneurs and startups, the Helpline is accessible to members on the association’s website, where they can provide background information on their business and submit a question. Within 10 to 14 days, a marketing consultant on the NASBP staff will be in touch to help answer the question or guide the member to the appropriate resources.

“Obviously you can’t solve all the world’s issues in just that forum, but we did want to create something where people could reach out and ask those difficult questions that other people would charge you to answer,” Kelly said.

Why did NASBP choose to focus on marketing assistance as opposed to finance or managerial advice? Kelly said marketing issues are often what entrepreneurs deal with first when starting a new business.

A lot of times the most pressing needs of a startup are “How do I get more customers?” ”How can I get more people to know about my business?” she said. “We felt like it’s great to have the issues of financial management and cashflow problems, but we have to get you there  first.”

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