According to the SBA, over 50% of small businesses fail in the first five years, and 1 out of 10 make it to year 10. These same pressures hold true for hundreds of Fortune 1000 corporations who have either declared bankruptcy or filed reorganizations during the past five years. So, what do companies who make it past year 10 have that the others don’t?

Here are four questions they know the answers to that help them stand out and thrive during the most difficult of times:

1. Who do you want to communicate with? Knowing your precise target audience seems like a no-brainer, I’m sure, but it’s amazing how many companies try and communicate with “Everyone” thinking this will increase their chances of success. Instead, focus on the specific target market and audience that will make a difference in your business growth.

2. What do they know about us? Before you put one message into the marketplace you need to determine what your prospects already know about you. This simple exercise can save you months of missteps.

3. What do you want them to know? Trying to get your prospects to know everything about you in the first few moments is the equivalent of meeting someone for the first time and starting to tell them about your early childhood! Start where they are and let them know the things that will make them comfortable in continuing the conversation.

4. What do you want them to do? Of course, your end game is to convert your prospects into customers, but the question is what steps would you like them to take in this decision-making process. Hint: it should meet their needs first and foremost.

Having the answers to these four simple questions – along with your strategic prioritized agenda – will place you on the path of not only surviving a recession but thriving in one.

The marketplace has finally come to understand that there aren’t going to be any special bullets handed out in the near future for developing new business or building an existing one. This, in part, helps explain why so many businesses express the attitude that ‘things will be a little bit better in 2012 than last year.” Many business owners have taken ownership of their company’s direction and are finding improved results by doing so.

To get your strategic plan on the right path and your organization on the same strategic page, there are three basic rules that you must follow to do well:

1) Create a cohesive strategy that delivers the focused top goals you’ve established;

2) Provide ample room and opportunity for everyone in your organization to contribute their best ideas; and

3) Find new ways to produce an improved customer experience with your products and services. These three basic rules will do more for your organization than a 300-page report on what’s wrong with your company and how to fix it.

This third rule is particularly important given the massive amount of new content on the Internet being posted each day that provides customers with more choice than ever. This often causes confusion for customers when trying to distinguish one product from another which highlights a profound need that should be at the center of your strategic plan: You need to establish a rock-solid relationship with your customers by opening up the lines of communication and promoting two-way interactions whenever and wherever possible.

Short-term sales marketing tactics can increase the results of a strategic marketing program, but short-term success can quickly build a ‘blind spot’ into seeing your customers’ true needs. A recent example we noted is a company that sold its products successfully because there was no real alternative to their products. However, while successful sales were being posted the company’s distant competitor introduced an alternative product, at a much lower price point, and overnight the successful company’s sales plummeted.

Had the company enjoyed strong customer relations they would have discovered far earlier what their potential problems were and been able to stave off this extremely negative occurrence.

In a very simple and efficient way, you can break down your customer relationships, get your customers to tell you what you are doing well, and what you need to do better, and refocus your efforts on your best growth areas. This will allow you to confidently go into the marketplace because you will know what your customers need and have the ability to deliver it to them.