Imagine you're having car problems. There you are, minding your own business, happily slurping on your double-soy mocha-latte with your Bluetooth earpiece buzzing away, when the car shudders, groans, and dies. What do you do?

Why, you engage your handy Bluetooth earpiece and you call your mechanic, who dispatches a tow truck to your location, and your defunct machine is hauled away to the shop you have turned to for salvation. "Thank you, Mister Goodwrench," you might say. "Please fix this for me."

Will you then tell the mechanic what is wrong with the car? "I'm pretty sure it's the transmogrified torque conduction bearing," you say authoritatively. "My uncle used to be a mechanic, and he said the transmogrified torque conduction bearings are always the problem." Depending on his cheerful disposition, the mechanic might say something like, "Well, let me take a look at it. It isn't acting like the transmogrified torque conduction bearing…"

But you are so sure that it's a malfunctioning transmogrified torque conduction bearing that you insist the mechanic replace it. He shrugs, and does so. Happy to hear the work is done, you pick up the car, turn the key, and it still doesn't run. "What in Frosted Flakes is going on here? How come my car doesn't run?"

"You didn't let me fix it," the mechanic says.

Uncertain times breed uncertainty, and it takes confidence in your core product to make the right decisions in difficult times. Although the economy is looking slightly better, there are still lingering signs of instability. Nearly all of our clients, and even our own agency, are doing more with less. Good businesses have streamlined their operations, reviewed their core marketing advantages, and have made some tough decisions to stay competitive.

Nothing is sacred – every detail is subject to review. This is a healthy process that, while sometimes painful, can yield a stronger company in the long run. However, in the heat of the moment, it can be difficult to stay focused on what is working and what isn't. Change for the sake of change is the antithesis of efficiency.

Wilson Binkley Advertising and Marketing knows that although the economic climate has changed, the core principles of marketing have not. Every client still needs to concentrate on the fabled "Four Ps" of their operations: product, price, placement (distribution) and promotion. The advertising is derived from the marketing, not the other way around. We need to identify the unique selling benefits of a product. We need to know what our products strengths and weaknesses are, and work hard to find new opportunities. This stuff hasn't changed in 100 years of marketing.

Advertising, on the other hand, has changed radically. Media usage and options are evolving daily, and it's more challenging than ever to find efficient, targeted media for any company's specific audience. Good agencies stay current with the latest trends, and apply the same critical analyses to every option available. Wilson Binkley has never recommended media based on emotional appeal or fads; instead, its more important than ever to make certain your advertising dollars are being used efficiently.

Our trade is a strange one, and we are often asked in social settings what we do for a living. When we answer "advertising," the response is usually a blank stare of incomprehension or the inevitable "oh, you sell radio commercials?" However, we are experts at what we do – we live, breathe, sleep and eat advertising and marketing. We are the experts. All a company has to do is let us fix it…