We’ve all been wondering when the axe will fall at our next large, box down the street or our huge insurance conglomerate buddy on the corner of downtown. But in the face of adversity we should be planning for the recovery.

Those lucky enough to be left in the daily fight to take on more responsibilities and keep their positions should be driving towards a better tomorrow. And the fight needs to be taken online.

By selecting specific traditional advertising and marketing initiatives and bringing them online first, rather than the sometimes much more costly process of doing them in print, you can create a better and more responsible budget that allows for you to stay nimble and keep the energy levels up.

How nimble you become is all about process and the understanding of how online media is supposed to take shape. A solid strategy that reaches a wider audience and the ability to reuse information are the most immediate benefits you get when you create the right online campaign.

Online retail circulars still have to be designed and published in PDF and then converted to a Flash-based preview. However, if you were to take the same media and design elements you use for the circular and place them into a reusable environment (database feeding to XML, CSS, xHTML, Flash), you have a much more efficient process and one that creates a better user experience.

Another way to increase revenue is to start a small mobile effort. For small businesses, it’s easier to capitalize on the mobile market since their product lines are usually smaller and can be changed easily to meet new needs.

For example: A small business offering ten products should think about slowly taking their product line online and allowing for mobile purchases. It’s not the most inexpensive idea on the road map, but it could turn out to have the most positive financial impact.

Rethinking our plans amidst a struggling economy is what separates the success from the failure. Prepare for the recovery, don’t wallow in the recession. Take the time and the measures you need to be successful and create the environment you want.

During the height of the Great Depression, Pierce-Arrow, known for producing cars for the high and mighty (including Presidents and dignitaries) offered a $10,000 car known as the Silver Arrow. It was the last car that Pierce-Arrow ever produced.

Today, Tesla rolls out the first production electric-powered car for a cool $109,000 (which can go up to a well-equipped $125,000).

The difference?

Tesla is fore fronting the next wave of political lobbyist haters by presenting something that, while no doubt priced to recoup $40 Million for the investors and R&D costs, will have a significant impact on the future of car production and fossil fuel dependency.

Or will it?

Many have tried, including the aforementioned Pierce-Arrow, to build a car that doesn’t follow standards. The new wave of “green” will offer chances for us to save our environment (if it’s not already too late) and give the consumer a reason to fight the sheer crutch that is fossil fuels.

In the next year, Tesla promises to begin production on a five passenger family sedan with enough of a charge to go about 200 miles before having to stop and get a “refill”. Experts say that’s enough to fuel a trip to work and back and possibly stop for some groceries.

Support or Death

The key to the success of Tesla and other like car companies will be in the country’s ability to build an infrastructure that can sustain and maintain a balance of outgoing (50 more years?) fossil fuel depots and electricity charge stations.

I hope that like other technologies, the advancement of electric transportation becomes affordable enough to make it a viable option in the near future. If Tesla is successful, expect every car company to force their hands in the market and also expect to see tens of thousands in production in the next 15 years.

May 5, 1961

One last note: The irony should not be lost on technologists, who will more than likely remember May 5, 1961, as the date Alan Shepard became the first U.S. man in space. His flight lasted only 15 minutes. Let’s hope the Tesla and its new brand have a much longer time line.