If you’re a marketer or creative professional, you’ve most likely been keeping up on the state of the global economy. But just in case you need a little catching up: the outlook is bleak.
In fact, some experts predict that a ‘long and ugly’ recession will last well into 2024
In such challenging times, businesses tend to scale back on marketing and advertising budgets, but research has proven that this is the wrong approach.
Instead of slashing costs and halting crucial marketing activity, businesses should focus on staying relevant, maximising efficiency, and aligning marketing and sales strategies.
Some companies, in fact, use a recession to rise the ranks of relevancy and rebrand themselves.
Samsung did just that in the 2008 recession when it decided to rebrand itself as an innovation company. Previous to the recession, it was ranked number 21 in global brand revenue. Today it ranks number 6.
Also, focusing on ROMI (return on marketing investment) is now more important than ever, and is a tried and tested way to achieve success during an economic downturn.
Let’s delve into some key strategies that will help you and your company ride the waves of a recession and end up on top.
Staying Relevant While Being As Efficient As Possible
In a recession, businesses must prioritise their marketing efforts, not slash them.
To stay relevant while being as efficient as possible, it is essential to assess and refine marketing strategies.
Here are a few approaches to consider:
Targeted Audience
Instead of casting a wide net, focus on reaching the right audience.
Look into your customers’ data (with consent of course) to identify your target market and allocate your resources accordingly.
The point is to avoid wasting resources on campaigns that don't resonate with your core audience.
Digital Marketing
Digital marketing offers cost-effective solutions to reach a broader audience. Not only that, it is the main way customers and buyers assess their options and engage with brands nowadays.
So many platforms exist to help you market your brand while minimising costs, such as Instagram, Tik Tok, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Youtube and more.
Email and EDM marketing also remains one of the most popular ways to market for less money.
Integrate search engine optimisation (SEO), and content creation to effectively engage with potential customers.
Leverage Marketing Automation
Automating repetitive marketing tasks not only saves time, but also eliminates unnecessary labour on the part of your employees.
You can even schedule when certain emails are sent out or specific posts are made, according to higher traffic times.
It also allows for better resource allocation. Implementing marketing automation tools can help streamline workflows, improve lead nurturing, and increase overall marketing efficiency.
Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI)
Return on marketing investment is the key metric to pay attention to during a recession. But what is it exactly?
ROMI measures revenue generated from marketing efforts relative to the resources invested.
Analysing this metric helps marketers test if an investment is feasible before proceeding, establish benchmarks based on actual data and evaluate results at the end of a campaign.
To maximise your ROMI results, it’s worth focusing on the following strategies:
1. Focus on High-Impact Campaigns
Identify marketing campaigns that have historically performed well and yielded the highest returns.
Channel your resources toward these proven approaches, in essence, stick with what you know instead of spending money on less tested tactics.
2. Monitor Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Analysing KPIs can give you big insights into what’s working and what’s not.
Metrics such as customer acquisition costs, customer lifetime value, conversion rates, and customer retention rates are going to help you know what marketing strategies are most effective and allocate your funds accordingly.
Maximising Your Connections and Aligning Sales with Marketing
During a recession, it becomes even more important for marketing and sales teams to work closely together.
Especially when it comes to communication, both departments need to share market insights, customer feedback, and campaign performance so as to constantly be on the same page and form a more collaborative approach.
Further, consider establishing a feedback loop and a customer relationship management (CRM) software so both parties have access to the same information and can develop a cohesive path forward together.
Repurposing Content and Being Efficient With Your Resources
One strategy that is sure to bring you more revenue is repurposing your content, rather than creating more and more new content, which can be expensive and inefficient.
But how can one reuse content and not be redundant or repetitive? The answer is to create content with intentionality and a forward-thinking mindset.
Further, take advantage of your longform content, like a large article or blog post, or a long, 30-minute podcast. Break your content apart into several Linkedin posts or five-part podcast episodes, in order to squeeze the most out of the content you already have, and still stay relevant.
Further, be efficient with your resources. This includes retaining your highly experienced employees instead of hiring unqualified staff, even if initially it may seem more budget friendly.
It also means leaning more on technology to help you cut costs but maintain quality, as well as protecting your existing customer base.
Account-Based Marketing (ABM)
Account-based marketing (ABM) is often associated with larger organisations, but its principles can be applied by businesses of all sizes.
ABM focuses on personalised marketing strategies tailored to specific accounts or target companies, and the strategy is an extremely helpful one to adopt during a recession.
By concentrating your marketing efforts on nurturing specific accounts, your marketing will become more personalised, thereby creating more trust amongst your clientele.
Final Thoughts
During challenging economic times, businesses that adapt their marketing strategies to do more with less will be better positioned to navigate the recession and emerge stronger in the long run.
By implementing the strategies we’ve mentioned, you too can overcome the challenges posed by a recession and maintain your organisation’s competitive edge in the marketplace. Driving growth and success during tough times is actually possible, so don’t let a bleak outlook rain on your parade.
Get started now and stay ahead of the game.