If you've been watching the news lately, you may have
noticed that the economy is in a bit of a downturn. It's
happened before and it will happen again. During these
times, smart businesses adjust their marketing strategies
to make sure they will thrive during these slumps. You do
not want to allow external circumstances to determine your
future. The key is to be strategic, savvy, and streamlined
in your campaigns.
For a well-positioned company, an economic recession should
not lead to marketing cutbacks. Any time you go into a
fearful reactive mode, you are actually moving backwards.
Instead, think of this an opportunity for you and it is a
great time to get aggressive with your marketing. Marketing
is what will make your company recession proof. Since a lot
of your competitors will be cutting back, this is your time
to really differentiate your business and strengthen your
competitive advantage.
Here are tips to help you adjust your marketing in a tough
economy:
1. Know what drives your customer in this economy. More
than ever, you must understand what drives your target
audience and how they are reacting to the current economy.
Both consumers and businesses will take more time to make a
purchasing decision and they will most likely be a hard
negotiator at the point of sale. Buyers are more willing to
hold off on making a purchase, and they will rely on the
brands that they know well. Therefore, talk to your current
customers about their challenges and what they need from
you to help them.
2. Keep an eye on your sales. This is a time for careful
monitoring and adjusting. Watch your incoming company sales
and keep an eye on your project pipeline/future income. If
you compare this to past data, you will know what is
happening before it actually occurs and you can intensify
your marketing efforts to compensate for potential
slowdowns. Now more than ever, you want to make sure that
you are marketing forward to ensure your pipeline stays
full in the coming months.
3. Differentiate yourself and reinforce your brand. When
we are in a time when fewer people are buying, competition
becomes fierce. Make sure your target audience understands
why you are different from your competitors. Let them know
why your brand is the best. Treat your best customers with
extra TLC because you want them to weather the economic
downturn with you. This is a great time to give your VIPs
extra value and incentives.
4. Don't focus on expansion right now; instead focus on
what is profitable. Now is not the best time to launch a
brand new venture. For example, if you are a chocolate bar
company, it's not a good economy for you to try out a donut
line. You don't want to risk a fall by jumping too far away
from your tried-and-true core areas. Instead, take a look
at the services and products that are most profitable for
your company and vigorously promote these.
5. Focus on relationships and value. Keep marketing your
company's value to your prospects and customers. Because
people are spending less, they want the purchases they DO
make to be of great value to them. Emphasize reliability,
durability, quality, and performance in your promotions.
Tell your customers how much you appreciate their business.
6. Ditch awareness-marketing for lead-generating
marketing. I am a proponent of building brand awareness
through advertising and promotions. But now is not the time
for traditional marketing - you can't afford to waste your
dollars on efforts that don't generate immediate business.
Instead, implement marketing that generates quality leads.
Be sure to set up tracking systems so you can effectively
monitor the results.
Remember, a recession is not the time to get gloomy.
Instead it is an opportunity for smart business owners to
differentiate their company. In a slowing economy, it is
time to maintain or even increase your marketing budget.
Stay laser focused on the activities that make your phone
ring now and in the coming months.
----------------------------------------------------
Learn marketing techniques to attract new customers quickly
in Author Wendy Maynard's free report: "Marketing
Strategies to Fill Your Pipeline" at
http://www.gomarketingmaven.com/free_report.html
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