The last two years have seen some of the toughest economic conditions in recent memory. A once-in-a-generation pandemic strain on the global supply chain and widespread social unrest have all taken their toll on businesses large and small.

And yet, in the face of all of this turmoil, there are companies that are not only surviving but thriving. How are they doing it?

The answer, in part, is marketing.

There’s no doubt that the economic landscape is shifting rapidly. In fact, more than 60% of CEOs see a recession on the horizon for their local economy. The next 12 – 18 months will be pivotal in determining the health of businesses around the world.

But whether we’re headed for a recession or not, marketing can be a powerful tool for driving growth. Believe it or not, marketing can help you overcome economic stressors and build a vital and robust recession-proof business.

Let’s take a look.

Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Cut Your Marketing Budget

In 2020, we saw budgets slashed dramatically in response to the pandemic. But while it may be tempting to do the same in response to an economic downturn, it’s important to resist the urge.

In fact, studies have shown that companies that maintain or increase their marketing spend during a recession actually outperform their competitors when the economy recovers.

Although a lower marketing budget can give you short-term relief, it will ultimately do more harm than good in the long run. A recession is a perfect time to ramp up your marketing efforts and steal market share from your competitors.

The key is to be strategic about how you spend your marketing budget.

Here are a few tips!

Get creative – Be open to trying new things and thinking outside the box. A recession is a perfect time to experiment with new marketing channels and strategies.

Diversify your marketing mix – Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Make sure you’re investing in a variety of marketing activities so you can reach your customers where they are online.

Here Are the Three Marketing Outcomes You NEED
to Grow in a Downturn

1. Drive top-line growth

In tough economic times, it’s more important than ever to focus on top-line growth. Marketing can help you do this in a number of ways, including:

• Generating new leads – Use content marketing, SEO, and social media to attract new leads who may be interested in your product or service.
• Converting leads into customers – Optimize your website for conversions and use targeted email marketing and retargeting campaigns to turn leads into customers.
• Upselling and cross-selling to existing customers – Use targeted marketing campaigns to upsell and cross-sell additional products and services to your existing customer base.

2. Increase efficiency and effectiveness

In any economy, it’s important to be efficient and effective with your marketing spending. Marketing automation can help you do this by:

• Streamlining your marketing processes – Automating repetitive tasks like email marketing, social media, and lead generation can free up your time so you can focus on more strategic tasks.
• Improving your marketing campaigns – Testing and tracking your campaigns will help you identify what’s working and what’s not, so you can adjust your strategy accordingly.
• Reducing your customer acquisition costs – Automating your marketing can help you attract and convert leads at a lower cost per lead.

3. Improve customer lifetime value

Increasing customer lifetime value should be a top priority for any business, in good times and bad. Marketing can help you do this by:

• Building brand loyalty – Creating a strong emotional connection with your customers will help keep them coming back, even when times are tough.
• Improving customer retention – Use targeted marketing campaigns to keep your existing customers engaged and reduce churn.
• Increasing customer spend – Use upselling and cross-selling strategies to sell more to your existing customers.

Between the threat of a recession and a tight labor market, it’s not only difficult to find experienced marketers, it may be tough to feel comfortable adding full-time headcount to your team with so much uncertainty.

The Fractional Marketing model delivers the strategy and implementation you need, without the commitment of hiring.

Reduced overhead, specialized skillsets, fresh perspective and the ability to scale quickly … you can get all the work you need done, at a fraction of the cost.

Unlike consultants, Fractional Marketing Leaders can develop the marketing plan, plus bring the team to implement it.

Next week we’ll deliver Part 2 of this blog but if you can’t wait,
reach out to us today for more insights and to see if fractional is right for your organization!