Quick Marketing Ideas To Help You Seize The Day

It looks like we may be heading for a recession… thank goodness!

Don’t get me wrong. Technically, we’re not there yet. But the global financial crisis and the associated credit crunch have brought an end to the period of easy credit that in recent years has been the bedrock of rapid rises in house prices and consumer confidence. It’s a New World. A New Order.

Many tourism business operators are anxious about the future. But is it really time to lie down in a darkened room and hope for better times? Or is there money to be made?

Getting rich suddenly gets easier

Advertisers often reconsider what to do with marketing budgets when facing the prospect of financial challenges.

Yet according to Advertising Perceptions, an online survey of 2,047 marketing executives in October 2008 pegged 47.6% of them with plans to increase advertising budgets.

The survey also found that over 30% actually planned to cut back on marketing. Big mistake!

Take a look at the lessons of history

  • Companies that had higher sales and net income during the recession of 1974-75 didn’t touch advertising budgets. What’s more, they also beat non-advertisers in the two years after the recession ended.
  • According to McGraw-Hill, companies that increased advertising budgets during the 1981 recession trounced competitors not just during the downturn, but for three years following.
  • Kellogg pushed their adverts through the Great Depression in the late 1920’s. Guess who dominated the cereal market for the next 50 years?
  • Stanley Tools launched its biggest ad campaign during the 1974 recession. Their consumer product division took off. They grew at twice the rate of competitors every year thereafter.
  • In recessions of 1949, ‘54, ‘58, and ‘61, companies tracked for ad spending cutbacks saw sales and profits fall off. Those who kept ad budgets, saw profits increase… and kept an edge in the years that followed.
  • Consumer spending has increased during every post-World War II recession, according to the Advertising Association.

Bottom Line

A lot of mind space opens up when recessions hit. Competing marketing messages grow quiet. But consumers still need solutions.

Translation

THEY'RE STILL WILLING TO BUY!!


QUICK IDEAS

Here are some QUICK IDEAS to help you craft sales messages and marketing strategy to seize the day

LOOK CONSISTENT: Now more than ever, emphasise reliability and quality. Hammer hard on your product’s core values.

REWARD LOYALTY: Contact core customers often during crisis. They’ll give you the bulk of your bookings.

INNOVATE: Positioning new products might be easier (and less costly) in tough times.

CUT COSTS: Now might be a good time to negotiate better deals on printing prices, energy supplies, food and more.

GO PUBLIC: That is, get your name in the press. Build brand by sponsoring events, stirring the media, etc.

CHARGE ENOUGH: Don’t be afraid to charge for good products and services. Just make a good value argument in your offer copy.

Take advantage of the opportunities in rough economic times. They may not last forever.

So there you go... that was then, this is now. But aside from the dated news references, I'm confident you’ll be able to take those survival strategies to the bank. No matter what’s approaching on the storm front.

Maybe I'm wrong. I hope I am. But even if I'm not, don’t worry. Lulls don’t last forever. And they can make you stronger, too.

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