Do you feel good when you can confidently proclaim ‘I was right’?!
For me, that feeling is an affirmation that the values I hold are the right ones, and are shared by peers I respect above me. Covid 19 has brought one of those values to light.
That value is my belief that marketing or advertising is one of the best things you can do in a recession.
You see, during a recession, many companies look to make savings, and one of the first things to go, or be reduced, is the marketing and advertising budget. This is fantastic news for the companies and brands left advertising. There are less ads, so your advertising shines through. People hear about you, not your competition, and your brand awareness goes up. When they are ready to buy, they go with you because you’re there!
Then there are the financial benefits of advertising in a recession where your money goes a lot further. You can hammer deals to get a better price, or more space / spots, or both!
Bottom line is you need to tell people you are open for business and what problem you solve.
With radio stations I’m working with, we’ve been running specific ‘Back to Business’ campaigns and the results are very positive. Existing clients who were on-the-edge are returning. My pitch about advertising in a recession is also bringing in new clients.
I spoke about this on a podcast in France and it resonated there, which in itself, demonstrates the power of podcasting. The podcast was targeted at business owners and how to come back from the Covid 19 lockdown. Our topic on radio advertising really hit home with that audience and the radio station has several wins as a result of that one podcast.
Then I listened to Richard Cowell MD of Red C Research speak at a recent IAB Connect event where he confirmed all that I have said above. He backed it up with research from the last financial crash which showed that brands who pulled back on advertising saw a significant decline in brand image. It took nearly five years to get it back.
Richard says today we are in a situation where higher media consumption, less noise and greater attention is leading to better recall. The bottom line; brands who keep advertising will gain substantially from doing so.
This is why you must keep marketing in a recession. If budgets don’t allow radio or tv spend, consider podcasts, or Google Ads or Facebook. Just get out there and keep marketing.
In a years’ time you can email me and tell me ‘I was right’ 😉