Marketing in the Time of Crisis

Although CLEARANCE SALE comes in at a very close second, FINANCIAL CRISIS seems to be the two words causing the biggest stir in the market these days. In fact, the change in the economic climate is so widespread and prominent that it has even beaten out the weather for the title of top conversation starter. Times get tough, executives get scared, budgets get slashed and marketers get frustrated. Sad but true, marketing is often the first budget to be cut by companies in preservation mode.

But let’s examine the market. Today’s consumers are extremely savvy. They know what they want and they know how and where to get it. This empowered position coupled with an economic downturn equates to smart shoppers who are even smarter with their money.

So what does this mean for retailers and service providers? It means that this is not a time to be hasty. Let’s not panic. Let’s not overreact. Even if things are or are destined to be as bad as you think, let’s think about what would happen if you stop marketing and advertising all together.

The result is pretty obvious – unless your company is at the top of the brand food chain, you will likely fall to the sidelines of memory. Think about it, if your competitors are pulling back, isn’t it the opportune time for your company to invest in a strategic marketing initiative to win market share?

Companies feeling the sting of the financial crisis need to recognise that there are cost-effective ways to reach and engage their target market and measure the sales impact of these initiatives. The answer lies online.

Concentrating your efforts on email marketing, online advertising, social media, video advertising and keyword searches not only saves your company considerable amounts of money over traditional mediums, but with measurable results and web analytics you will be able to adjust your campaign regularly to take advantage of the areas with the most ROI.

For those companies with an ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ view on traditional marketing, why not invest in a pilot campaign to see how online can work for you? Try replacing one or two of your weekly brand-focussed TVC spots with some email marketing and spend more time on your social media content. Invest in some SEO and SEM and do some social media monitoring to see what people are actually saying about your brand.  Reach out to your consumers in a relevant way, on their own terms, and the more personalised the better. Be the one to provide them with the information they are seeking when they are doing their research online.

Put your consumer hat on for a moment. These days we all seem to be prioritising the ‘need to haves’ rather than indulging in the ‘nice to haves’. Nevertheless, special occasions don’t just disappear. The desire to treat ourselves still exists. Accidents and unanticipated events certainly occur from time to time. The tendency to do our research about future purchases is definitely a reality. All in all, markets rise and fall, but customer need is steady. Be the provider that stands out.

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