Simon Paul Thurston

During a recession, there is generally a reduction in discretionary spending by businesses, as well as of course consumers.

And one of the first things to often be reduced is, you’ve guessed it, a marketing budget. Hmm, big, big mistake!

Now I know you’re possibly all thinking “Well he would say that, wouldn’t he?” but let me explain why I feel it is a huge mistake.

First of all, pretty much every business will be thinking the same way, so by continuing to market your business relatively aggressively you could pick up additional business from your marketing budget cutting competitors.

Secondly, the single biggest challenge in a recession is getting people to spend money and if you’re not advertising special deals, services, packages – whatever it is you’re doing, you’re not going to bring in the level of sales that you need.

I’m not talking about throwing silly money at advertising (in fact, this is something I would NEVER advise, let alone in a recession) but strategic, targeted and focused campaigns with a specific goal in mind.

A recession can sometimes help a business

Strange statement some of you may think eh? Well, let me tell you that in the leaner times, a business often has to adapt much more stringent and focused tactics and strategies – and these can often set a good tone for future business.

To succeed in a recession, every part of your marketing campaign should be accountable so that you know how to react in a down market, to get maximum returns for all the money you invest in marketing. Equally though, this should be your strategy when the good times return too. You need to test, tweak and improve everything, and know where your sales are coming from (ie: which form of advertising).

Know your unique selling proposition

Next, you have to take a look at your unique selling proposition, as this is what helps grab the attention of prospective customers. It helps differentiate you from your competitors. So if you find that your USP does not clearly tell prospects how they will benefit from using your product or services, you may end up an irrelevant commodity.

It is important that your USP be prominent, easily found and is updated in your TV, direct, mail, website and all other marketing media. In fact, before you start your new marketing campaign, you should place your USP at the forefront of your marketing campaign – this is absolutely critical to success and something that many of your competitors will NOT be doing.

Ok, so that’s it for this post. I’ll be back in a few days with some more strategies and as ever, if you have any questions then please do contact me.