The power of marketing in an economic downturn

In times of economic uncertainty, it’s only natural to think about tightening the financial belt – and marketing budgets are often one of the first to hit the chopping block. Yet, this can actually be a major missed opportunity. 

In fact, history has shown that maintaining or even *boosting* marketing spend during an economic downturn often means remaining more profitable in the short term, and expediting growth once the economy recovers. 

With that in mind, we wanted to explore the power of marketing during a potential recession and why it is absolutely essential to continue investing in your marketing efforts.

Money’s tight! Why focus on marketing?

Leverage lower advertising costs

One of the key advantages of marketing during an economic downturn is that advertising costs tend to drop. This means reaching your audience at a lower cost-per-click or cost-per-impression. By taking advantage of reduced ad costs, you can stretch your marketing budget further and achieve a higher return on investment. Score!

Secure a greater share of voice

During a recession, many businesses are quick to drop their marketing spend or pull out altogether. This creates a unique opportunity for those in-the-know to slide in with powerful marketing messaging. 

With less competition in the advertising space, you’ll likely secure a greater share of voice and ultimately capture more attention. And once you’ve got it? You can leverage this attention long into the future by building and nurturing relationships, and (if you get it right) ultimately achieve greater brand loyalty and advocacy.

Maintain momentum – vvvroom!

Keeping your advertising efforts consistent means you’ll avoid losing momentum in the market. When the economy begins to recover, having an established presence and ongoing campaigns already set up will see you better positioned to take advantage of the upswing.

On the flip side? It can be more challenging, time-consuming and costly to rebuild market share from scratch if you’ve completely paused your ad campaigns – so avoid it if at all possible.

Alright, alright – I’m convinced!
So where should I focus my marketing resources?

Learn more about where to invest your time and resources to create the biggest impact on part two of this blog series, marketing with impact during a recession.