Marketing & recession

How should you market during recession? Which impact has recession on marketing? Does recession mean you should cut your marketing budget?
Here are some of the questions some CEO and marketing directors might ask themselves as the United States' economy is on the edge of the "R" word. Most of the time, during difficult period of time, marketing is the first department of the company that will experience budget cuts.

To know more about the topic, you can download the report Marketing Sherpa edited. This report presents the effect expected and the decisions companies might take during this recession. Also, it gives to marketing people great tips to defend their budgets if it is en danger. Here are the main facts:

• Customer relationship prospective: Two key points on this topic. First, sales cycles are lengthening. You will therefore have to spend more time and energy on customers in order to make them buy. That is why you should focus on the quality of your relationship, especially at this time. Secondly, you should keep investing in marketing. You need to continue communicating with your customers. If it doesn't buy today, that doesn't mean it won't buy tomorrow. Also, if customers notice you are communicating less, they will understand that you are in a bad situation, and will be more reluctant to buy your stuffs.
  

• CFOs are considering the downturn as an opportunity: Most of CFOs think they should not cut back on marketing. First, when a company cuts on marketing, it is a bad sign for partners and customers that might think something goes wrong in your company. Therefore you are more likely to lose businesses and market shares. Most likely, weak actors of the market will have the same strategy, as growing companies and strong actors will increase marketing to increase dramatically market shares.  51.3% of CFOs are thinking about not changing anything or even to invest in marketing for this year. Also, CFOs love Internet & direct marketing, because it allows to show the efficiency of the campaigns and the revenues generated through the different campaigns.
  

• Small businesses and large businesses respond differently to the recession: While large business are more likely to cut marketing budgets, small businesses are seeking for growth and are looking forward to winning market shares during the recession time. 60% of marketers at largers companies and 29% of medium sized firms are expected to cut marketing budgets, whereas 13% have cut or expected cuts of small businesses.
  

• TV and radios media are likely to suffer, Internet and direct marketing campaigns will raise: TV and radios are really not adapted to recession marketing. Marketers are more likely to use Internet & direct marketing media, cheaper and also allowing to evaluate with more ease the results of the campaigns. 30% of survey respondents said they are increasing direct marketing investments this year in response to economic conditions
  

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