Developing A Marketing Strategy for The Recession

Developing a marketing strategy during the COVID-19 pandemic seems to be a common concern. There seems to be a large amount of uncertainty about what brands need to do or prepare for. The closest historical comparison to the current situation would be the 2008 recession, but digital marketing was nowhere near as powerful then as it is now.

Luckily in 2008, online spending only dropped by 2% while other forms of purchasing decreased by much larger margins. Maintaining a marketing strategy during this time is important, despite the looming recession. Here are some ways to maintain your marketing strategy throughout a recession:

What is a recession?

A recession refers to a time when there are two-quarters of negative economic growth. Businesses need to assess the extent of the recession to determine how bad the recession will be and how difficult it could be to recover.

At present, economists are struggling to predict the severity of the expected recession, since these circumstances are different from any others in history.

Businesses act as micro-economies and are likely to mirror the economic downturn in their own financial records. Therefore, businesses need to plan and implement strategies to better cushion themselves in times of the recession.

What is the role of marketing?

Marketing can play two critical roles when it comes to pulling a business through an economic slowdown. Marketing can soften the blow of the economic downturn by reducing the slowdown of your business’s growth. It can also speed up the recession by accelerating your business’s upturn when the economy re-opens.

At the start of the pandemic, many businesses reduced their online marketing spend, but this has since reversed and marketing has returned to normal. In the time of global lockdown, online marketing is a sure way to reach potential clients and continue to make sales.

How do you develop your recession marketing plan?

Your marketing strategy during a recession should consist of three main parts. The first part is implemented during the downturn, while the second part is used during the upturn, and the third part is implemented when markets re-open and business accelerates once more.

Softening the downfall is the first stage. Currently, the first stage – economic downturn – is far from being over. However, changing your marketing strategy to include brand-building, or aligning with a cause are great ways to maintain your marketing process at the moment. Now is when you should remove funding from any irrelevant campaigns to appeal to the current economic climate.

Greenfly can help you build brand loyalty through content collaboration with your staff and ambassadors, ensuring that consumers are receiving relevant and engaging marketing campaigns.

Shortening the duration of negative economic growth can make sure your brand is at the forefront of customers’ minds as soon as the economy picks up. Continued advertising throughout the recession period can set the stage for growth once the economy improves.

This is also a good time to try something new. Since many businesses are not fully operational during the lockdown, you are relying on interaction and engagement. This means return on investment is measured through post interactions rather than sales, and you can determine which advertising strategies are most effective.

Riding the acceleration is the final step, and can help you pick up on any losses made during the economic slowdown. Getting ahead of your competitors will require a larger investment, but if you have set up your previous two steps correctly, it should not be a big problem. Increasing your marketing expenses can help you grow your brand when the economy picks up.

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