Should You Cut Your Marketing Budget During a Recession?

The sky is falling and we are in an economic downturn. It’s on the news and it is in the papers. Everywhere you turn you hear of the downward spiral of economy. You think to yourself, it's time to cut that marketing budget. Signs of recession are all around. Let's start slashing costs and marketing is the first to go. Makes sense, right? No! Here is why.

Don't you dare cut your marketing budget. That is one of the first mistakes businesses make during times of economic crisis.

It's time to get smarter about your marketing dollar and spend it to bring results. Sounds good doesn't it? However, you ask - how do you do it? If ever customer intelligence was important it's now.

The key is to look at your marketing dollars as an investment not an expense. Use the customer knowledge that you have and implement SMART marketing during these times of financial distress.

SMART marketing consists of the following:

S - Strategize
M - Maintain market spend
A - Assess and allocate the budget
R - Research your customer thoroughly
T - Target and reach out to them

Stand fast during this time. You should look at your marketing spend as an investment during this time and not an expense. Companies have survived difficult times and have come out strong. An informative study done by Penn State’s Smeal College of Business entitled Research: Proactive Marketing During Recession proves all of this. All business owners should read this article. In this study they remind us of companies that weathered the storm and succeeded. A few examples include:

- Procter and Gamble - During the Great Depression they pushed Ivory soap.
- Intel - In 1990-1991 during economic difficulty they pushed out the campaign "Intel Inside".
- Wal-mart - Walmart launched their "Every Day Low Prices" campaign in 2000-2001.

Even when there are difficult times well-positioned companies can in fact survive and thrive in them. It truly is about being SMART and taking marketing seriously now more than ever.

A major key is to know your consumer. Know them inside and out. Know what they think and know where they are. Know how these economic times are hitting them. Create your message around that pain. Reach out to them. Look and revise your product line if necessary. Look at developing lower cost solutions if possible. Be flexible, but at the same time be aware and always assessing.

Consider this - if you in fact cut your marketing budget, how will your consumers find you? You have severed your business lifeline and future hope of potential growth. Perhaps you have a secret and can reach that success without marketing. Success can happen and it can be done, but marketing is involved.