The thought of an economic downturn is scary but it also presents an opportunity for many brands.
Some of the biggest household names actually started during a recession like Slack, Groupon, Air BnB, WhatsApp, Instagram and Uber.
So what should your strategy be with marketing during a recession and where do Promotional Products fit into the mix?
Plan for the long term, survive the short term
Say it with us. Recessions don’t last forever.
The common knee-jerk reaction whenever an economic downturn hits is to gut marketing budgets and place freezes on spending.
And while it is a good thing to contain costs, cutting them indiscriminately could be harming your long-term performance. Competitors who maintain their marketing budgets will happily take the unguarded market share left on the table and run with it.
Historical analysis of the GFC and other recessions has revealed that brands that accelerated profitability during a recession maintained that momentum afterwards.
Understand how customer habits change
Understanding your customers is marketing 101.
Empathising with your customers and their change of habits will be key to creating an effective strategy during uncertain times.
Rather than segmenting by age, location etc. consider grouping their psychological state:
- Slam on the breaks
- Pained but patient
- Comfortably well off
- Live for today
See the table below about how these different segments’ buying patterns typically respond to certain product categories.
This table offers some ideas to target each of these segments. Even when purchases are eliminated from a category awareness advertising is still recommended.
Where branded merch fits into the mix
Branded merchandise has many applications and offers some of the lowest costs per impression of any marketing channel.
They can be scaled to meet budget requirements and are effective at keeping an organisation top of mind when the time comes to making a purchase decision.
It also gives your organisation a sense of personability and conveys corporate stability. But like any promotional product campaign, it’s important to choose products that resonate with your target market and be purposeful.
Given tight budgets, corporate gifting may also be more appreciated than a standard cash bonus.
A study done at a university library found that workers who received a water bottle were more productive than those receiving money of the same value.
It is theorised that the act of carefully choosing a gift was a representation that employers or managers cared and this might be responsible for the increased productivity.
Summing Up
Cutting marketing unnecessarily during a recession or uncertainty is like trying to save money on car maintenance during a road trip.
Just like a car needs regular upkeep to run smoothly a brand needs marketing efforts to keep it visible and relevant, especially during uncertain times.
That’s not to say your marketing budget doesn’t need to be looked at and tweaked. It’s just a reminder to not sacrifice the long term because of short-term fear.
Historical data suggests brand awareness and share of voice or critical during uncertain times which is one of the areas in which promotional merchandise shines in your overall marketing mix.
Contact us today at 1300 303 717 to speak with a branded merchandise expert who can work together with you to create merchandise that will keep your brand top of mind.
