Double Down on Marketing When Business is Slow: Why It’s Crucial

There’s an impulse to cut costs across your company when times are tough. In economic downturns, should you really continue pumping funds into your marketing efforts?

The answer is, and always will be, “Yes!”

Without marketing investment, you lose traction with existing leads and struggle to create new ones. However, if you double down on marketing, you could raise yourself out of a slump and succeed where others fail.

Keeping it Real: Maintaining Your Brand Messaging for Marketing Success

Reducing investment in marketing damages your brand. Without consistent messaging, brand recognition can fade, especially as B2B decision-makers discover your competitors instead of you.

However, it’s important not to swing fully in the opposite direction and start rebranding. During uncertain times, buyers turn to trusted, reliable brands with a consistent voice. Make sure you’ve got your brand messaging framework documented and stick to it throughout all your marketing assets.

When you’re confident about your brand, you can save money by utilizing digital channels like social media and your blog. Repurpose content and link your efforts, sending Facebook visitors to your blog or Instagram viewers to your product page.

Create affordable discounts and offers to incentivize new clients. Don’t give your stuff away for free — that’s no way to boost your bottom line. But you can provide trials for those on the fence and cut-rate subscriptions for those unsure about a long-term commitment.

Most importantly, take the time to gather feedback from existing clients and put it into action to gain new ones. Voice of Client sessions are a cost-free way to gather honest, actionable insights.

Key Attributes of Companies That Make It Through Uncertain Times

Here’s what successful B2B service providers who survive have in common:

1. They’re agile and adaptable — they’re not afraid to pivot when something isn’t working.

2. They track key metrics like engagement, client satisfaction, conversion rates, and ROI — when these fall or fail to meet goals, they use their business intelligence (BI) tools to understand why.

3. They’re open to new ideas — great marketing leaders should listen to their teams and vice versa.

Robert Rose says you can’t build a new airplane while trying to fly one, but you can upgrade your airplane factory. In other words, utilize the resources you already have to make changes — take an audit of your marketing resources and see what you can reuse and repurpose to increase client engagement.

Proof That Doubling Down Works

How do we know it works? Because we’ve helped our clients achieve success in tough times over and over by helping them invest wisely in the right marketing channels. Even during the pandemic, we talked clients through ways to stay relevant and keep their audiences engaged. Those clients are now thriving while many who failed to double down on marketing fell by the wayside.

Final Word

When budgets are tight, look to cost-effective ways to achieve great results. A fractional CMO can be the alternative to a full-time marketing hire that keeps budgets flowing where they need to while realigning your marketing efforts for growth. Book a free 15-minute discovery call, tell us a little about your tech startup, and let’s see how you can keep the lights on and keep your marketing strategy on track.

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