A Guide to Marketing During a Recession

A recession has caused the economy to take a hard dive into negative territory. It looks as if it is going to be a while before things start picking up again for the companies that weather this storm. While many entrepreneurs are panicking, it is important to never let the state of the economy get you down. Every market goes through cycles, and up and down markets are the norm, not the exception. The trick is to know what mode to be in when the market is going through tough times. During a recession is when your marketing and advertising efforts must be properly optimized for best results. This way you can have better than average sales volume both during and after a recession. Here are some tips to help your company get more out of its recession-based marketing strategies.

Leverage your social media.

Always remember that there are a lot of free and cheap advertising opportunities online. Having a strong web presence on social media sites is always a great way to get your company, its brand, its products and its services before new customers. Reaching out to people on your social media sites is a great way to do a little much needed incentivized marketing. Just because there is a recession going on does not mean that consumers do not enjoy a coupon or offer they cannot easily resist. Whether you are employing animated posts to grab the attention of visitors to your social media pages, or you are posting informative, lead generating article links that attract traffic to check out exciting products, it is important that your company is always providing something through social media avenues to wet the consumer’s whistle to keep your sales momentum going. Remember, you always want the customers attention locked on the quality online content and incentives your company is ever ready to provide.

Send Thoughtful Post Cards

Sometimes it really is the thought that counts. Nowhere is this truer than in marketing your business. One way to let clients and loyal customers know you care about them on a personal level is to send them an eye catching postcard during times when you know things are rough for everyone. Make absolutely certain your message is both sincere and truly fits the occasion. The more authentic the correspondence, the likely better the response will be. Customers come to appreciate those companies who show their love and gratitude in a variety of different ways as it is the little things like a nice postcard that can help to forge business relationships with customers and clients that last for years.

Sending Care packages to Previous Clients

You have many important clients who have done business with your company in the past. It never hurts to remind these customers why your company is worth their loyalty and support. By sending a thoughtful care package that reminds them of how important they are to your company, this will go much further than you may realize. When you do nice things for important clients, they will sing your company’s praises to their friends, family and colleagues. There is no better marketing than a loyal customer who cannot say enough good things about the excellent way they are treated by your business. Just remember that any package you send must exude quality, not come off as cheesy and cheap.

Get Involved in Community Events

Community events are an excellent way to get your brand in front of countless individuals who may not yet know about your business. If you ever question if it is a good strategy to advertise and market at these events, just spend some time looking at the results of the major corporations who do market their brands and products at these events. Major companies would not waste their advertising budget at community events if it did not turn a solid profit. This strategy works even better if your company is actively working with athletes and celebrities who wear your logo in the spotlight while attending these events. Consumers like to use the same products and services as the celebrities they follow as fans, and your business deserves a piece of that action to help carry it through a recession and beyond.

Start a Charity or Join a Charitable Event

As with viral marketing strategies, getting people active in charity work has a similar effect. People will spend money in support of movements and companies they are passionate about even during a recession. If consumers believe in the mission your company is promoting, then you will gain their support both vocally and financially. This is why it can be lucrative for a business to start a worthy charity or to join a charitable event. Try to remember, all good advertising and marketing wins the hearts and the minds of the consumer first and foremost. Investing in that side of the marketing process will inevitably lead to greater sales potential down the road.

Coadvertise With Relevant Businesses

When two businesses join forces in a collaborative marketing strategy, this approach can be pure magic. People like it when businesses come together—especially if this collaboration gives rise to something the market perceives as a huge win for consumers. This is especially true at the local level when businesses actively help price shop for previous clients on landscaping, general contracting, refinance, etc. Each business in the marketing effort is essentially helping drive business between them in a positive, noncompetitive way. If the quality of the incentives matches the positive feel of the marketing approach, this can effectively generate massive sales even when the economy is not doing so well.

A Recession Sale

Never underestimate the power of a good sale. Especially during a recession, people are actively on the lookout for every sale they can find where significant savings can be obtained. In fact, if more companies pushed high incentive discount sales during a sluggish economy, the economy would not remain sluggish for long. It just makes good sense that if money is tight, you have to meet customers at a price point they can financially justify paying to make the sale happen. A recession is a prime opportunity for you to give a little to get a lot in return. The sale you have now is an investment in customers who will continue to do business with your company even as market conditions show improvement down the road.

Discount Incentive by Referral Program

If you want to double your business during a recession to build momentum, then offering incentives to customers that bring referrals your way is another great strategy to put into action. All they have to do is refer one other potential customer your way, and they get a discount on certain products or services. This strategy will inevitably get people through the door of your business that would not otherwise enter on their own. The real power of this marketing strategy is that you are leveraging the relationship your customers have with their friends to ensure their friends will want to do business with you also. In many ways, this kind of marketing strategy has the potential to do far better for drumming up additional business than standard product and service ads tend to bring to the table. To sweeten the deal even further, you can offer an even deeper discount to a person who gets their friend to actually purchase your product or service. This way the referral is far more profitable, because a loyal customer will have a far easier time talking their friend or colleague into buying something than your sales reps will. Remember, in that situation, the trust is already there. You just have to provide the opportunity so the deal can happen.