3 Reasons why Marketing is crucial right now
It feels like we’ve heard it all before. In times of crisis, often the first thing to get cut is the Marketing budget, or worse, the Marketing Team. And we totally get it, it frees up some budget to be crucially used elsewhere.
When times are tough, there’s two important things businesses need to do. Cut costs and get more sales. The issue is that you can’t always control your sales, but you can control your cost cutting. And unfortunately, so many businesses choose the cost cutting over the new sales.
It seems a rookie mistake really. When you need more sales, you need all the help you can get. What’s the first thing you should turn to? Marketing, of course!
We’ve all heard the Henry Ford quote, “A man who stops advertising to save money is like a man who stops a clock to save time”. It’s still very relevant in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic here in 2020.
I’ve written a quick rundown of the 3 best reasons to keep marketing throughout the hard times.
1. Trust is everything
So, what makes people stay with a brand they have used before? Research has shown time and time again that the number one reason is trust. In times of turmoil, especially when people across the globe are troubled by fear of the virus, all other values come secondary to trust.
When you cut your marketing budget this is where you run into trouble. Our memories are fleeting and our customers need constant reminders, so stopping or reducing marketing activity quickly begins to erode trust – and that’s the last thing your brand needs.
2. People are at home and consuming marketing more than ever
While a large proportion of the population are spending much of their time at home, they have more time to browse, but they also have more time to receive your marketing messages. Reaching into people’s private conscious space is not easy but if you don’t take their ‘share of brain space’, some other brand will.
There’s lots of ways you can remind your loyal customers, and even your prospects about the relevance of your brand. At the moment, social media is King. Engagement and impressions are higher than ever as people spend more time on their social networks. Social Media advertising can be a cheap and efficient way to improve your reach.
Putting your brand directly in their hands also doesn’t have to be complicated. Have you considered a ‘Work from home’ pack, or a ‘Home hygiene pack’- a carefully curated selection of useful branded merchandise sent directly to your contacts home says that you’re thinking of them and their safety, while also working as a great reminder of you and your brand?
3. Long term goals can’t be met with short term thinking
As with every period of financial strain, all purchases are of course being far more closely evaluated. Sadly, the evaluation often looks at short-term value and stops short of the importance of the long term. The worry of being ‘left behind’ should be a big concern for any well invested brand.
Take major FTSE brands such as Pizza Hut, Amazon, Kelloggs. They occupy significant space in their respective markets over long periods of history, and they’re household names. And importantly, they always keep very active with their Marketing. Just because they’re at the top doesn’t mean they should stop.
We’ve got lots of ideas to help your brand stay on top, whether it’s clients or prospects that are your target. Browse our Ideas section, or contact us.