Recessions and Their Relationship to Marketing

While a debate rages on as to whether the U.S. is currently in a recession, to a large extent that debate is a moot point if you're in and/or serve clients in one of the areas that are customarily impacted by a recession.

Along with finance and most other industries except consumer staples (e.g. the things that you need to live on a daily basis), marketing and PR certainly sees a big impact from recessions. Most notably, the industry contracted for a multi-year period following the 2001 recession that was exacerbated by the terrorist attacks.

Generally speaking, the reason marketing tends to suffer during a downturn is businesses tend to take the view that it makes sense to cut every cost possible that's not essential to the daily running of the business. In some cases, this allows them to avoid layoffs or taking other painful steps -- at least for a period of time. While this strategy may make some sense from that standpoint, in the long run, it may cause substantial damage and/or delay a recovery.

To fully understand why, perhaps putting things in simple terms may fit the bill. While effective marketing almost always delivers results, people tend to associate marketing with success during good times but view it only as a cost item in bad times. This mentality was summarized in a good quote I saw recently that said "Go ahead and cut your marketing budget. That's like saying I'll put some logs on the fire when it warms up in here."

That may be simplifying things a bit, but the attitude the quote conveys makes a lot of sense. Broadly speaking, if a business isn't getting returns from its marketing program, it's not marketing and the expense of it that's to blame, but rather the design and/or implementation of the plan.

These factors can be alleviated by picking strategic partners that are good fit, both from a tactical and personal standpoint. Make sure both sides agree on the scope of the program, its goals, cost and other important factors. Next, companies need to realize that a marketing effort is in some ways like a living organism; it's something that will take different forms as a company reaches different stages and/or has changing needs. A good consultant will help you reshape your plan as needs require.

In closing, since PR firms are a vital portion of the marketing equation, we've got to do a better job of thinking of and properly positioning ourselves as strategic partners that deliver value. Firms that can successfully do that won't just be seen as a cost item when things get tough; rather, they'll be seen as a value-added partner that can help a business improve its recognition, generate valuable sales leads and stand out from the competition. These are all vitally important to any business, especially in a tough economic climate.