As business owners or those with a stake in your company’s future, you know that the economy waxes and wanes. Just like the stock market, the up, and downside of every economic cycle can pose challenges. This means that there are times when it is easier to realize profits and other times, when operations costs can spiral, making a solid ROI more difficult. That’s when your online marketing strategy can be your strongest ally. Your team at Active Web Group are professionals experienced in assisting our clients through economic downturns. As such, we can pivot your campaign to weather the lows and to redirect campaign initiatives towards a positive outcome. Together, we can explore the adjustments we can make to your digital marketing strategy to find the fit that’s “just right” for your enterprise. Our goal, as always, is to help you to realize yours.
First, we’ll focus on a change of mindset. In an economic downturn, navigating your digital marketing campaigns requires a strategic shift from aggressive growth to a more tactical efficiency. This means instead of slashing budgets, which can lead to long-term losses in market share and brand awareness, success will be incremental but steady if we focus on high-ROI channels, retaining your customer base, and empathetic messaging. After all, consumer or business stakeholders, we are all experiencing this daunting economy together.
1. Budget Reallocation
Shift your spend towards an organic, a data-driven approach.
As we all learned during the recent pandemic, when the economy goes South, it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to recover from the ensuing fallout. In other words, pausing your online marketing strategy will effectively put you out of business. So instead of making across-the-board cuts, together we will investigate and make suggestions. We’ll audit your marketing channels to determine which are the most cost-effective and conversion-focused. Options for this shift include:
- Prioritize high-ROI channels: Shift spending from broad, brand-awareness campaigns to channels with a proven track record of driving conversions, such as targeted pay-per-click (PPC) and retargeting ads.
- Optimize PPC spending: Refine your paid search strategy by using more specific, long-tail and negative keywords to reduce wasted ad spend and lower your cost-per-click (CPC). With less competition, ad costs are often lower, making your budget stretch further.
- Embrace “owned media”: Invest in channels you control, like your email list and website. These provide a direct line of communication with your customers at a minimal cost.
2. Make Customer Retention a Priority
Double down on and grow the business sources you already have. Acquiring new customers is always more expensive than retaining existing ones, a cost difference that is amplified during a recession.
- Embrace email marketing: Nurture your current customer base. Grab the attention of your target demographic with personalized email campaigns that offer exclusive deals, loyalty programs, and early access to products.
- Enhance customer experience: Strengthen your existing customer relationships by providing exceptional service and transparent communication. A strong, positive customer experience fosters loyalty and can lead to valuable word-of-mouth referrals.
3. Emphasize value over price
The “You get what you pay for” axiom was never truer.
In an economic downturn, consumers are more careful with their spending. Your marketing message must focus on why your product or service is a valuable, and even essential, investment. Make your customer glad they are spending money on your products/services. Shifting your online marketing strategy from the product to the why by incorporating value statements into your initiatives will pay dividends over time.
- Highlight your unique selling points: Focus on how your offering saves customers time, improves efficiency, or provides long-term cost savings.
- Communicate trust: During times of uncertainty, consumers gravitate toward brands they can rely on. We’ll use testimonials, case studies, and transparent messaging to reinforce your brand’s stability and reliability.
- Offer flexible options: Consider providing payment plans or special bundles that make your offerings more accessible without compromising your brand’s long-term value.
4. Invest in Content and SEO
During the downturn, your competitors will likely scale back their content creation and paid advertising. However, you can gain a competitive advantage by maintaining or increasing your efforts in these areas.
- Continue to build an Organic presence: As part of your digital marketing strategy, AWG’s Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Content Marketing initiatives can be focused to drive free organic traffic. By creating high-quality, educational content, such as blog posts, videos, and guides, you will build Brand authority and trust that can last long after the recession is over.
- Leverage Social Media: It is imperative that you stay active and engage with your audience on social platforms. Use of these outlets is a proven, effective way to maintain brand visibility and build a loyal community. For example, if there are complaints posted regarding your brand/products, you can respond immediately. This personal attention to detail will yield a positive response that can resonate within the social media community. This way, your brand becomes a part of your consumers’ day during difficult times and will remain a part of their daily lives.
- Listen to your Customers: Adapt your messaging based on real-time feedback and their changing needs. See below.
- Answer Customer pain points: Create content that directly addresses your customers’ recession-era concerns, providing helpful information rather than a hard sell. In other words, lead by example, and forgo the sales pitches.
5. Monitor performance and stay agile
Your AWG team will regularly audit your digital marketing strategy’s performance to make smarter, data-driven decisions that can adapt quickly to changing market conditions.
- Track key metrics: We’ll focus on a handful of key performance indicators (KPIs) including customer acquisition cost (CAC), customer lifetime value (CLV), and conversion rates to measure the impact of your online marketing strategy’s spend.
- Use analytics tools: We will leverage platforms including Google Analytics among other programs to understand your customers’ behavior and identify opportunities for optimization.
- Stay informed: Our team will conduct market research to understand how your customers’ priorities are shifting, and adjust your digital marketing strategy to meet their evolving needs.
6. Plan for the economic recovery and yours
It is important to remember that every recession is temporary, however the strategic decisions you make today will position your brand for rapid growth when the economy rebounds. That is one aspect of your digital marketing strategy that your AWG team never loses sight of. All of our initiatives are directed towards maintaining and growing your business.
- Maintain brand presence: Continue to invest in brand-building activities, even on a smaller scale, so you remain top-of-mind. Brands that go “dark” lose market share and can struggle to recover. That is why maintaining a continuous online marketing strategy is imperative for your future business growth. Think of it as the foundation to your enterprise’s future success.
- Document lessons learned: Use the economic downturn as an opportunity to analyze your strategies and refine your processes. The insights gained will be applied to your digital marketing strategy to bolster next steps, so your firm can continue its upward trajectory.
- Build for resilience: The actions we take today will allow your business to grow and adapt more quickly in the future.
The Harvard Business Review said it best. Brands that continue to invest strategically during recessions tend to come out stronger, with increased market share and greater consumer loyalty. Allow AWG to leverage your demographic’s insights, their data, and adopt the mindset to put your money where it will do your ROI, and your consumer, the most good. With AWG as your marketing partner, our experts can refine your messaging and adjust your offers to align with ever-shifting consumer priorities. Together we will emphasize your brand’s value, and sustainability. In a time of uncertainty when buyers need constant reassurance, our team will take the steps necessary to ensure that your company remains relevant. Again, taking our cue from the Harvard Business Review, brands that stay connected, empathetic, and visible will be best positioned for full recovery and future success.
Does Your Business Need Online Marketing Strategy Support During These Challenging Economic Times?
It is always daunting to navigate your business during an economic storm. However, the experts at Active Web Group collectively have decades of experience assisting our clients to ride out every recession and to emerge primed for exponential growth. We invite you to join forces with Active Web Group. Together we’ll develop a growth-oriented digital marketing strategy built on a rock-solid foundation. Contact our team today to learn more.
