A lot of our customers have been commenting to us about the slow economy
recently, and wondering out loud whether or not they should be spending money on
advertising now. We were actually wondering the same thing, and so we did some
research on the subject.
Our research clearly showed that it would be a mistake to cut down on
advertising during a slow economic period, so we decided to continue with our
summer advertising campaigns as planned. We recently mailed 10,000 postcards to
potential customers and we are getting a respectable return already.
It is an understandable and common reaction for small
business owners to cut advertising during a slow economy. You certainly may need
to trim unnecessary expenses, but don’t make the
mistake of thinking that advertising is non-essential.
We learned that you can actually use an economic slowdown
to your advantage. Smart business owners actually
increase advertising during recessionary periods.
It is well documented that businesses that continue
marketing during difficult times come out ahead when the economy starts to turn
around. Here’s why:
·
Your
competitors may be reducing their advertising expenditures. That gives you the perfect
opportunity to gain a larger part of the market.
Don’t wait until the economy improves to begin advertising.
If you do, you will risk losing customers and giving your competitors an
edge.
·
Continued
advertising helps your customers and your prospects remember you.
This will put you in a great position to reap the benefits of increased
consumer spending when the economy picks up. Not
only will people begin spending again soon, but studies have shown that after a
recession consumers actually spend more than they did before the recession
began.
