The coronavirus pandemic has hit economies around the world pretty hard, particularly in the United States. If you have customers in the United States, then you’re likely feeling a hit to your bottom line too. And some people think the recession could get even more brutal in the coming months.
As a business owner, you’re probably looking for ways to protect your bottom line and come out the other side of this recession in good shape. Many business owners start looking at where they can save money, and often times they go straight to the advertising budget to slash spending. Most are doubling the thought of advertising during a recession.
It makes sense: consumers aren’t spending as much, so why pour a lot of money into advertising?
But the truth is, pulling back on advertising is a huge mistake.
Here are three reasons why you not advertising during a recession is a mistake:
#1. Your competitors are slashing their ad budgets. This gives you a great opportunity to dominate ad spaces and build top-of-mind awareness in your market. When your consumers go looking for a solution to a niche problem, they’re going to find YOU and not your competitors. Big win!
#2. Ad pricing drops during a recession. And this means you can reach a greater swath of your market for less money. You may even be able to venture into ad channels that were previously out of reach due to budget reasons.
#3. Maintaining or increasing advertising means faster growth later. Time and again, researchers have shown that businesses that continue advertising during a recession not only came out the other side stronger, they also grow faster once the economy gets going again. This is likely due to the fact that maintaining ad spends builds top of mind awareness, so consumers will think of you first when they’re ready to start spending freely again.
Bottom line: if you’re looking to save some money to survive this recession, leave the ad budget alone. In fact, you should increase it if you can afford it because now is a great time to build awareness so you can reap the profitable benefits later. So, keep advertising during a recession, for as long as you can.
