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You cannot open a newspaper, watch the news on TV or read an article online without hearing about the recession. We are surrounded by it, and the fear and panic that all the hype is generating is paralyzing businesses.
I understand the lure of just hunkering down and waiting out the economic lull. Even companies that are doing quite well find themselves feeling overly cautious and tentative when it comes to spending any money or investing more in their business. It’s difficult to believe that your organization is succeeding—even if it is—because the media’s focus on bad news is simply overwhelming.
But please do not sit this one out. If you are smart, you can take advantage of this huge opportunity to capture market share and solidify your position in the marketplace. While your competition is cowering in a corner, waiting for sunnier days, you can be out there in the relative quiet, shouting your heart out.
This is the marketing equivalent of buying low. Your efforts will be exponentially stretched simply because you are one of the few that’s still out there during this downturn, telling your story.
The added challenge is that your audience, whether you are a B-to-B or a B-to-C company, has had their reality shaken. So you are going to have to bolster their confidence in your product or service even more than usual.
Here are some marketing musts that will help you gain your audience’s confidence and strengthen your marketing foundation, without feeling like you are being reckless with your budget.
Be 110 percent consistent
Consumers are already jumpy. They’re worried about your stability, as well as their own. Don’t give them any reason to mistrust or doubt you. Live and breathe your brand integrity. Don’t do or say anything that contradicts your brand. Now is not the time to make any sudden changes. You must also be rock solid in your messaging and behavior.
Here are some tactics you can follow:
- Review your brand values with each and every employee.
- Refresh your web site to put your brand promise front and center, and use customer testimonials to demonstrate that you walk your talk.
- Ask your employees for ideas on how to bring your brand to life. Pay US$50 for every idea used. Make that very public knowledge. Involve employees in your push for consistency.
Current customers
Your current customers (or past customers if your sales cycle is long) are the ones who got you this far. They’re the most likely to buy from your company again, and they are also most likely the audience you’ve ignored. It’s not as much fun to court the customers you’ve already won, but now is the time to appreciate them and remind them why they trusted you in the first place.
To appeal to your current customers, try employing the following tactics:
- Release a customer-only mailing, spotlighting some of your best offerings at the best prices.
- Hold a customer appreciation party and say “thank you” repeatedly.
- Offer a customer-only pre-payment discount (you get cash up front as well as their commitment to follow through).
Listen, respond and repeat
Now is not the time to ignore the marketplace. You should listen to your customers, your competitor’s customers and anyone else who is out there talking about your industry. Survey your employees, looking for suggestions. Pick up the phone and call your lost customers to find out why they went away (and where they went). Prove that you’re listening by making changes based on what you learn.
Tactics include:
- Creating a customer survey (while you are at it, also create a survey for past customers) and sending your customers the unvarnished results with a report on what you are going to do to address the problems that were uncovered.
- Setting up Google alerts and tracking what’s being said about you and your competitors.
- Jumping into online conversations about your industry, and offering value and expertise in your commentary.
Use content marketing
You’re good at what you do, and you want your prospects and customers to be successful. Why not position yourself as the expert by sharing your knowledge? The key to success is to give your ideas and information freely, without any strings attached. This is about beginning or building a relationship by being the one who gives first.
Tactics include:
- Creating an e-newsletter (but don’t start it if you aren’t going to consistently deliver it).
- Identifying information that your audience is seeking and building a robust “how-to” series for your web site. This will position your company as a trusted source for information, and will keep your audience returning to your site.
- Launching a business blog (again, don’t start it if you aren’t serious about keeping at it).
Most of these tactics will not cost you much. And I’ll let you in on a little secret—they’re pretty effective, even when times are tough. Get in the habit of implementing a few of these tactics now, and when economic woes go away, all the new business, credibility and authority you’ve earned will not.
Drew McLellan has more than 20 years of marketing experience. An author and nationally known speaker, he blogs at www.DrewsMarketingMinute.com and owns a full-service marketing agency in the Midwest. |
