In a recent Advertising Age article, authors Marissa Miley and Michael Bush offered readers marketing tips for surviving the recession. They aimed to answer the question, “How are you (marketing executives) supposed to discern what is right for your brand?”
With a focus on providing tips from in-the-field professionals, Marissa and Michael garnered the perspectives of marketing executives at companies and organizations including Wunderman, Behance.net, Initiative, Barkley U.S. and McGarrybowen.
Here are a few high-level marketing tips we took away from the article that can also be applied to PR:
Connect with customers in a relevant and important way. The worst thing to do is completely go dark. – David Sable, vice chairman and chief operating officer, Wunderman
Evaluate your priorities and strategies. Ask questions such as: Is my current marketing mix really the best use of my resources? Should I focus on maximizing the profitability of my existing base or should I go out in search of new markets? – Stewart Owen, chief strategic officer, McGarrybowen.
Re-engage your rolodex. Now is a great opportunity to reconnect and strengthen your network. – Scott Belsky, founder and CEO, Behance.net.
Focus on your core customers and demonstrate your commitment to them. – Janet Fitzpatrick, worldwide director of communication and planning, Initiative.
Reward innovation. Dream of something people want that nobody else offers and then invest in that dream. – Brian Brooker, CEO and chief creative officer, Barkley U.S.
We thought these tips were spot on and wanted to hear more ideas, so we reached out to marketing executives across the country. Here are some additional guidelines that may help marketing executives weather the recession:
Make your Web site work harder. Now more than ever, businesses need to optimize the marketing potential their Web site holds, primarily through leveraging critical search terms that drive traffic – and new customers -to their doorstep. – Robert Oltnanns, president, Skutski & Oltmanns.
Market smarter, not harder with efficiency being key. Devoting dollars to areas such as social media is one great way to do this. It allows organizations to build visibility and brand awareness online without having to do a “buy” on a site or in a magazine. – Holly Matson, online marketing manager, Risdall Online Marketing Group.
Be creative and bold. The bolder (and smarter) you are, the more response you will get for less money. – John Follis, president and founder, Follis Advertising.
It is easy to see how these tips can be specifically applied to PR. For example, while it is important for marketing executives to be creative and bold in their ideas, PR professionals are also looking to approach media in fresh and creative ways. The changing landscape in traditional media and the rise of social networking are forcing PR professionals more than ever to be creative, bold and present relevant ideas.
Another one of the marketing tips that transcends to PR is the need to work smarter, not harder. Budgets are strained and organizations are looking for ways to tighten belts. From a PR perspective, we are working smarter, not harder, to provide organizations with the greatest return on their PR investment.
No matter if you are working in marketing, or specifically in PR, it’s probable that you are seeing the impact of the recession. We would love to hear from you and know what tips you have found most helpful. Write to us at [email protected] or post a comment below.