Dare to Rise: The Benefits of Marketing During a Recession
By David Moncur
During an economic recession, it’s critical to prioritize your branding and marketing efforts—it’s your opportunity to stand out from the crowd.

In today’s uncertain economic climate, with rumors of a recession circulating, you are likely facing some big decisions about where to spend in your business. You may be asking yourself: What can my company afford in this economy? Should my business focus on spending less or making more? How will my actions affect our future?
These questions are significant and consequential for your company and today it’s as important as ever to measure your options strategically, calculating risks and benefits. If the economy slides into a recession, the best thing you can do for your company is to start preparing a plan now. As you begin, your approach is likely to take two forms: cutting expenses or generating revenue.
Approaches to Navigating a Recession
The expense-cutting approach, or “stopping spending,” is a natural reflex when the economy is looking grim—if less money comes in, less money should go out. This tactic (unfortunately) often results in layoffs and decreased benefits, to name a few. Spending on any perceived non-critical functions is slashed—marketing is usually one of the first to take the hit.
If cutting expenses is an inevitable necessity, it will benefit your company for the short term—but not in the long run. With your company lacking resources and likely producing a lower quality of work, you risk losing current and potential customers, as well as valuable employees. It’s easy to fall into a downward spiral. In a recession, it is critical that you preserve your brand reputation.
In contrast is the generating-revenue approach. To make more money, you need new business; to bring in more business, you need to market your company. With nearly 30 years of branding and marketing experience for industry-leading companies, I can assure you that tough times such as these create unique opportunities—and investing in your marketing now will pay dividends later.
While other companies take the expense-cutting approach and decrease their marketing budgets, you have the opportunity to become the only voice in the room. By putting your energy toward marketing with the generating-revenue approach, you build your brand’s reputation and increase brand awareness above your competitors. You position your business as a leader among your peers, proving you care abundantly about your clients and will endeavor to shine during a dark hour.
A Solution for All
As you make your plan for how to navigate the coming months—whether that be focusing on cutting expenses, generating revenue, or a combination of the two—know that branding and marketing are essential pieces to both approaches.
It is imperative that you maintain and invest in your company’s branding and marketing efforts—especially during the tough times.
Marketing should not be seen as an unnecessary expense that can be eliminated, as that only exacerbates the problem of decreased revenue. Effective marketing can also thwart the downward spiral your business may experience as a result of expense cutting. If you find that your company is stagnant in new business development or is losing valuable employees, marketing can be the key to restoring your brand, renewing your reputation, rebuilding your credibility, and, consequently, generating revenue. It is a forward-thinking, strategic solution to spending during a turbulent economy.
Fortune Favors the Bold
I like to remind our clients of the adage, “Fortune favors the bold.” Investing in marketing during an economic down turn is the best move you can make for your business, but it takes courage and confidence to swim toward a tidal wave headed your way. Focus on value-driven messaging and communicating your brand beautifully in the marketplace—and continue to build on the momentum you had before the recession began.
If you don't know where to begin, Contact Moncur to find out how marketing and branding can help you thrive during the economy of today and into the future.