We met with a prospect this week and were excited to hear about their budget cuts. Okay. We weren't excited about the cuts themselves. Neither were they.
What excited us was what they did with their marketing program when they had to cut the advertising budget first in half, then in half again.
They increased their PR activities. The Communications Manager said, "We figured we had a lot of leverage left from our previous ad campaigns. So we went after PR with our magazines and got tons of coverage."
It's a smart move. Keeps the competition guessing. Competitors may notice the change in tactics from print ads to editorial placements (and great covers). But they're less likely to assume budget cuts are in play.
Even smarter from a prospective buyer's standpoint. The marketer stays in front of buyers at a different budget level and maybe, just maybe, hits the buyer when their advertising resistance is a little lower. Let's face it. Buyers are thinking different things when they are reading relevant editorial vs. skimming past an ad...
The economy is forcing marketers to make choices. Some are cutting budgets deeply or entirely. Others are looking for smart ways to leverage what they have to spend. Bravo to the manufacturer mentioned above.
We'd like to know how other folks are employing smart marketing in these crazy down times... and if you're keeping your marketing plans fluid enough to respond to changes in the market.
If you'd care to share what you're doing during the economic "crisis" we'd love to hear about it...
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