“Don’t Drink Piss”

I thoroughly enjoyed reading through Mark’s post on marketing in the coming recession. You’ll have to link over and read the first couple paragraphs to find out what drinking piss has to do with this. Here are a few other highlights from the post:

Most importantly, remember to point out that the brands that continue to build their equity in the recession will be best placed to enjoy the fruits of their labour when the economy inevitably returns to growth.

The real problem comes in the middle. If you are not in the top or bottom tier, the recession is likely to deal you a particularly difficult hand in 2008.

Word on the street is that January marks the first month of the recession we’ve been hearing so much about. Which means wallets are about to tighten up and get a little skinnier.

Unfortunately, it also means spending on the “extra stuff” is going to decline, and, unfortunately, marketing is usually lumped into that “extra stuff” category. Which is obscenely misguided. Just as the smart financial advisors will tell you to invest more in the stock market when it’s in a decline (realizing you’ll get more bang for your buck long-term), so companies should put more into their marketing and growth strategies during a recession. Partially because only marketing initiatives lead to growth, and partially because most of your competitors will be too scared to do it.

Instead, the conservative executive will pinch pennies and look for ways to cut operating costs. Which is a wise thing to do, but not at the expense of marketing and strategic growth. Operations focuses on less money going out; Marketing focuses on more money coming in. It’s usually much easier to find big ways to get money coming in than it is to find big ways to hold on to what you’ve already got.

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