With news of a recession around the corner, most companies are assessing their marketing spend in 2023. A recent Forbes article talks about a 2023 forecast that shows that there will be a decrease in marketing spend in 2023. Does this indicate that marketing will have a challenging year in scaling customer acquisition? What is the actual impact of small or large budgets in creating a valuable marketing program that helps businesses build a loyal customer base and improve brand placement?
One of the biggest challenges we’ve seen is the lack of a strong foundation that positions brands correctly and generates growth that aligns with their core product or service. Large marketing spends on paid advertising campaigns while ignoring organic growth and effective messaging strategies. This can lead to ineffective customer acquisition and stall growth.
So what does it take to maintain or increase brand loyalty and customer acquisition in the post-pandemic, recession-riddled world?
1 – Reassess brand position
Go back to the drawing board and review your core offering. Build a persona map (again!) to build your ICP (ideal customer profile) and redo that brand positioning exercise you did months ago.
2 – Market Research
How is your industry doing? How have the current world events impacted your customers and competitors? All data is good data and any information can be useful. This is probably one of the most important steps that, in addition to reassessing your company’s strengths, will help build a strong foundation.
3 – Hire
Now that you have a birds-eye view of what the year might look like for growth, hire a senior marketing professional who will strategically align your marketing deliverables to your company’s goals. Finding the right fit for your company whether full-time or part-time is just a matter of looking in the right place – or you could just ask us 😀
Who is the right person for my business needs?
The right person takes charge of all your marketing programs including brand positioning, messaging, and customer acquisition. They also participate in understanding your sales process to create a healthy pipeline and effective sales enablement.
Effective marketing takes time
Time is the key factor here. No marketing professional has a magic wand that will fix your challenges overnight – if you hear a lofty claim, I’d urge you to err on the side of caution identifying timelines for deliverables and setting reasonable goals go a long way in helping you build your company’s marketing program. Remember, there isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to navigating marketing
I hope you’ve gained some insight into what you need to do to continue to grow your business going forward. It’s time to put your money to work and scale your business despite the downturns in the market.
