Shrinking Marketing Budget? Think Large Anyway.
Embrace the cutting-edge, but don't trim the wrong things.
By Lindsay Thomas
Business Development Director, D Custom
For many marketers, making the most of the budget is a larger-than-usual challenge this year. Even as companies emerge from the downturn, marketing expectations are high: Organizations are expected to have real-time interaction with consumers through Web sites, print collateral, e-newsletters and social media, all the while carrying on a full brand campaign.
Cut Costs, Not Smart Ideas
Don’t run with those scissors to slash the budget just yet—instead, take time to sharpen your priorities for better results. Here are several things to consider:
· Is our marketing campaign still relevant?
· Are we effectively reaching consumers? If not, why? And, just as importantly, do we really understand what they want?
· Can we tell our story in new and exciting ways, even on a smaller budget?
· Are there areas of overlap we can trim so that we can invest in top-priority projects?
· How do we stay ahead of the competition?
Snip . . . Snip . . . Save
Here's the take-away: You may be able to save money in very unconventional ways. For instance, as more users embrace social media, opportunities arise to cross-promote your message at a lower cost. Or, you could trim the amount of content in your Web campaign to embrace users' preferences for shorter stories. Additionally, if you have a print program, a change in size or materials may present a win-win opportunity to offer your customers a redesign while saving money.
Go for the Cutting Edge. But first . . .
Remember, consistency and frequency are still critically important to the success of your marketing campaign. (Do you really want to risk consumers forgetting about you? Odds are that your competition isn’t willing to take that gamble.)
As more is learned about consumer behavior and social media, savvy marketers are realizing that the best programs use multiple media platforms to fully engage customers.
For instance, it’s not unusual for customers to notice a product or service in a magazine, research it online, and even discuss it via social media before making a purchase. So if you dump a print program in favor of online content to save money, you may lose an invaluable opportunity to get mindshare of your customers. And that would be the worst cut of all.
Balancing the budget can be tough. Find out if you are getting the most for the money by consulting with our business development team today by emailing lindsay.thomas@dcustom.com or calling 214.939.3636.