In a down-market environment, effective marketing strategies become even more crucial to a company’s chances for success – or even survival. In a recent BtoB magazine article looking at the new marketing challenges facing financial services companies, our own Christi Rankin, Martopia CEO put it this way:
“There’s a lot of pressure associated with an economic downturn,” said Christi Rankin, CEO of Martopia, a marketing consultancy and creative agency that serves clients in the financial services industry. “You have to take your creativity up to a whole new level because a little bit has to go so much farther than it does in better times.”
Rankin said marketing strategy also becomes more important than ever in a difficult economic climate. With fewer dollars to spend on marketing efforts, companies tend to run in circles, she said, because they have so much they want to accomplish on a limited budget they can’t commit to one direction. She recommends that marketers take a step back, talk about objectives and goals and then create a strategy that they can commit to. “Otherwise, they’re wasting their time and their money,” she said. “When the money is flowing, you can do a bit of everything and make headway. But when the money is not flowing, every dollar has to count.”
Christi also stressed the value in employing thought leadership strategies as part of a company’s marketing efforts (emphasis added):
The churn and change common in the industry makes a consistent message tremendously important to a marketer’s success, Rankin said. She also tells clients to focus that messaging on solving clients’ and prospects’ business problems.
Martopia client Fidelity National Information Services, which markets technology solutions to banks, did this by making thought leadership efforts a significant part of its integrated marketing strategy. Company executives write articles for industry publications, speak at events and record podcasts about relevant topics.
Doing so builds credibility and trust with the target audience, Rankin said. “This industry is risk averse, and it’s very important to [buyers] to be working with a company that they perceive to be a leader who has domain expertise and understands the banking business,” she said.
March 18, 2008 at 10:33 am |
In a down economy, we all need to work smarter and harder because fewer people are spending money. The good news, however, is that with fewer people spending money, your marketing messages have a greater chance of getting heard. Now, more than ever you want to concentrate your power on your most promising prospects–since you can’t afford to talk to everyone. In specializing in this way, you’ll achieve “thought leader” status more quickly–because the more you work with a homogenous group, the better you understand their issues, and the sharper your message becomes. Also, since birds of a feather flock together, you’ll create more buzz than you would by broadcasting your message to a larger audience.
March 18, 2008 at 2:47 pm |
I agree with your comments Barbara. I recently wrote an article for Construction Business Owner Magazine called Niche Marketing Strategies for the Construction Business Owner about the value of focusing your marketing efforts on specific segments. Targeting specific niche segments is a very effective strategy when marketing budgets are limited or during a downturn for all the reasons you stated. When determining what niche to pursue, we often work with companies to analyze their best customers and look for commonalities that will guide the development of an Ideal Prospect Profile. Then we can execute highly targeted integrated direct marketing campaigns to build brand awareness and generate leads very cost effectively. I also agree with you that companies should maintain a marketing presence during a downturn. It is important to not lose momentum – plus there is an advantage to having a clear playing field due to other companies pausing their marketing efforts.