Public Relations and Marketing During A Downward Economy -- Sounds like a boring topic. But in reality, opportunity is knocking at your door. It's up to you, whether you hunker down with the door bolted and shades down or whether you open the door and see what awaits.
Although every industry is different, one thing is common: when the economy takes a downward turn, human instinct drives us to step back, tighten our belts, and spend less. A pessimistic glass-half-empty approach is to sit back and see what fate comes our way (and maybe polish up our resumes). But those of us who are more optimistic (and a little more seasoned) see the glass half full. Now is the time to step out of the box and take a more creative, road-less-traveled approach to our public relations efforts. What I'm saying is -- fall back and punt.
So, I no longer have the budget for the glitzy, multi-faceted public relations and advertising campaign. So what! Some of my best ideas have culminated out of the necessity of doing less with more.
Although every industry is different, one thing is common: when the economy takes a downward turn, human instinct drives us to step back, tighten our belts, and spend less. A pessimistic glass-half-empty approach is to sit back and see what fate comes our way (and maybe polish up our resumes). But those of us who are more optimistic (and a little more seasoned) see the glass half full. Now is the time to step out of the box and take a more creative, road-less-traveled approach to our public relations efforts. What I'm saying is -- fall back and punt.
So, I no longer have the budget for the glitzy, multi-faceted public relations and advertising campaign. So what! Some of my best ideas have culminated out of the necessity of doing less with more.
Recession's 7 Rs For Marketing & PR
- Revisit your available budget and prioritize dollars based on organizational goals. Be real - if it is "icing on the top" and dollars can be better spent elsewhere with a bigger ROI, then reallocate them.
- Reassess your public(s) and prioritize where time and dollars are best spent (again, aligned with organizational goals/profit centers). This includes building relationships with the media, trade organizations, vendors, key customers and employees - everyone is important. Extra attention now (when most businesses are still cowering behind locked doors) is time more noticed and well spent.
- Reinvigorate or strengthen existing relationships and foster new relationships. I can't reiterate this enough.... value the folks you have relationships with. Make them feel important and liked and you can be the star of the show.
- Recruit help and advice from your publics. My dad taught me, "People like people they can help. It makes them feel good." And he is 100% right. I've experienced this more than once (helping and being helped). When I asked for help, not only did I receive priceless advice, I was blessed with mutually beneficial friendships that would not have otherwise developed. Take heed: there's a difference between getting feedback and advice and asking someone to do your thinking.
- Re-engineer innovative, economical approaches to link your business to your publics. Think out of the box. Think like a customer. What do they like, think or do? Go there... be it the soccer field, blog, social media, Second Life, coffee house, lunch, etc.
- Reach for the stars and implement these new initiatives.
- Review the initial outcomes and realign time, effort and strategy as appropriate. If it doesn't work, move on to your next idea. If it does work, share the good news and see how much further you can take it.
By proactively leading your company through economically tough times with trend-setting marketing and public relations efforts, you not only prove yourself as an indispensable asset to the company, you also boost your own net worth. Knock, knock.
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