And now the end is near…

In this final instalment of the Marketing Survivor’s Guide to the Economic Downturn we’ll examine how to spend to survive the gloomy days of recession, and prepare for the emergence from the gloom!

Capturing powerful consumer insight is essential in a period of changing attitudes and priorities

• What is the typical response of the category consumer to downturn?
• Are there different consumer segments within the category with different responses?
• To what extent is it possible to reframe consumer responses in a way that is beneficial to our brand / business?

Adequate marketing support is essential to sustain the brand / business and communicate any changes in the brand proposition:

• Support brand salience and proposition to maintain cash flow
• Communicate brand values and personality to reinforce consumer attachment and sustain margin
• Framing of any enhanced value elements within the overall brand identity

You may also wish to consider innovation as a short-term response to the downturn:

• To enhance value proposition
• To create “news” and maintain brand saliency

And planning for the future, strategic innovation could be a useful response when the upturn comes:

• Innovation framed against the anticipated consumer/category post downturn scenario (new economic reality, new consumer attitudes)
• Accepting the ‘pain’ of development costs during downturn for potentially greater gain during upturn

Hopefully this short guide has been a useful summary of some of the issues to consider – here’s to the good health of your brand and business. Some cheer amidst the doom and gloom!

Previous instalments of Doomwatch can be found here: (Part 1) http://www.thevalueengineers.com/2009/05/26/doomwatch-the-marketing-survivors-guide-to-the-economic-downturn-part-1/ and here (Part 2) http://www.thevalueengineers.com/2009/06/03/doomwatch-the-marketing-survivor%e2%80%99s-guide-to-the-economic-downturn-part-2/