Can the doom and gloom be a bright spark for marketers?

All the talk at the moment is that we are in/will go into/have been in a recession. Is this the usual bad news for marketers as the chaps in Finance take out their red markers and start slashing advertising and marketing budgets? Maybe, probably…however rather than accept this faith, marketers can embrace it and potentially also do a job at improving our reputation with the lads in Finance and the rest of the departments. Maybe we can shed the image as being cost centres that spend money willy nilly and have no interest in what it delivers.

 

Now more than ever marketing spend needs to be accountable and now is the perfect opportunity to demonstrate the value we add. Even in times of recessions brands still need to work, campaigns need to deliver and the marketing job goes on. It is continually demonstrated that the companies that marketing themselves well in the bad times rather than go into hiding, perform considerably better in the good times than those that come back out of hiding.

 

The last time there was a recession (mid 80s), one of the marketing results was the mass development of direct mail. Now twenty or so years on, there could be another new dawn for marketing but only if marketers decide to stand up and be counted rather than cry into skinny extra shot no sugar frappe wappa…ccinos. Make marketing more accountable and maybe accountants will get marketing!