5 Reasons Why Cutting Down Advertising During The Pandemic Was A Bad Idea.

After a year and a few months of Covid-19, we can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel, which is excellent news for businesses. 

But let’s go back in time for a bit…

It’s March 2020, and the lockdown is just around the corner.

You run a small business, people are about to be locked in the house thinking about better times, and you are thinking – How do I keep my business afloat? 

You might’ve felt like you needed to cut down marketing costs, and as your accountant has been telling you all along, you finally thought it was a good idea. 

It makes sense. Why would you advertise if no one’s buying? Right?

Not quite.

Forget about what you thought was best and keep reading to see why we believe listening to your accountant is not always the best idea.

Rule of thumb

You should always remember, if you take a break from your clients/consumers, someone else will fill in the gap. 

Your brand needs to be at the top of mind of the clients/consumers for when they are ready to buy again. 

And as restrictions ease to almost none, this becomes more of a reality. 

To put it in perspective, some of our most successful clients like Easy Clean QLD had an entire marketing campaign just for Covid-19. 

Instead of cutting back or pausing their advertising, they decided to increase their marketing budget.

Contrary to what their accountant suggested, they followed their marketing and sales gut feeling and went all in.

The results speak for themselves, after a year of advertising during the pandemic their business has experienced exponential growth.

You might be thinking, wow they nailed it by keeping their advertising going!

Yes, this is true, but what we believe made a tremendous impact is that Easy Clean QLD was always there showing support to their business partners and the community.

The same growth and impact have happened in a range of industries and businesses that kept their advertising active during hard times. We’ve seen this over and over again. 

Some of the industries that thrived during the pandemic were: 

* Manufacturing 

* E-commerce

* Information Technology

* Cleaning 

* Delivery Services 

* Home, Food and Beverages 

We are aware that not every business have or need the same marketing budget. 

But, one thing we can all agree on is that a marketing budget is indispensable for a business, no matter how high or how low it is.

The marketing budget includes everything from content production to graphic design and paid media.

It is important to point out the difference between budgets depending on the type of company you run.

In the simplest terms, your marketing budget should be a percentage of your revenue. 

A common rule of thumb is that B2B companies should spend between 2 and 5% of their revenue on marketing. For B2C companies, the proportion is often higher—between 5 and 10%. This is because B2C companies typically need to invest in more marketing channels to reach various customer segments.

Bank Of Canada

Stay connected, stay communicated, stay successful.

Here are five reasons why slicing your marketing budget during the pandemic wasn’t the right move: 

Someone else will fill in the gap

Unless you are Google or Apple or any big company, if your target market doesn’t see you, they’ll forget you. 

Once the pandemic is over and people are ready to buy again, they’ll choose the competition over you because you weren’t there when they needed you the most.

While you were out there listening to your accountant, your competition was investing the same or more in paid advertising and reaching your now long gone customers. 

Don’t let someone else fill in the gap and be there for when your client/customers are ready to spend money again.

The pandemic won’t last forever.

Yes, a year ago, it seemed like we were going to be in this hell for at least a decade. But it doesn’t matter if it lasts one year or fifteen; cutting back on advertising investments will only worsen your business in the long run. The best thing your company can do is adapt – constantly adapt. 

To adapt it is important that you use the right tools.

Google Ads, Facebook ads, Instagram ads worked great during the pandemic, but only if you could afford it. 

Youtube, Instagram, email marketing, Twitter and TikTok are great alternatives to advertising without spending too much money. You can build a community by creating quality content instead of spending much on sponsored ads. 

Flicking the light back on isn’t going to cut it. 

You probably stopped your marketing efforts because you thought it was the right thing to do. 

But, when it’s all over, and you’ll want to switch it back on, it won’t be exactly where you left it. 

The world we live in changes faster than Australia changes prime ministers. What is relevant today won’t be relevant next year, and you’ll be left off even further down the rabbit hole with a huge mountain to climb from scratch. 

Your business needs to adapt, and there is no better way to adapt than by being up to date.

Staying communicated is critical. 

Even if your clients/consumers can’t purchase your goods and services yet, good communication will keep them loyal to your business for when they can.

That is why we believe keeping your social media up to date is so important. Even if you can’t afford Video Marketing, worry about creating other cheaper and efficient types of content.

Instagram Lives, Reels, TikToks, Carousels, Memes work great in building communities and are inexpensive to make. 

You need to fight the disease/recession.

Businesses that used the pandemic to increase or maintain advertising budgets performed better and have seen more growth than many thought impossible. 

You need to fight the recession by being present. 

This is why we believe advertising is so crucial during the pandemic. And our clients at DMKT Performance prove us right. Don’t stop your marketing efforts due to a recession or a pandemic,  your clients need to be reassured that you are there for them. 

Marketing during a pandemic is not easy, and it probably goes against the instinct of many. But you should understand that the market goes through a new journey in a recession. You can shift the message of your business and re-think the value of your offer to suit the new needs of the public. 

Are you still wondering if you should hire a digital marketing specialist?