Five reasons to invest in online marketing during a slump
Recent headlines have highlighted yet again that Britain is in for a rough economic period. A combination of worried head-shaking from the Bank of England and screaming sensationalist headlines have understandably caused consumers concern.
Furthermore, economic fears have provoked a wave of blog posts from the SEO sector about the best ways to buckle down and survive a slump - many of which have been filled with a strained optimism which does not quite ring true.
However, I am not worried. I know that a gloomy economic environment (dare I mention the R-word?) is actually a fantastic time for a firm to focus on online marketing. Here is a brief summary of my reasons why.
Reason Number One: Consumers still need to shop
Yes, it is more than likely that consumers will not be consuming with the free abandonment which characterised the last few years - but they still need to make purchases. From food to footballs to financial services, people still need to buy things, even if the inflation genie squeezes itself out of the bottle. Businesses must ensure they are highly visible to gain the biggest possible share of the market.
Reason Number Two: Cash-strapped consumers research purchases
When people have limited cash, they consider their purchases more carefully. They go online, they research thoroughly, they read reviews - they research. Now is the time for businesses to ensure their websites can be easily found through search engines. It is also a good time to consider online reputation management - where every potential purchase counts, a business cannot afford to have uncontested negative content regarding their product or service circulating the web.
Reason Number Three: It is a good time to outpace the competition
If a firm's competitors have outranked them online for years, now is a great time for it to exert its search engine optimisation (SEO) efforts and overtake them. If the competition has panicked and reduced its marketing budget, then a company which thinks ahead can dramatically increase its online audience and traffic. Cutting budgets is a short-term financial strategy which will impact future sales and profitability and hurt a firm even once the economy recovers.
Reason Number Four: Consumer awareness is a long-term concern
Marketing in general is about increasing consumer awareness as well as driving sales. Even when they are not in the market for a product or service, firms need to ensure people are aware of them so that, when they do finally decide to buy, their brand is first choice. A gloomy economic period will not last forever and firms need to ensure brand awareness remains strong so that they are best-placed to generate sales when spending picks up.
Reason Number Five: Firms must not be left behind
The internet is a developing marketing medium and the last thing any firm wants is to be playing catch-up once the slump stops. From SEO to email marketing and viral messages to reputation management - all online marketing develops all the time and a savvy company will want to be involved. Dated marketing can have a negative effect on a brand, meaning businesses cannot stop all promotional activity now and hope to pick it up in three months time. The internet is a fast-paced environment and dipping in and out is both costly and hard.