2009 needn’t be hell for business…

With the recession making desperate headlines, everyone seems to be asking “what should I do in 2009?” Well, when everyone around you is going on the defensive, if you’re, pro-active, plan to succeed and get your marketing right you can come through ahead of the game.

How? Here are some of our own resident experts’ opinions into what you can expect in the year ahead.

Philip Crick – Managing Director

As Warren Buffet famously said “When the tide goes out, you find out who’s been swimming without their trunks on”, and when you do it’s not a pretty sight.

In our experience hard times make Financial Directors look really closely at the marketing team’s budget.

My tips for 2009:

Measure everything, know what you’re measuring and make sure you can measure it. If you can’t provide the proof, you’ll lose the argument and your budget…

Speed and instant visibility are often used to justify shifting budgets online, but online media alone won’t solve your problems. Well thought out, truly integrated campaigns will improve your ROI and achieve your marketing objectives more efficiently.

Ian Feber – Creative Strategy Director

It might feel like the sky is falling in… but it isn’t really. Yes, money is tight. But people still need to buy things. Everyone needs to eat, live somewhere and treat themselves occasionally. Even though people are getting pickier about spending their cash, remember good products, marketed well, to the right people will still win through.

My tips for 2009:

Do simple things well. Nothing makes your customers reach for their cash like an attention grabbing concept and kick-ass benefit, good copy, clear design and a powerful call to action…

Lots of marketing people will be looking for something new and different... but in turbulent times, the people who do well will be those who improve on the tried and tested…

Michael Stewart – Head of Digital

Over the last few years online marketing has delivered some fantastic results. But much of this was low hanging fruit and in many cases it wasn’t difficult to do well online, compared with offline channels.

Now things are getting tougher, simply ploughing more money into online marketing won’t give the desired results. Businesses are going to have to work smarter online.

My tips for 2009:

Get your online and offline data working closer and harder. We’ve always advocated that companies shouldn’t have separate email and DM plans – they should have an integrated communications plan.

Be better informed to work smarter. Customers may make several visits to your site through a number of paid for channels before making a purchase – this can now be followed using the latest Web analytics, giving you a truer picture of how your online activity contributes to the final sale…

Ben Rees – Development Director

Many businesses can survive a recession if they batten down the hatches. But the ones that do more than simply survive will be those that are smart at breaking down their markets and identifying which niches offer the biggest returns.

So as businesses start looking more closely at retention, loyalty and CRM you can minimise risks and reduce your overheads by being even more targeted with your marketing.

My tips for 2009:

Focus on understanding your customers more. Look after them, get more from your current relationships and be even more targeted about the new prospects you talk to. You’ll be in better shape once we come through the recession.

Planning, data analysis and propensity modelling will become more important as ‘granularity’ becomes even more of a buzzword. We’ll see much more use of digital technologies (including print) to tailor messages and creative to suit the individual.

If you only read one thing read this:

2009 will be torture for many marketing departments. But don’t commit the biggest sin and simply plan to survive. You’re still competing with your rivals, so plan to succeed…

Philip Crick – Managing Director – In 2009 the pie (in most instances) isn’t going to get any bigger. So make your customer the focus of everything you do, because those that do this the best will get the biggest slice…

Ian Feber – Creative Strategy Director – In recession amend the adage “It’s five times easier to get an existing customer to buy, than to get a new customer” to “It’s five times easier to get an existing SATISFIED customer to buy…”

Michael Stewart – Head of Digital – Test, learn and refine. It’s an approach we’ve always taken and will become increasingly relevant as we go into 2009. Do the job as well and as efficiently as it possibly can be, this will be the key in tough economic times.

Ben Rees – Development Director – Now’s the time to do the things you’ve been talking about. Focusing on CRM, improved planning and data analysis will allow you to be more relevant. And relevance = response.