Back in May of 2021, Borrell Associates surveyed a group of small businesses in order to glean some insight into their thoughts on the current state of the economy, the future state of the economy and what their feelings on both would mean for their marketing plans. This week, we’ve highlighted a few key findings from this survey, how proactive marketing in a poor economic climate is an opportunity to capitalize on change and how partnering with a local advertising agency can be of great value in developing a marketing plan that can be used to a small businesses’ advantage.

Let’s get started!

Looking Back to Move Forward

Last May, Borrell surveyed a number of local small businesses and found that 48% of respondents believed that it had gotten harder to sustain business over the course of the past 6 months. When the same question was posed a year later in May of 2022, a staggering 73% of small businesses believed that it had gotten harder to maintain business.

In May of this year, Borrell asked a similar pool of small businesses the following question: Is the current economic condition excellent, good, fair or poor for sustaining business? When it came to the current economic state, 34% of small businesses claimed that the environment was poor for sustaining business and 14% believed that it was good. Furthermore, 51% believed that it was going to get worse over the course of the next 6 months. Certainly not a shocking statistic as there currently are a number of telltale recession signs that can be found within U.S. financial markets.

During recessions, many companies have historically reduced their spending on marketing. However, Borrell’s survey produced an interesting result when it asked small businesses whether they were planning to increase, decrease or maintain their marketing spend. In May of this year, 19% of businesses said that they were going to increase their marketing, 20% stated that they were going to decrease their marketing, 54% claimed that they were going to maintain their current level of marketing and 6% were unsure of their future marketing plans.

Although small businesses see trouble on the horizon when it comes to the overall state of the economy, they are largely planning to maintain their marketing course. The pandemic taught many businesses the value in continuing to brand their business and engage with consumers in the marketplace during challenging times. Historically, companies that bounced back the fastest and the strongest from previous recessions usually did not cut their marketing spend. In many cases, these businesses actually increased their spend.

With that being said, now is the perfect time to partner with a local media partner to strategize on what to do and how to do it, while ensuring that the plan in place is reaping the greatest rewards for your business. During economic downturns, a company that can increase their advertising spend can in turn increase their share of voice. While the actual advertising content can be modified to best suit the current mood and consumers’ needs, continuing to be present can be enormously beneficial.

Having been in business for more than 160 years, The Times Union is confident in its ability to manage business internally, but also to provide expert level help to businesses as a trusted advertising partner. Through our parent company, Hearst, and our four other sister agencies around the United States, we offer the individual attention of a startup with the resources of a large corporation. If you have any questions about the Times Union Media Group and what we do, please do not hesitate to reach out to us.

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