How to help your brand in crisis?

In today’s challenging business environment, characterized by reduced sales and low market activities due to consumer pessimism, it is crucial for businesses to adopt a brand-like approach to their operations to survive and thrive. So, why not you help your brand?

According to a survey by McKinsey & Company, companies that invest in building their brands during a recession tend to outperform their competitors in the long run. A strong brand can create customer loyalty, command premium prices, and attract new customers, even in a recession.

For example, during the 2008 financial crisis, Procter & Gamble increased its advertising spend by $500 million. This helped its brands gain market share and increase revenue, proving the value of investing in brand building during a recession.

Another example is Amazon, which invested heavily in building its brand during the dot-com bubble in the early 2000s. While many dot-com companies failed, Amazon survived and thrived due to its strong brand and customer-centric approach.

To build a strong brand during a recession, businesses need to identify their real customers and understand their needs. They should be value creators, building meaningful relationships with their customers and staying relevant by showing their existence and being there for their customers in times of need.

Businesses should also make strong brand promises and deliver them rightfully. Copying what competitors are doing is not a sustainable approach. Instead, businesses should leverage media strengths, including social media, digital media, and traditional media such as television, radio, and newspapers, to reach their customers with the appropriate message at the appropriate time to help your brand survive in crisis.

Hiring professional marketing and brand management agencies can also help businesses manage their brand image in an organized, eventful manner. This ensures that someone professional in the field keeps the business on track, rather than hiring cheap and unprofessional people who could spoil their brand goals and wrongly influence them with cheaper solutions.

A common mistake businesses make is overloading customers with brand communication. Customers prefer adequate and meaningful brand communication rather than loud, restless, impulsive, forceful, and cheap sales-driven communication. Businesses should let customers feel comfortable with their brand messaging and its frequency.

Furthermore, businesses should focus on brand building rather than cost-cutting measures, as this can have negative long-term consequences. For instance, companies that cut back on advertising during a recession tend to lose market share and revenue. In contrast, companies that continue to invest in advertising and brand building during a recession tend to emerge stronger in the long run.

In conclusion, businesses can navigate the challenges of a recession by adopting a brand-like approach to their operations. By investing in building their brand, identifying their real customers, being value creators, building meaningful relationships, staying relevant, making strong brand promises, leveraging media strengths, hiring professional marketing and brand management agencies, focusing on brand building, and avoiding brand communication overload, businesses can not only survive but also thrive in a recession.