Businesses with strong brands recover from adversity faster
The great thing about the past is that we can learn valuable lessons with 20/20 vision, especially if those past events are still fresh in our minds. So I want to share a great article written for MarketingProfs last year, Stronger Brands Recover From Recession Faster.
A ton of marketers say they understand marketing and the value of their brand. Yet when the business cycle slows down, the first thing they try to manage is the “spend” on marketing, when in fact companies should be doing the exact opposite as the Millward Brown BrandZ study clearly demonstrates.
“In the past, many companies were quick to cut their marketing spend during a down economy,” said Joanna Seddon, CEO of Millward Brown Optimor. “A new trend has emerged in the wake of the recession as more companies realized the importance of maintaining and even increasing budgets to support brand loyalty and engagement.”
Here are a few highlights from the study:
- The world’s most valued brands are recovering from the recession faster than the Standard & Poor’s 500.
- The BrandZ Top 100 brands have returned a 28% higher yield than the S&P 500.
- Innovative technology brands are the most pervasive (look for renewable energy companies to begin leading the way soon).
- Social Media is now in your face(book)… yes, even in B2B.
- Businesses with strong brands are able to recover from adversity faster.
We always preach that a strong, well-supported brand can help withstand slow economies and strong competition and that neglecting to support the brand is detrimental to growth. In 25 years, I’ve seen many companies freak out and stop communicating to their customers when times get tough. Those that stay the course virtually always stay top of mind and win in the end.
Is your company’s brand prepared for the unforeseen? If not, prepare now. Don’t wait until it’s too late.
As always, let us know your thoughts.
