With everything seemingly going wrong with the world economy, it’s not the best time for marketers to expect good news. Today is no exception my friends. I’m afraid that marketing is in a terrible mess. Hope lies in the fact that most marketing problems can be solved with a certain amount of commonsense.
In an economic downturn, there may be a tendency to give up on new ideas and thinking, and just hunker down, until the worst is over.
Over the years hundreds of studies have been conducted to prove companies should maintain advertising during a recession. In the 1920’s advertising executive Roland S. Vaile tracked 200 companies through the recession of 1923. He reported in the April 1927 issue of the Harvard Business Review that the biggest sales increases throughout the period were rung up by companies that advertised the most.
Firms that are able to increase advertising during recessions are likely to have stronger future earnings, according to a new study by researchers at Oregon State University and Western Oregon University.
In a study of U.S. recessions, McGraw-Hill Research analyzed 600 companies from 1980-1985.
