Marketing in tough economic times: why the worst thing you can do is slash your marketing budget.

It's pretzel logic: just how many companies slash their marketing budget as soon as they hear the "R" word.

The theory seems to be that if they cut their marketing budget, they'll be better placed to weather the tough economic times by conserving cashflow, enabling them (so they think) to come out the other end unscathed.

The fact is, if your slashing your marketing you're slashing your wrists! You're opening the way for more marketing-savvy competitors to take advantage of your weakened state by pouring hot marketing water on your wounds.

So what does a recession-savvy marketer do?

First and foremost, they acknowledge the fact that there's still disposable income out there being spent and the more they do to increase their share of that income in tough times, the better placed they'll be to keep revenue loss to a minimum during a recession ... and come out of it with markedly increased revenue, marketshare and customer loyalty.

Aside from having to have nerves of steel to keep marketing spend up rather than slashing, marketing in a recession requires a different brand strategy and marketing communications mix. It also requires seamless integration between all marketing components and a firm grip on measurability, but then, any marketer worth his/her salt is already doing that. Aren't you!

In tough economic times consumers still spend, but they generally fly south to the safety of known, trusted brands, not necessarily cheaper brands. Not a known, trusted brand? All you need to do is change their perception of you. For instance, if you're sitting there thinking "Yeah, but we've only been around for 12 years" think laterally for a moment. That means you've been around since 1997. To put it another way, you've been around since last century. It's all perception and how you choose to express it.

And your marketing communications mix? It's all about accountability, measurability and sustainability. Forget about the "massive noise, followed by a long period of silence" approach. It doesn't work in normal economic times, and in a recession it's an instant invitation for financial disaster. Ensure your marketing budget is focused on media that allows you to get your brand noticed in the marketplace in new and different ways such as ambient and street media, as well as a strategic selection of traditional mainstream media such as radio, print and TV.

As for your media strategy, being seen regularly is vital. A 'drip-feed' strategy (consistent weight across the entire media plan, using a variety of integrated media communications) is of far more benefit than a bell curve strategy (one that has a big bang for a short period, followed by low or no activity for a long period, then big bang again ... etc).