Following a year of record inflation and an unstable economy, 2023 has the potential to be another challenging period for businesses. Many experts predict that the economy will continue to slow in the months ahead, with total economic growth dropping by 0.4% in 2023, according to Forbes. If things worsen, there is a potential for the US to ultimately dip into a recession. 

When your company looks ahead to next year, your team will likely be strategizing about how to lower costs and minimize risk to your business. As a marketing agency that was founded just before the Great Recession, we’ve witnessed which strategies help companies survive during a tough economy. Below, we’ve listed a few proven ways to cut down on wasteful marketing expenses without sacrificing impact or quality. 

Utilize pillar content.

When resources are limited, one of the most effective ways to save money and time is to squeeze more bandwidth out of each project you work on. Entrepreneur and marketing expert Gary Vaynerchuk illustrates this concept best with his pillar content strategy. The idea is to first create one large piece of marketing content, such as a downloadable guide, long-form video, podcast episode or lengthy article. Once it’s finished, you can break the content down into many smaller, shareable pieces, including social media posts, infographics, short videos and more. 

Using this model to drive marketing efforts will help your brand maximize its reach without expending more time, effort and resources on content creation. Instead, you spend time brainstorming, researching and writing once, and then repackage your work into many different forms in the days or weeks to come. As an added bonus, the smaller pieces of content will all drive your audience back to the hero piece of pillar content, which is a great way to funnel consumers into your sales process. 

Narrow your target audience metrics for paid ads.

If you choose to launch a paid social advertising campaign, be very picky about the audience your ads will reach. On platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn, you can specify the demographics and psychographics of users you want to see your message. During a slow economy, you want to make sure you’re paying only to reach an audience that has performed well for your brand in the past. Once you notice your cost per click starts to rise significantly, pull the ad down or update it with a fresh message to avoid overspending. 

When your potential audience is more focused, your brand may have to pay slightly more for each click, but each of the clicks you earn will be significantly more likely to convert. As a result, you’ll still reduce your overall spend on paid advertising, which should make your leadership team happy. The money you do spend will produce a higher ROI, thanks to your super-targeted approach. 

Focus on tried-and-true ad channels.

While we’re on the topic of paid advertising, if your business is looking to minimize risk, now is not the time to experiment with untested platforms. Instead, you’ll want to narrow your focus to the methods that historically perform well for your company. When deciding which platforms you should concentrate on next year, review past data on click through rates, cost per click, and total conversions. Find your highest-performers and dedicate more of your resources there, and less on the ones that do just okay. 

If your business hasn’t yet tested digital ads, consider instead checking reputable resources for helpful data. You may be able to find information about which platforms perform best for similar companies in your industry, or which sites are most popular with your target audience. For example, many B2B companies see impressive results using LinkedIn ads, while B2C brands tend to do better on Facebook or Instagram. 

Prioritize campaigns that drive conversion.

Once you decide on a few key platforms, you’ll also want to consider the types of campaigns that you plan to run paid ads for. If your top executives are looking to cut costs, they may not be excited to hear about a plan to spend thousands on a brand awareness advertising push. Instead, it may be more effective to emphasize a friendly price-point, highlight your loyal customers, or promote an attractive offer. 

When you’re marketing on a tight budget, we recommend ads that drive conversion instead of awareness because they can bring both short-term and long-term value to your brand. A customer who redeems a special offer has started a relationship and opened the door to future brand awareness pushes. However, a customer who gets a brand awareness message first may never make it through to complete a final purchase or see a special offer. 

Re-evaluate which services you perform in-house and which ones you outsource.

One of the biggest culprits of inflated marketing costs can be partnering with too many outsourced vendors or letting recurring marketing activities eat up unnecessary time from your in-house team. If you’re hoping to minimize costs next year, this might be a good opportunity to review current partnerships and general marketing responsibilities and look for weak spots. 

Often, enlisting an experienced agency to take on most of your day-to-day marketing needs can be less expensive than using multiple vendors or hiring a new employee to take on the work. An outsourced agency will provide a more consistent approach to your marketing program and lend a third-party point-of-view to the overall brand strategy, which can be incredibly insightful. Ultimately, a full-service agency can help companies save up to 35 percent on overhead costs immediately and improve overall revenue by up to 25 percent after just one year. Sounds pretty good during an economic downturn, right? If you think your business could benefit from partnering with a full-service marketing agency, shoot us a message or search for a reputable local agency in your area.