It’s been just over a month since the UK voted for Brexit, leaving much uncertainty about the state of the economy and how businesses will thrive being detached from the EU. However the marketing industry’s response to insulate themselves from the outside world could actually make the situation worse.
Despite the IPA’s Bellwether report forecasting a decline in ad spend following the referendum result of -0.2% and -1.3% respectively over 2016 and 2017, economists are urging marketers to remain optimistic.
I’m not saying I’m a political expert, and nobody really knows what will happen in wake of leaving the EU, but fear spreads fear. Yes, businesses can play a waiting game, but the longer investments into marketing are pushed under the rug and the more marketers slash their budgets by, the deeper we see ourselves sinking into another recession.
There’s clear evidence that those businesses who embrace volatility and invest in marketing spend emerge healthier from a financial downfall, but this doesn’t mean throw your cash at any old marketing hack. Innovation is required to thrive.
Digital Reinvention
As a third of British consumers plan to hold back on big purchases and half will increase their savings, more cost effective and transparent methods of marketing are required to generate sales. According to John Hornby, founder of The & Partnership, marketers should delve into Brexit and own their position considering that the UK has a strong digital presence. The chief executive of Zone, Jon Davie, compares the previous recession to what could potentially happen over the next year, in that the digital landscape didn’t incur the same impact that traditional media felt, predicting it will be the same case here.
Marketing is in a better place now than it was in the 2008 financial crisis, which essentially put an axe on budgets. With digital advancements such as more prevalence on data analysis and social media marketing proving its worth as a lead generating channel, marketers can be more accountable, prove ROI and justify marketing spend.
Acquiring intelligent insight into your target market and how they behave online allows you to make calculated business decisions, giving you the confidence to move forward with your marketing and achieve your business objectives. This leads to one thing: growth.
At the end of the day, marketing your product or service is effectively more important now than it was before the shock result, so going to the Winchester, having a pint and waiting for all of this to blow over isn’t the wisest of moves.
To capitalise on market share your competitors are losing post-Brexit, you need to gain a deeper understanding into your current market, digital landscape and marketing performance. See how our Research & Discovery platform can help you do just that.
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