Planning for Sales to Recover
June 2009
According to philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” It appears we are about to find the truth of that statement as we begin to climb out of the current recession. This is not the time to pat ourselves on the back and say “phew, we survived.” It is time to make positive moves to grab up market share from more timid competitors.
Just as it is crucial to identify a down-turn as early as possible and make the appropriate adjustments, it is equally important to identify the start of a recovery and make the appropriate changes in plans quickly and effectively.
There are many indications that the current recession has reached bottom and business is beginning to pick up again. Nearly everyone believes that the recovery will be slow and long, nevertheless, it appears that the worst is behind us. Now is the time to start – carefully and judiciously, to be sure – reaching out to customers and prospects as they begin to think about the next months and years of business.
It’s easier to get visibility now because nearly everyone has cut back on advertising and marketing. Therefore, there is less interference, less competition for eyeballs and mindshare so your marketing dollars will have a greater effect. Act quickly to maintain that advantage – your competitors will be cranking up their marketing efforts before too long.
Of course, you will want to make every marketing dollar count. Get your creative team together and try to come up with unique approaches, and perhaps unique channels for your marketing message. Just don’t let the struggle for originality drive you into analysis paralysis.
It continues to amaze me: when business declines, one of the first things companies cut is the sales and marketing budget. I know this is an easy area to cut – just stop advertising and such – but shouldn’t more resources (not less) be directed at the part of the business that needs it most? If the biggest challenge is declining sales, does it make sense to cut the activities that drive sales? When business is down, you won’t generate more sales by reducing marketing and sales efforts. Write customer stories that bear witness to your performance, prepare product and marketing collaterals, create white papers about your unique message, prepare and present marketing videos and webinars. Send us an email if you’d like more information.