New Survey Shows Small Businesses Are Investing More in Marketing, Not Less, During Tough Times

"Many entrepreneurs are reversing a well worn cost-cutting business strategy for surviving a stagnanting economy. Rather than slashing marketing budgets - typically the very first expense companies sacrifice in shaky times - most small business owners instead say they plan to invest more on communications. The objective: increase their visibility with consumers through smarter campaigns, even as they worry about other rising operating costs."

""The mindset has shifted from viewing marketing as a discretionary expense to viewing it as an essential survival lever," explained Constant Contact chief marketing officer Smita Wadhawan in comments emailed to Inc. "What sparked this change is the realization that 'retraction' is not a viable strategy in a hyper-competitive market. Small businesses are choosing aggression over hesitation because they know they are in an attention war.""

Surveys of 1,500 small business owners across the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand indicate 68 percent plan to increase marketing budgets despite higher operating costs and economic uncertainty. Seventy-four percent plan to spend more time on messaging to broaden reach. Entrepreneurs are prioritizing advertising and communications rather than cutting them, and are adopting artificial intelligence tools to boost campaign performance. Marketing is being reframed as an essential survival lever, prompting businesses to pursue aggressive visibility strategies in a competitive attention market.

Read at Inc