How to survive a recession? Invest in your brand

Simon Forster at branding agency Robot Food argues that an economic downturn represents a great opportunity to get ahead of the competition

 

News headlines might feel particularly doom and gloom at the moment—not least when it comes to the economy. And things like the cost of living crisis, rising inflation and the looming recession are sadly not just clickbait—they’re all too real.

 

But what does that mean for your brand? While it might seem like a good idea to tighten the purse strings and batten down the hatches, the smartest businesses see recession as a time of opportunity—a catalyst for them to crystallise their reason for being and demonstrate just why people need their brand over and above any other.

 

Now is the time to invest in your brand

Contrary to what might seem like the most logical step, when recession looms, now is the time to actively invest in your brand. But why?

 

When 78% of brands are replaceable in consumers’ eyes, periods of recession are actually your biggest opportunity to steal market share. If you’re active where others are cutting back, you’re going to make gains. You want to be running strong, while others are dropping out of the race. 

 

Investing in brand means making yourself indispensable: now is the time to drill down into exactly who you are and why, and tighten up your core brand proposition. When money is tight, people are thinking more carefully than ever about what they spend their money on, and it’s the job of the brand to push through and make the decision easier.

 

Ultimately, why does your brand exist and why should anyone care?

 

Answering this has always been vital for any brand. But in a climate like now, the difference between a brand’s growth or decline might well hinge on how clearly it demonstrates its benefits.

 

One big idea

But how can you ensure you’re demonstrating those benefits as effectively and clearly as possible—and make your brand seem like the only one worth buying?

 

It all boils down to a smart, clear, core brand proposition—or ‘one big idea’—which every element of the brand (its visual identity, tone of voice, web presence and more) align around. In other words—a brand that’s formidable in its consistency.

 

When times are tough and your brand needs to cut through more than ever, that strong, singular message is even more crucial. 

 

Remember—even though you see your brand every day, your consumers (and potential consumers) don’t, so you need to make sure you’re speaking to them in a way that they’ll remember. People shouldn’t have to work hard to know what your brand is and why it’s great.

 

A brand that communicates in a way that’s both crystal clear and is especially important in recession times: if marketing spend decreases, then so does a brand’s visibility. So when consumers do have an opportunity to see it, make it count with watertight branding.

 

A brand should be built on one big idea, rather than a hodgepodge array of more disparate messages that makes it seem like a totally different proposition on Instagram to on a supermarket shelf, for instance. When people know exactly what your brand is, what it does, and why it does it brilliantly, it’s far more likely to be the one they think of when they’re deciding what to buy.

 

Thinking long term

It’s easy to fall into the trap of panicking in the short term when the economy is less-than-great, and default to cutting back on things like investing in your brand, hiring the best talent and so on. But when things improve again, you’ve put yourself firmly on the back foot.

 

By thinking differently, and making strategic decisions that will serve you well in the long term, you set your business up for the future.

 

If companies choose to invest in the situation, they’re in the very best position to come out of it all guns blazing. Hard times are the best reminder not to rest on your laurels. I founded my agency, Robot Food, in 2009—right in the wake of the 2008 financial crash, and its recession that lasted five quarters. And it worked.

 

Now that we’re facing another recession—the Bank of England has warned that the UK "is expected to be in recession for a prolonged period" throughout 2023 and the first half of 2024—we’re tackling it with the same head-on approach as we did when we started out.

 

We’re actively hiring the best new talent, we’re investing in our own brand, we’re moving into new premises. Basically, we’re doing the opposite of many agencies in times like this. And in doing so, we’re set to come out stronger. Maybe that means that next year will be less profitable than this year, but we’re investing way beyond the next 12 months. Long term, that investment will pay off.

 

After all, it’s easier to be the best brand or boldest agency when all your competitors are shrinking into the background. If others are less proactive, we’ll pick up their scraps—and the same applies to your brand. The alternative? Sitting back and watching the decline.

 

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Simon Forster is Founder and Executive Creative Director at Leeds/UK based strategic branding agency Robot Food. Simon founded Robot Food in 2009, a fiercely independent agency specialising in the creation and repositioning of brands with cut-through strategy and design

 

Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com