Staying visible in tough economic times

In today's economy, it's easy to follow the temptation to hunker down and try to weather the storm. For many companies this means trimming budgets and having a 'wait and see' attitude.

On the surface, this strategy might 'seem' to make sense. However, how does a company continue to sell product without remaining visible?

If all efforts grind to a halt, how are consumers going to continue to be aware of the brand?

Companies need to remind their customers, and potential customers, that they're still in business throughout tough economic times. Otherwise, they stand to lose marketshare to those who have been publicizing themselves throughout regardless of the downturn.

In this economy, PR provides companies with the best return on investment (ROI).

For example, Ranjit Choudhary, Miller Beer's marketing strategic modeling specialist, discovered that PR at 1.6 per cent of the cost of marketing reaped 20 per cent of the marketing/TV advertising results. A significant impact at a fraction of the cost of Miller’s advertising efforts. He has since made PR an integral part of the strategic planning process for their company's brands.

Strategic Communications Solutions has seen similar results for our clients. One such client, on just three articles printed in main stream media reaped over $225,000 of business. When combined with their entire media coverage, which includes TV, radio, trade magazines, and local media, they have received, for the past four years, well over 15 times their investment in PR.