PR & Marketing Budgets When Times Are Tough
Firms that have resisted the temptation to cut their PR and marketing budget have shown the strongest sales growth a construction industry survey has concluded (Construction News, 31st May).
Now, for marketeers this fact comes as no surprise, but as the survey authors (Leading Edge consultants and the Chartered Institute of Marketing’s Construction Industry Group) conclude it does mark a sea-change in thinking in an industry which has been one of the hardest hit by the recession.
Whereas once before marketing and PR were considered easy-wins when it came to budget-slashing decisions taken in the boardroom or at exec level , now both activities are more likely to be protected as they’ve assumed greater importance within a company’s work winning strategy.
The survey concluded that as construction companies find work streams in their core sectors drying up, they have invested in strategic marketing to effectively target new customers and markets.
The important words here are ‘strategic’ and ‘target’. To be cost-effective the marketing and PR activity needs to reflect the overall company strategy which should spell out in sufficient detail (ie: more than just blandly stating ‘sales growth’) the target markets, the key messages for each of these markets, and any USP.
About the Author
Amanda Brown
Hi there, this is my personal blog on PR-related topics, including advice on how to communicate more effectively to your target audiences.
I've been in PR for more years than I care to mention having started out as a journalist on a weekly farming magazine. I have since handled the PR for a variety of organisations and across numerous sectors including agriculture, footwear, catering, IT, care, construction and property.
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