Marketing at Low Tide

Book excerpt: In 2020, the longest period of economic expansion in U.S. history came to a grinding halt. Caught off guard by years of growth and record-breaking profits, architecture, engineering, and construction firms (known collectively as the A/E/C Industry) are now reeling and wondering how long the recession will last and how severe the financial impacts will be. During the Great Recession of 2008-2010, many A/E/C firms made deep and devastating cuts into their Marketing departments. These short-sighted 'cost-saving' measures rippled across the country and caused waves of layoffs of marketing professionals across all job categories and levels of seniority. This type of extreme de-investment in marketing resources hinders a firm's ability to position in the hyper-competitive landscape of a recession. It also increases the likelihood of a loss in market share to competitors who didn't make such cuts. To prevent this from happening again, it is important to take a step back and reflect--to both understand the motivations and perceptions that drive firm financial decisions, as well as to clinically review some of the miss-steps marketing departments make when the 'tide goes out'. The wear and tear of a strong economic expansion can take a toll on our marketing operations and make it difficult to pivot into recession. Any stumbles in our agility send signals to our firm leadership that we may not be up to the task of weathering an economic downturn. This book offers several action steps and strategies to reinforce our marketing operations and improve the agility we so badly need right now.