A storm is brewing—one that many experts believe seasoned business owners will find familiar. With a looming recession nearing, entrepreneurs, marketers, and online consumers alike will begin preparing.
Failure to do so could be the difference between whether your business survives the next economic downturn or fades into obscurity. Brand owners who make wise decisions will reap benefits similar to the businesses that navigated the rocky business climate of the 2020 shutdowns and came out strong on the other end. While we’re unsure how long the impact of a recession will last, brands that fail to prepare will struggle to keep up with their goals and stay relevant to target audiences, which will stall growth. Having a recession-ready strategy is a must-have for growing brands in 2022 and beyond.
The Why
Before we get into the tactics you need to prepare, start by understanding the importance of being ready to face a recession. The impact of an economic downturn with an indefinite timetable will affect your business on two fronts:
Limited purchase decisions
A recession equally affects consumers and business owners. When money is tight, customers are strategic about how they spend online. Their purchase decisions narrow to a necessities-first mindset, looking at ecommerce as more of a luxury hobby than an everyday activity. If they can’t see a meaningful purpose or reason to trust your brand with their purchases, they won’t take a risk they can’t afford.
Strategic budgeting
Businesses will face several similar issues. Leaders and C-suite positions will have to make hard decisions about ad spend, budgeting, and investment choices. That’s why it’s essential to see the intent behind decision-making and zero in on how each investment aligns with overall business growth. Doing so will require using data and ensuring new initiatives are calculated choices.
The How
Recession-proofing your landing page strategy will boil down to your ability to focus on three primary areas:
Personalization
Early experimentation
Agile decision-making
Personalization
Remember: The economic climate is not exclusive to businesses. Consumers are just as affected as the brand, and you have to adapt for changes in purchase behavior. Skepticism will grow higher, attention spans shorter, and opportunities more limited.
Be intentional about messaging
Your messaging needs more precision than ever. You can’t afford to cast a wide net with your copy—you must pick a specific audience and speak directly to them. While it might initially feel like you’re limiting conversion opportunities, you’re investing in your best chance to succeed. Specifically focusing on individual segments will boost the customer experience and improve conversion rates. Speaking to audiences you’re invested in and create an effective roadmap to scale. Focusing on segments you know how to resonate with will increase your win rates and decrease ad spend.
Know your audience
Analyze each of your audience segments. Which audience do you know the best? Unfortunately, a recession is no time to tinker heavily with uncharted audiences. Strategically decrease your current target segments and focus your campaigns and experiments specifically on the narrower selection. Again, a purposeful initiative creates more value when you limit who you need to address and identify why. Once you begin to build momentum you can expand your audience outreach through adjacent segments of your current audience rather than jumping into vastly different segments with little to no insights.