It may sound funny to call marketing a trend but for nearly two years, businesses have been forced to cut costs, streamline their operations and work just to keep afloat. “Unnecessary” costs like upgrades, expansions, employee retention, training and sadly – marketing, were cut in most organizations.

Cutting costs to boost the bottom line was a mandate. While it works for the short-term, most smart managers realize rather quickly that the top-line suffers long-term. We’re happy to say marketing is starting to receive its just focus.


No, it is definitely not like the good old days when large marketing departments threw dollars at fun promotions and exciting advertising with the hope that something worked. Today, dollars are dedicated to truly defining what sets an organization apart in the market, allowing it to connect with its audience and needs to efficiently provide a measurable ROI.

Unfortunately, when the loosening attitude toward marketing starts to happen, two big questions get asked next:

1. What do I need to do? In a world where business needs to reinvent itself every 18 months and be constantly refining, two years is a long time to be stagnant. Many questions arise that need to be addressed. For example, what position do you really hold in the market now? What position do you want to hold? Who do your customers say that you are? Does your perception of yourself match the perception of your most valuable audiences? How have you been communicating with your audiences and are they still listening?  The answers to these questions may drive a whole new set of activities that didn’t exist when your marketing budget was cut.

2. How am I going to do it? The challenge for many organizations is through lay-offs and hiring freezes, skilled marketing talent may no longer be on site.

Partnering for strategic marketing direction rather than simple execution has become a growing tendency rather than growing internal headcount.

However, many organizations have been burned by so-called “experts” they’ve hired to help answer and address these questions. The market is flooded with out of work employees at all skill levels needing to make a living. The same homework needs to go into selecting one of these partners as would go into interviewing and hiring a permanent employee.

Be a trend-setter! Take a look at your marketing budget, ask yourself the tough questions and get your marketing plan focused.  Even if you’re not ready to take a leap yet, you’ll be ready to jump when time is right.

About the Author - Weidert Group Staff Content for the Whole Brain Marketing Blog is produced and published by the Weidert Group staff. Our goal is to provide helpful and informative marketing advice for your use and interest. Please contact us at contact@weidert.com