It’s true to say that for some the last few years have been somewhat challenging but who said business was easy anyway? As the world economy battles on, the world of marketing is once again given another challenge to face. But is it all doom and gloom or is this the ideal time to embrace your brand, stride past your cowardly competitors who tightened their belts so much they can’t move and get ahead of the race?

Reducing your marketing activity may help you hit financial targets short-term, but it will definitely leave your company in a less competitive position when the economy picks up again. Certainly the natural instinct is to sit tight and ride out the storm but, from a design (and business) point of view, could this economic blip and potential quiet period be the perfect opportunity to analyse, plan and implement the way forward? Indeed, the ‘storm’ will always clear and, inevitably, the smarter businesses will hit the ground running. So, how can design help with this? Branding is one of the strongest ways of telling your customers who you are and reinforcing why they should use you. Many companies are now refining their brand and messaging to align with their customers and the economic climate, making themselves more relevant – clearly and effectively.

The Design Council research shows that design is an important tool that can help businesses survive a recession. Their research shows that more than half of the UK’s businesses:
Over half (54%) of the firms in their survey thought design would contribute to a large or great extent in helping maintain their competitive edge in the current economic climate.
Similarly, 53% thought that design had become more important in helping the firm to achieve its business objectives over the last three years.
The same number strongly agreed that design is integral to the country’s future economic performance and if you’re one of the lucky businesses that’s having a storming time of it, then imagine what you can achieve with some great marketing.

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