{"id":5695,"date":"2022-08-24T10:46:34","date_gmt":"2022-08-24T10:46:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/"},"modified":"2022-08-24T10:46:34","modified_gmt":"2022-08-24T10:46:34","slug":"how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/","title":{"rendered":"How to manage SEO campaigns during economic downturns"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Economic downturns create uncertainty and changes in user behavior that impact markets and forecasts. They also affect the approach and resources allocated to marketing activities.<\/p>\n<p>Because no two recessions are the same, marketers operate in uncharted waters every time it happens.<\/p>\n<p>This article can help marketers manage SEO campaigns and show the value of their efforts despite a recession.<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_81 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/#Doing_business_during_a_recession\" >Doing business during a recession<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/#The_argument_for_not_reducing_spending\" >The argument for not reducing spending<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/#How_to_keep_your_SEO_efforts_going_during_a_downturn\" >How to keep your SEO efforts going during a downturn<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/#Review_your_TAM_and_messaging\" >Review your TAM and messaging<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/#Smarter_opportunity_analysis_and_competitor_targeting\" >Smarter opportunity analysis and competitor targeting<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/#Positioning_for_post-recession\" >Positioning for post-recession<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/24\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns\/#Conclusion\" >Conclusion<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Doing_business_during_a_recession\"><\/span>Doing business during a recession<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Consumers will naturally reduce their spending during economic downtimes and establish more stringent priorities.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>When sales decline, businesses begin to reduce expenses, lower prices and delay making new investments. Unfortunately, marketing expenditures are often the first to get cut. This approach to cost reduction is ineffective and should be avoided.<\/p>\n<p>Clients often judge SEO and paid search as independent channels. SEO can be seen as \u201cOK to turn off for a bit,\u201d while a brand rests on its laurels on the assumption that the current performance won\u2019t worsen during the downturn.<\/p>\n<p>But SEO isn\u2019t the only channel that may see issues here. In 2009, the entire U.S. ad market <a href=\"https:\/\/www.economist.com\/business\/2009\/07\/30\/nothing-to-shout-about\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">saw a decline of 13%<\/a>. This was predominantly driven by radio and magazines, which saw declines of 22% and 18%, while \u201conline\u201d only declined by 2%.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-background has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">\n<p><!-- START INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<div class=\"nl-inline-form border py-2 px-1 my-2\">\n<div class=\"row align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-3 col-xl-4 pe-md-0 pb-2 pb-lg-0\">\n<p class=\"inline-form-text text-center mb-0\">Get the daily newsletter search marketers rely on.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-7 col-xl-6  pe-lg-0\">\n<div class=\"form-nl-inline\">\n<div class=\"row g-0\">\n<div class=\"form-group col-12 col-lg-8 mb-0\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-4 col-xl-4 mb-0\">\n<div class=\"d-none\">\n<p>Processing&#8230;Please wait.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button class=\"btn btn-dark inlineButton w-100 rounded-0 font-weight-bold\" type=\"submit\" name=\"submit_button\">SUBSCRIBE<\/button>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-2 col-xl-2 ps-1\">\n<p class=\"text-center mb-0\"><a class=\"nl-terms\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/termsofuse\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">See terms.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- END INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-background has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"The_argument_for_not_reducing_spending\"><\/span>The argument for not reducing spending<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>It might be a good idea to keep costs down when entering a recession. But if you fail to support brands or examine how your core customers\u2019 needs evolve, you will likely jeopardize your medium to longer-term performance.<\/p>\n<p>Organizations and trade bodies such as the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) refer to this as losing the \u201cshare of mind.\u201d In the United Kingdom, the IPA has <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Campaignmag\/status\/1253069840627257349\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">publicly advertised<\/a> warning brands not to reduce marketing spend in the months ahead.<\/p>\n<p>Reading through research papers and thought leadership content from the International Journal of Business and Social Science, Harvard Business Review, and specialists from the Economist and Financial Times, five key marketing objectives for a recession begin to emerge.<\/p>\n<p>These themes are:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Smarter spending and investment.<\/li>\n<li>Retention of the existing customer base should be prioritized.<\/li>\n<li>Leverage your competitor\u2019s weaknesses.<\/li>\n<li>Monitor the market and adjust spend targeting segments based on their behaviors.<\/li>\n<li>Maintain your current spending at a minimum, just spend smarter.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_to_keep_your_SEO_efforts_going_during_a_downturn\"><\/span>How to keep your SEO efforts going during a downturn<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The general message is \u201cdo not reduce spending.\u201d That\u2019s great.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But when defending our retainer or contract renewal, businesses want to know how their SEO spend will tangibly impact the bottom line.<\/p>\n<p>To address this, we can look to the 2008 recession and the recent pandemic \u2013 when other <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/adaptability-new-competitive-advantage-seo-386278\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">businesses pivoted<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/why-updating-your-messaging-is-the-best-strategy-right-now-video-333923\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">changed messaging<\/a> across their digital marketing.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s apply the learnings to help our clients or employers power through an economic downturn without pausing their SEO efforts.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Review_your_TAM_and_messaging\"><\/span>Review your TAM and messaging<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>A total addressable market, or TAM, can be defined in several ways.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The most common is to define it as the total number of people who could possibly use a product or service. For example, the TAM for a new smartphone might be the total number of people who own a cell phone.<\/p>\n<p>Despite its limitations, TAM can be a helpful metric for investors to assess a company\u2019s growth potential. Companies with large TAMs can be desirable to investors because they have the potential to generate a lot of revenue.<\/p>\n<p>During a recession, businesses (in B2B) and consumers will react differently depending on their economic stability.<\/p>\n<p>Depending on your TAM, you may need to <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/seo-during-global-disruption-387218\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pivot your messaging and value propositions<\/a>. This then ties into your SEO strategy. Align activities to these messaging goals, depending on whether your product is deemed essential, luxury, postponable or expendable.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Essential products<\/strong> are often price-sensitive during a downturn. You may want to highlight the value proposition further for less economically stable consumers. <\/p>\n<p>For those in your TAM who are better off, you should continue awareness campaigns (i.e., top and middle of the funnel activities).<\/p>\n<p>By comparison,<strong> luxury products<\/strong> can be communicated as being precisely that \u2013 a luxury\/treat to be consumed as a reward for austerity in other areas. They can also induce dopamine reactions and raise morale.<\/p>\n<p>The other two categories, <strong>postponables<\/strong> and <strong>expendables<\/strong> are the most difficult to pivot for. <\/p>\n<p>An example of a postponable is a TV streaming service or magazine subscription. Users ahead of postponing may research cheaper alternatives to avoid missing out. During this research phase, you must be visible and fight to retain your existing users.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For other goods that can be postponed (such as servicing a vehicle, replacing a tire, or updating home security systems), messaging should focus on the long-term financial and opportunity costs of not performing these actions now and providing support messaging.<\/p>\n<p>Expendable products and services will likely impact local SEO more than other sectors. Rather than hire a gardener or decorator, consumers will choose to perform the maintenance and upgrades themselves. <\/p>\n<p>This is both an opportunity and a threat to sell to consumers by enabling them or working to remain visible as a company and build trust.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Smarter_opportunity_analysis_and_competitor_targeting\"><\/span>Smarter opportunity analysis and competitor targeting<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Most businesses are focused on maintaining and retaining market position during a recession. It\u2019s an excellent time to identify consumers they currently hold and work to leverage them toward your products and services.<\/p>\n<p>Competitive targeting should be a staple of an SEO campaign anyway. <\/p>\n<p>But during a downturn, when sensitivity to price and value is heightened, your messaging and content can focus on pain points that consumers may have with competitor products and services. <\/p>\n<p>Turn these into a competitive advantage to create a conversation with new prospects. You can produce competitor comparison content and highlight the competitor\u2019s weak spots as non-issues or strengths with your product. <\/p>\n<p>For example, if you\u2019re providing a rotating proxy service and you know that your competitor, Bob\u2019s Proxies has issues with uptime, then make sure your content highlights that your service has no such problems.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Positioning_for_post-recession\"><\/span>Positioning for post-recession<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>SEO is a long-term strategy, but you must focus on the longer-term <strong>and<\/strong> the short-term during an economic downturn.<\/p>\n<p>Typically, consumer trust and spending recover within one to two years of a recession. When consumers return to post-downturn spending levels (or establish new market norms), you want to ensure you\u2019re prominent and visible in the vertical.<\/p>\n<p>You can do so by maintaining a certain level of activity toward establishing and maintaining top-of-vertical awareness and remaining competitive for bottom-of-funnel, conversion-focused queries.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Conclusion\"><\/span>Conclusion<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>During a recession, marketing may seem like more of a challenge than usual. Customers\u2019 spending habits often change, and you may have to go against your instincts.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s essential to optimize your budget and be strategic about your priorities. You can continue marketing your products or services while providing for your customers\u2019 needs. A recession can be an opportunity to build customer loyalty.<\/p>\n<p>During a downturn, SEO can alleviate direct cost channels (such as paid) and offer long-term benefits and short-term stability. <\/p>\n<p>Google and the other search engines will continuously update during this period. Competitors who remain stagnant and withdraw resources will suffer in the medium to long-term, costing more in the future to regain lost performance and the opportunity cost of lost visibility.<\/p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/how-to-manage-seo-campaigns-during-economic-downturns-387398\" target=\"_blank\">How to manage SEO campaigns during economic downturns<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Search Engine Land<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Economic downturns create uncertainty and changes in user behavior that impact markets and forecasts. They also affect the approach and resources allocated to marketing activities. Because no two recessions are the same, marketers operate in uncharted waters every time it happens. This article can help marketers manage SEO campaigns and show the value of their efforts despite a recession. Doing business during a recession Consumers will naturally reduce their spending during economic downtimes and establish more stringent priorities.\u00a0 When sales decline, businesses begin to reduce expenses, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"h5ap_radio_sources":[],"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5695","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-best-seo-blogs"],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":false,"author_link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/author\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5695","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5695"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5695\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5695"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5695"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5695"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}