5 Budget-Friendly Marketing Strategies for 2024

Here's how to make smarter choices to engage your customers—and keep your business growing.

In light of the changing?economic climate, many brands are turning to?cost-cutting measures?to appease investors and ensure their books stay balanced.

Though the marketing department isn't immune to those cuts, I'm definitely not seeing brands turning off their spends altogether. Most stakeholders I've spoken with recently just want to make the smartest and safest decisions with their marketing dollars.?

So how can you be mindful about marketing right now, when you still need to keep growing?

I think the smartest move you can make is to look beyond your own business -- and even your own industry -- to learn from the strategies and successes (and, yes, flops!) of other owners, stakeholders, and marketing leaders.

My team at Masthead Media and I have been on a mission to do exactly that -- each year we spotlight the visionaries in content marketing through our program, the?Women in Content Marketing Awards (WICMAs). This program reflects the diversity of voices and backgrounds within our space and provides a platform for highly experienced marketers to share how they're driving innovation and success at their brands.?

Recently, I had the chance to chat with several of these leaders who gave me some valuable advice for driving brand growth and engagement -- without breaking the bank. Here's what they recommended right now.

Take a Stand, But Keep It Authentic

Some of the world's top brands have found creative and thoughtful ways to?join the conversation?around important political and social issues. You can have your say -- but, it's crucial to understand when it actually makes sense for your brand to chime in.

"Brands are taking bold, provocative actions in line with their values, and showing this type of conviction is only going to increase in relevance next year and beyond," says Lindsay Kaplan, Co-Founder and Chief Brand Officer of?Chief.?"At Chief, we've been vocal on issues ranging from reproductive rights, racial equity, and civic engagement. It's not easy to insert your brand into topics your stakeholders may disagree with, but it's inspiring to see how content marketing can go far beyond product promotion to influence meaningful change."

Staying true to your brand and tailoring your message across platforms is key -- especially on social media.

It's important to make sure you are leading with authenticity," says Jennifer Kroog Rosenberg, Vice President of Marketing Communications at?the Honest Company. "Consumers have more options today than ever before, so in order to connect, share who you are, why you exist, and the reason to believe."?

Embrace (a Few) New Storytelling Tools

If the "new normal" of hybrid work has taught us anything, it's that we need to remain flexible and be willing to incorporate new tools and technologies to get the job done -- even when marketing spend is?tight.?

"The flexibility and quality of remote video and audio platforms provide many opportunities to create quality video in a shorter amount of time, and on a leaner budget, than traditional on-the-ground shooting," says Megan Gilbert, Vice President, FORTUNE Brand Studio,?Fortune Media. "My team likes?OpenReel?because it offers professional quality video and an easy at-home interface for busy executives and experts."

Remember that your audience can play a role in storytelling, too, so don't be afraid to lean on them! "Leverage user-generated content [UGC] and enable your consumers to play an active role in your brand," says Kroog Rosenberg. "Incorporating UGC is also extremely helpful when you have a lean team and are unable to produce massive amounts of content yourself."

Think about who else your audience follows for content and storytelling, too; there may be an opportunity to join forces. "Consumers rely on the advice of creators they trust and with whom they share similar values and ideals," said Kroog Rosenberg. "Identifying the right creators, especially those who are authentic users of the brand, allows companies to engage with a broader and more diverse customer base in a much more relatable way."

Find Your "Test and Learn" Approach

I love hearing from other marketing leaders when they've proven out a new tool or tactic for their brand.

Kroog Rosenberg told me that she's excited to leverage gaming in 2023. "Today, gaming spans generations and is no longer just a hobby; it is a way of marketing," she says. "Gamifying the marketing mix and doing it right will be critical to capturing new audiences -- and even keeping the interest of your current audiences."

Gilbert shared a great reminder: "Be aware of all the tools available to you, but only try a few, and build on small successes," she says. "Everything can't succeed immediately. Find a runway and work strategically to iterate based on qualitative and quantitative performance data."

A clear testing strategy is an important part of a content marketer's toolkit, and it can take time to land on the positioning that's most effective for your target audience. Plus, it can be just as valuable to learn what doesn't work.

"Take risks and be provocative," says Kaplan. "If you're not challenging someone's thinking with your point of view, keep trying until you are."

Tap Into Your Audience's Emotions

Identifying and communicating what sets your brand apart can be daunting. What truly makes you stand out? And what does your audience love about your brand? From my experience, answering these questions is an ongoing exercise. The answers may change as a brand evolves.

I've found that a focus on strengthening a brand's relationship with customers is always the common thread. Focusing on ways to "surprise and delight" your audience through positive, personalized experiences with your brand can drive brand loyalty and retention, as well as empower customers to become brand advocates.?

What's more, this often doesn't require a significant budget -- but can go a long way. Consider things like sending handwritten cards or small gifts to customers on their birthday, inviting your most tenured customers to a virtual Q&A with your leadership team, or even highlighting individual customer stories on your blog or social media to amplify their voices.?

"Drill down on your brand's value propositions and surround yourself with smart people who have ideas about how best to communicate those value props to your target audience," says Gilbert. "Develop an audience-first strategy rooted in storytelling. Meet your audience where they are and surprise and delight them."

But to be truly "audience first," brands need to truly know their customers on a deeper level -- and strengthening that relationship takes time.?

"I love the community that Honest has been building from the very beginning," says Kroog Rosenberg. "It is part of our ethos....Through the unique community we've harnessed on social media, we get to have those one-on-one conversations with our consumers that I truly think differentiates our brand and makes our work in marketing that much better."

Similarly, Kaplan recommended tapping into your audience's emotions and identifying the messages that will elicit a response and make them feel heard. "I love how a compelling story has the ability to connect with people on a deeply personal level and evoke so many powerful emotions," she says. "At Chief, we rebranded Women's History Month to?Women's Future Month, asking the business community in a full-page?New York Times?ad to -- literally -- call and tell us what the future would look like when women lead the way. The responses we received were profound."

Always Ask "Why"

One of my favorite parts of?working with our clients?is digging in and getting to know the brands' audiences. Who are they? What motivates them? This research is the foundation of any effective marketing campaign.?

I loved Gilbert's advice for understanding your audience. She emphasized that content marketers' jobs are to tell stories that their audience will value.

?"Always ask 'why.' Why would they want to engage with what you're putting out there? Why would they stop scrolling and watch, read, or listen?" she recommends. "The more you know about your audience's habits and preferences, the better you can make content that engages the people you want to reach, which leads to the gold that is loyalty and trust."

Written by Amanda Pressner Kreuser.?Originally published on Inc.com on February 1, 2023.