Recession Looms: How Can Marketers Be Most Successful in Social Media? 3 Tips

Many economists are predicting a recession in 2023. If this occurs, it would be the first recession during the age of social media. These 3 tips can help marketers navigate this unique landscape.

1. Create future demand

Even though people might not be able to afford certain products during a recession, there will still be opportunity to create demand for these products once economic conditions improve. We know that in past downturns people engaged in “dream-scrolling,” looking through social media feeds and imagining what they might purchase when no longer struggling financially. Brands that take advantage of “dream-scrolling,” and thus drive demand for the future, can gain a competitive advantage. For example, Honda will excite their customers and increase demand by sharing imagery and updates over social media as information becomes available.

2. Politics affects everything

Politics greatly affects how people view the economy; the same economic situation is likely to be interpreted differently depending on a person’s political beliefs. It is therefore important for marketers to be mindful of how their messages on social media might be construed by different groups of people during a downturn. Various methods can be used to ensure that advertising messages are interpreted positively, including customer research, social listening, and sentiment analysis. At RPA, for example, we often analyze social-listening data for clients to better understand current customer perceptions and ensure we are using language in social posts that will resonate across groups. Of course, this attentiveness to different customer viewpoints will become even more important if the economic situation worsens and there is more political polarization.

3. Be less polished and more approachable

If we enter a recession, people will be forced to live more frugal, less luxurious lifestyles, and won’t be able to afford the flashy trips and nights out we’ve become accustomed to seeing on platforms like Instagram. This might mean that non-flashy content that is more authentic and unfiltered will play better with customers. According to RPA’s Amanda Hough, less polished and more approachable content is already a trend in social media. This type of content resonates especially well with younger generations, who are no longer as interested in looking at “picture- perfect lifestyles” on their social feeds. If there is a recession, many target customers will still want to “dream-scroll,” but among younger generations we can expect the unfiltered content trend to accelerate. Pocky has taken advantage of this trend in recent months, publishing less- polished TikTok content to improve brand perception among younger customers. This tactic will likely be even more effective if the economic situation worsens.

Keeping these 3 tips in mind can help marketers achieve their social media goals in 2023 if the economy takes a turn for the worse.