Why the last thing you should do in a recession is scale back PR

Accepting ‘she would say that, wouldn’t she,’ I’m going to have to say you’d be mad to scale back PR in a recession.?Here’s why

Let’s start with the long view first. I’ve been doing PR for over 25 years, and I can honestly say that our work has always increased in times of uncertainty. Without exception.

Truly. Through all the history of Sarum PR, I've only ever seen investment in PR by our clients in B2B technology or Life Sciences either stay steady, or even increase in the bad times. I genuinely believe that companies that are seriously engaged with PR wouldn’t give even a passing thought to scaling it back in a bad period.

Why: because those guys know PR is a worthwhile long-term investment… and as they see themselves as around for the long run, that’s always got to be part of the proposition.

They base this analysis on the positive returns they get on their PR investment through customer loyalty, market position, sales, brand, reputation—the list goes on. So why would they risk losing that? It’d make as much sense as downsizing their most successful sales team or closing one of their most successful stores.

The pandemic just reinforced this so much. I remember at the beginning I was like a rabbit in the headlights and kept thinking, oh my God, everyone might stop doing PR because we don't know what we're faced with etc.

Actually, the reverse happened. Not only did people just keep it going but did more of it! We had people knocking on the doors wanting to do PR—seizing the opportunity in uncertain times like they were (and may be about to be facing yet again) to grow their share of voice.

Why? Because it tells your customers and prospects that you’re still standing, and possibly that your rivals haven’t been able to weather the storm. It shows you're still participating, you're still communicating, you're still active—and that you'll still be there when things get better.

The value of PR will show itself in so many ways

Without a doubt, PR is one of the most effective, resourceful, and in fact budget-conscious ways to keep your name out there during down periods. And even better, the third party endorsement PR creates carries through, resonating with audiences long after uncertainty has passed. Seen from this perspective, there could be no bigger mistake than cutting PR during a crisis; those who think ahead and want to sustain their long term success know they need to continue communicating and connecting with their market.

In fact, some brands increase their PR efforts during a recession, because when other businesses are reducing their PR that’s the perfect time to go on the offensive. They know when their competitors are holed beneath the hull it’s time to step into the vacuum and make more news, pique people's interest, allow them to get to know your product or service.

And let’s not forget that customers need to hear from you more in times of uncertainty than less. But I don’t encourage Sarum clients to do just more of the same in bad times; I challenge them to use it as an opportunity to think differently—to look at doing different types of campaigns, maybe using different digital platforms, perhaps start a customer advocacy programme, a podcast, engage in an analyst relations campaign—it’s just a good time to shake things up.

But whatever you do—keep going. Done right, PR strengthens trust, which is a key value today for all stakeholders but especially the public and employees.

So, be seen as the reassuring choice—as once recovery happens, you’re in a perfect position to make good on all the familiarity and goodwill you’ve kept, or even ideally increased.