{"id":13072,"date":"2017-09-09T00:10:43","date_gmt":"2017-09-09T00:10:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/?p=13072"},"modified":"2024-05-23T07:42:34","modified_gmt":"2024-05-23T11:42:34","slug":"got-budget-cut-heres","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/","title":{"rendered":"Got Your Budget Cut? Here\u2019s What to Do About It"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While the majority of marketers are expecting increases to their marketing budget this year,<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.gartner.com\/smarterwithgartner\/gartner-cmo-spend-survey-2016-2017-shows-marketing-budgets-continue-to-climb\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">14% are bracing for a cut<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is up from only 3% who expected cuts a few years ago and is the second highest reported percentage in the last five years for B2B marketers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Budget cuts, while unpleasant, aren\u2019t necessarily the end of the world.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many companies have been cutting their marketing budgets on purpose for years while shifting focus away from \u201cgimmicky\u201d strategies into more sustainable (and affordable) solutions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But the key to success, when faced with a limited marketing budget, is to understand the real drivers behind ROI.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13082\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image9.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"302\" srcset=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image9.png 640w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image9-300x142.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/komarketing.com\/industry-news\/delivering-quality-leads-top-priority-for-b2b-marketers-3384\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">B2B brands can spend millions of dollars on fancy ads or the latest marketing software without seeing the results they want. Meanwhile, brands with much smaller budgets could be doing better.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That\u2019s because marketing is not all about how much money you have in the bank. There are plenty of ways you can still benefit from a financial scale back.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You just have to understand when to fight for your budget, when it\u2019s okay to let go and how to leverage the money you do have to generate leads, no matter how much is sitting in your budget.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>What to Do When Your Budget Gets Cut<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There may be plenty of reasons why companies decide to cut their budget.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This could include things like an industry recession, company-wide profit loss or simply wanting to save and reinvest in other areas of the organization.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you were to follow traditional advice, there\u2019s a case to be made for defending your budget or attempting to persuade management not to make any cuts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Marketing is still a vital component of growth, after all.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to BrightTALK,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hubspot.com\/marketing-statistics\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">61% of B2B marketers<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> say that a lack of resources (staff, funding, and time) is one of the top obstacles to successful lead generation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And they list securing the budget as the fourth biggest challenge overall.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13077\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image4.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"992\" height=\"600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image4.jpg 992w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image4-300x181.webp 300w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image4-768x465.webp 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 992px) 100vw, 992px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.swordandthescript.com\/2017\/02\/marketing-spend-5-million\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So it\u2019s entirely possible for a marketing team to<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.lenskold.com\/Three+Steps+to+Defend+Your+Strategy+and+Win+More+Budget+Battles\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">make their case to management<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as to why the budget should remain intact.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But not all marketing teams will be able to do this.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Depending on the reason for the cut, it may be inevitable that certain resources are allocated to other departments to save the company, for example.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In which case, no amount of propositioning will save your budget. That shouldn\u2019t throw you off just yet, though.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A budget cut doesn\u2019t necessarily spell doom for <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/difference-b2b-demand-gen-lead-gen\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">lead generation<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> if you know what\u2019s absolutely essential to your marketing campaign\u2019s success and what can be put aside.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>The Case for Embracing a Budget Cut<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A lot of companies are embracing the idea of slashes to their marketing budget.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Some studies show that most marketing materials being produced don\u2019t even make it to the sales team.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13074\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image1.png 700w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image1-300x171.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/copywritertoronto.com\/7-smart-investments-b2b-marketing-budget\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This means that most of your marketing expenses may be going to waste on strategies that don\u2019t produce results.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is partly the reason why bigger brands are scaling back their marketing budgets even when they don\u2019t have to.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unilever, for example,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.marketingweek.com\/2017\/04\/13\/reasons-unilever-marketing-cuts\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">plans to cut their advertising by 30%<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> this year as well as the number of creative agencies they work with by up to 50% (they currently work with over 3,000 vendors).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Their reasoning? To produce \u201cmuch better advertising and marketing campaigns.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They are following in the footsteps of their rival, Procter &amp; Gamble (P&amp;G), which also reduced their agency roster by 50% and<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.adweek.com\/digital\/procter-gamble-cut-140-million-in-digital-ad-spending-because-of-brand-safety-concerns\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">cut $140 million from their digital ad budget<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In P&amp;G\u2019s case, they made the move to set \u201ca higher standard of excellence on advertising quality with a focus on brand performance.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So far, they claim to have saved $620 million (\u00a3496.7 million), which they plan to reinvest in other areas of the company.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Considering that P&amp;G is one of the biggest advertisers in the industry, this still leaves them with a substantial marketing budget that not all B2B businesses may be able to match.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13078\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image5.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"638\" height=\"359\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.slideshare.net\/RoxeneEdwards\/proctor-gambles-continued-marketing-success\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But the move away from promotional spending by the likes of P&amp;G and even Unilever still makes an interesting case study for smaller companies who also seek to improve their marketing efforts on a tight budget.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This move also seems to signify a wider shift in thinking among many brands, where marketing efforts are focused on quality instead of quantity and long-term impact matters more than short-term gain.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In some ways, this takes the pressure off of the sheer scale of a marketing campaign and places the spotlight squarely on lead nurturing and, ultimately, ROI.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Nurturing MQLs With a Limited Budget<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When it comes to lead nurturing,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/business.linkedin.com\/marketing-solutions\/blog\/b2b-content-marketing\/2016\/ask-the-experts--how-should-your-b2b-marketing-budget-change-in-\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">many B2B marketing experts believe<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that the focus will shift from developing specific strategies (digital advertising, content marketing, etc.) to an overall promotion of education for marketers and consumers alike.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">B2B businesses currently spend less of their budget on marketing training for products and services than they do for social media advertising and other direct expenses.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13079\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image6.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"731\" height=\"444\" srcset=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image6.png 731w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image6-300x182.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 731px) 100vw, 731px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.imab2b.com\/News\/b2b-marketing-budgets.aspx\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But that will need to change if B2B marketers hope to succeed with a smaller budget.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/pawandeshpande\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Pawan Deshpande<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, CEO of Curata, notes that roughly 80% of customer journeys happen before they ever consider making a sale, but the majority of marketing budgets are spent on the mid-to-bottom of the sales funnel.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Pawan suggests that B2B companies should focus on researching their audience at the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/different-stages-b2b-sales-cycle\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">top of the funnel<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> instead and invest in technology that helps fill in the gaps of their research.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">B2B companies that want to increase the quality of their marketing should, therefore, learn how to develop customer personas and understand the motivations behind the purchase, and not just learn how to implement the specific drivers of conversions (CTAs, etc.).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/leadmd\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Justin Gray<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, CEO &amp; Founder of LeadMD, Inc., on the other hand, says that companies don\u2019t need to buy more technology at all, and should instead invest in the tools they already have or in software that helps connect with customers one on one.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThis degree of [relationship with the customer] necessitates skill-sets not often found in marketing,\u201d he says. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe must change that by investing in education and training [instead of more technology].\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/andycrestodina\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Andy Crestodina<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, Co-Founder &amp; Strategic Director of Orbit Media Studios, agrees, saying that companies should \u201cput resources into developing detailed training materials\u201d as well as spend more time documenting processes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Because marketing and sales strategies can change rapidly, marketers should also consider investing in long-term marketing solutions that are sure to withstand the test of time.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13075\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image2.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"576\" height=\"503\" srcset=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image2.png 576w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image2-300x262.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.smartinsights.com\/b2b-digital-marketing\/key-b2b-marketing-trends-2016\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While strategies like social media, mobile apps, and even content marketing in certain cases are considered to be popular now, marketers should remember that they weren\u2019t always so popular.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There\u2019s still a chance that they may fall out of favor with younger B2B buyers, or that technology may once again shift the way that buyers make purchasing decisions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the modern world, no marketing strategy is completely guaranteed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That may be why many marketing experts are now putting more emphasis on training processes, relationship building and long-term objectives instead of spending resources on flash-in-the-pan gimmicks.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Improving Marketing Performance With Any Budget<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But what does this all mean for the future of B2B marketing, especially with a limited budget?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are three things that B2B marketers should focus on when it comes to nurturing leads and improving performance with whatever budget they have.<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><b> Focus on offering insights and value, not just a product or service<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People will always need a reason to care about your business. This will be true whether you have $10 to spend on advertising or $1,000,000.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Considering that the future of B2B marketing may revolve around smaller budgets or even smaller teams producing higher-quality ads, marketers will need to provide more value for every dollar spent.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This means not just boasting about the benefits of your product or service, but insights that give your customers a reason to care.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13076\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image3.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1110\" height=\"828\" srcset=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image3.png 1110w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image3-300x224.png 300w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image3-1024x764.png 1024w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image3-768x573.png 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1110px) 100vw, 1110px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.wiki-blue.com\/sites\/wikiblue\/Pages\/The%20B2B%20Advantage%20and%20Customer%20Insight%20Gap.aspx\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Marketers should center their efforts on reframing how the customer thinks about their business and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/8-ways-b2b-companies-can-use-influencer-marketing\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">what makes their brand unique<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as a supplier.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This will allow you to focus on the real value provided to the customer through your services, not just on how they hear about your brand or whether or not they open an email about your services.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s a \u201cbigger picture\u201d approach to marketing that will hopefully help you narrow down which marketing tactics are worth the value of your budget and which ones can be skipped.<\/span><\/p>\n<ol start=\"2\">\n<li><b> Focus on vendors that are producing ROI<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With a smaller budget, every investment you make will need to be worthwhile.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">According to one<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/e61c88871f1fbaa6388d-c1e3bb10b0333d7ff7aa972d61f8c669.r29.cf1.rackcdn.com\/DGR_DG043_SURV_B2BBuyers_Jun_2016_Final.pdf\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2016 demand generation survey<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, B2B buyers are now scrutinizing the vendors they use more closely than they have before.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This not only means that your B2B company will come under more scrutiny, but that you should also be examining the vendors you work with to ensure that they\u2019re giving you the most value for your investment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The 2016 survey found that respondents ranked ROI as one of the top 4 most important factors for choosing certain vendors.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Also included was timeliness of response and demonstration of knowledge about the industry as a whole as well as about the companies they are serving.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13081\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image8.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"520\" height=\"293\" srcset=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image8.png 520w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image8-300x169.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 520px) 100vw, 520px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/e61c88871f1fbaa6388d-c1e3bb10b0333d7ff7aa972d61f8c669.r29.cf1.rackcdn.com\/DGR_DG043_SURV_B2BBuyers_Jun_2016_Final.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In other words, brands should be asking their vendors: \u201cWhat can you really do for us?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The same reasons that customers choose you as a vendor should be your criteria for choosing other vendors. Do they truly care about your company and are they getting you the results you want?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When every dollar counts, you want to ensure you\u2019re seeing the right type of ROI from your vendor relationships.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As was the case with P&amp;G and Unilever, reducing vendor relationships may be the best thing for your marketing efforts anyway, even if you have the budget to keep them.<\/span><\/p>\n<ol start=\"3\">\n<li><b> Focus on the next generation of B2B buyers<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The way you will market to your target audience will need to change, too, regardless of how much your budget changes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your current marketing tactics are focused on Baby Boomers and Gen Xers, for example, you will most likely see results as long as they are the ones with the B2B buying power.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But eventually, your customer demographics will transition whether you\u2019re ready for it or not. Soon, the majority of B2B buyers will be Millennials.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Studies show that Millennials are spending much more on B2B services today than other generations. In fact,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/hypepotamus.com\/news\/millennials-b2b-buying\/\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">34% said they had budget or final sign-off<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for tech purchases compared to 27%of Gen Xers and only 23% of Boomers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But marketing to a younger generation means switching approaches.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13080\" src=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image7.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"635\" srcset=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image7.jpg 700w, https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/image7-300x272.webp 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/hypepotamus.com\/news\/millennials-b2b-buying\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Image Source<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Younger generations care less about face-to-face meetings and vendor emails. If the majority of your budget revolves around these strategies, you may see a decline in interest and sales performance over time.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Again, this goes back to educating your marketing team on how to adjust to the needs of a different generation of B2B buyers and the motivations that drive them through the funnel.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Without understanding the next evolution of marketing, you risk becoming irrelevant, even if you have millions in your budget to spend.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Conclusion<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While budget cuts are never enjoyable, they are not a death sentence for your lead generation efforts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">B2B companies that want to survive budget cuts should shift the focus of their marketing campaigns to quality and long-term marketing strategies that provide real value for their customers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When every dollar counts, it\u2019s important that vendor relationships and any investments produce real, measurable ROI for the brand.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There may come a day when you need to cut ties with certain marketing strategies or vendors to ensure that your customers are getting everything they need.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But in many cases, this should be happening regardless of the size of your budget.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After all, you always want to be doing what\u2019s best for the customer, no matter how much money you have in the bank.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While the majority of marketers are expecting increases to their marketing budget this year, 14% are bracing for a cut.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":13073,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[50,56],"tags":[68,69,81,140,149],"class_list":["post-13072","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ppc","category-seo","tag-advertising","tag-adwords","tag-budget","tag-ppc","tag-roi"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Got Your Budget Cut? Here&#039;s What to Do About It | Directive Consulting<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"If you&#039;re bracing for a marketing budget cut, don&#039;t panic. Embrace it. Look at vendor relationships to improve marketing performance and focus on value.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Got Your Budget Cut? Here&#039;s What to Do About It | Directive Consulting\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"If you&#039;re bracing for a marketing budget cut, don&#039;t panic. Embrace it. Look at vendor relationships to improve marketing performance and focus on value.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Directive CA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-09-09T00:10:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-05-23T11:42:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/cutbudget.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"455\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Brad Smith\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Brad Smith\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"11 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Brad Smith\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/00adeffc4d8187e620ab9f10155aba73\"},\"headline\":\"Got Your Budget Cut? Here\u2019s What to Do About It\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-09-09T00:10:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-05-23T11:42:34+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":2028,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/11\\\/2017\\\/09\\\/cutbudget.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Advertising\",\"Adwords\",\"Budget\",\"PPC\",\"ROI\"],\"articleSection\":[\"PPC\",\"SEO\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/\",\"name\":\"Got Your Budget Cut? Here's What to Do About It | Directive Consulting\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/11\\\/2017\\\/09\\\/cutbudget.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-09-09T00:10:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-05-23T11:42:34+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/00adeffc4d8187e620ab9f10155aba73\"},\"description\":\"If you're bracing for a marketing budget cut, don't panic. Embrace it. Look at vendor relationships to improve marketing performance and focus on value.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/11\\\/2017\\\/09\\\/cutbudget.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/11\\\/2017\\\/09\\\/cutbudget.png\",\"width\":800,\"height\":455},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/got-budget-cut-heres\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Got Your Budget Cut? Here\u2019s What to Do About It\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/\",\"name\":\"Directive CA\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/00adeffc4d8187e620ab9f10155aba73\",\"name\":\"Brad Smith\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0f1144e66d29669be86ef71e98d0587941910982d1d037ff7f02d2f014777728?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0f1144e66d29669be86ef71e98d0587941910982d1d037ff7f02d2f014777728?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/0f1144e66d29669be86ef71e98d0587941910982d1d037ff7f02d2f014777728?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Brad Smith\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/directiveconsulting.com\\\/ca\\\/blog\\\/author\\\/brad-smith\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Got Your Budget Cut? Here's What to Do About It | Directive Consulting","description":"If you're bracing for a marketing budget cut, don't panic. Embrace it. Look at vendor relationships to improve marketing performance and focus on value.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Got Your Budget Cut? Here's What to Do About It | Directive Consulting","og_description":"If you're bracing for a marketing budget cut, don't panic. Embrace it. Look at vendor relationships to improve marketing performance and focus on value.","og_url":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/","og_site_name":"Directive CA","article_published_time":"2017-09-09T00:10:43+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-05-23T11:42:34+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":455,"url":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/cutbudget.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Brad Smith","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Brad Smith","Est. reading time":"11 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/"},"author":{"name":"Brad Smith","@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/#\/schema\/person\/00adeffc4d8187e620ab9f10155aba73"},"headline":"Got Your Budget Cut? Here\u2019s What to Do About It","datePublished":"2017-09-09T00:10:43+00:00","dateModified":"2024-05-23T11:42:34+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/"},"wordCount":2028,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/cutbudget.png","keywords":["Advertising","Adwords","Budget","PPC","ROI"],"articleSection":["PPC","SEO"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/","url":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/","name":"Got Your Budget Cut? Here's What to Do About It | Directive Consulting","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/cutbudget.png","datePublished":"2017-09-09T00:10:43+00:00","dateModified":"2024-05-23T11:42:34+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/#\/schema\/person\/00adeffc4d8187e620ab9f10155aba73"},"description":"If you're bracing for a marketing budget cut, don't panic. Embrace it. Look at vendor relationships to improve marketing performance and focus on value.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/cutbudget.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2017\/09\/cutbudget.png","width":800,"height":455},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/got-budget-cut-heres\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Got Your Budget Cut? Here\u2019s What to Do About It"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/#website","url":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/","name":"Directive CA","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/#\/schema\/person\/00adeffc4d8187e620ab9f10155aba73","name":"Brad Smith","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f1144e66d29669be86ef71e98d0587941910982d1d037ff7f02d2f014777728?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f1144e66d29669be86ef71e98d0587941910982d1d037ff7f02d2f014777728?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0f1144e66d29669be86ef71e98d0587941910982d1d037ff7f02d2f014777728?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Brad Smith"},"url":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/blog\/author\/brad-smith\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13072","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13072"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13072\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13073"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13072"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13072"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/directiveconsulting.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13072"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}