Avoid a downturn mentality: it’s about success, not survival.

Chances are pretty good you didn’t precisely predict the timing or the severity of the economic meltdown. Almost no one else did, either. It’s been reported that over 1/3 of all U.S. companies had no plan for a downturn in the market, which means the likelihood of your picking the timing and size of the next upturn are also slim. If you’re still in business, getting surprised by the downturn was painful; getting left behind in the next upturn could be disastrous.

For clarification, this article is neither an attempt at Pollyanna, nor a repeat of the typical agency “don’t cut your advertising in a recession” message. You’ve survived thus far – you’ve successfully muddled or managed through the worst business environment in 60 years. So, you don’t need unfounded optimism or agency clichés.

This article is about moving beyond a starvation mentality; rejecting the “flat is the new up” paradigm. It’s about focusing on success rather than survival; getting a start on your next chapter, now.

The legacy cost of a starvation mentality is that you continue to focus on cost cutting or containment. You defer investments, you postpone innovation, you put staff retention on hold and intentionally or unintentionally reward “hunkering down,” by definition penalizing “marketing up.” This might be okay if your competitors do the same thing, but right now someone in your space is seeing the current environment and thinking of ways to take advantage of it. While you’re still clinging to a starvation mentality, someone is grabbing on to a feasting mentality with your customers and your market share on the menu. As Bill Gates once said, “If you’re not worrying about your customers, someone else will be.”

How do you get a downturn mentality out of your thinking and your organization?

First, recognize that for at least 12-18 months, you’ve focused on starvation and survival. Companies that have been operating on those fumes for an extended period can become institutionalized to those ways of thinking to such an extent they can only operate that way. Now is the time to assess actions based on “value,” not just cost. It might be the time to hire outside consultants because they’re more efficient than using inside resources; presumably you’ve already spent the time getting your financials in order and you’ve no doubt lived by a mantra of save, save, save. So, now is the time to look at strategic marketing investments and those that go beyond customer retention.

Secondly, one of the most important strategic marketing investments you can make is in your people. There’s an old formula of “people, product, profits: find, grow and retain the right people and they will drive the right product, which in turn will drive profits.” Surviving probably means you’ve had to let good people go, cut popular programs, delay expansion. There is residual tension, uncertainty, anxiety and even anger in the organization. But, according to recent Accountemps research, 87% of professionals have good relationships with their bosses and 95% report getting along well with their co-workers, roughly the same numbers they found in 2005 when the economy was good. In fact the recent “we’re in this together” mentality has created something of a bond in some organizations. Now is the time to get the focus back on growth and visualizing success not survival. If you don’t have the resources to get your organization’s head wrapped around growth and success, find an experienced consultant to lead the way.

And, remember, your timetable for retaining and rewarding your best people may not fit theirs. If you wait for signs of a sustained recovery, it may be too late to keep high potential staff.

Thirdly, act like a market leader. If you’ve survived the downturn, in a lot of ways you are a market leader. Forget about what you had and what you were: what you have and what you are today is what you will lead with. Start to build a leader mindset: get your focus on market share, category innovation, competitive SWOT, the “win” Vs “loss” column. Someone is going to come out of this downturn in better competitive shape than everyone else: it could be you.

Finally, reflect on what you’ve been through in this recession: its impact, the early warning signs and what you would do differently next time. Because, there will be a next time and the best time to have a downturn mentality is before you actually end up in one.

Is your company in survival mode? Drop us a note and let’s discuss moving your organization into a success mentality.