Years ago, when I fist began to focus on marketing, I took a trip to the local bookstore to do some research. The first book I picked up was, Ogilvy on Advertising, by David Ogilvy. Though it was first published in 1985, and there were many newer books on the shelf, something about it captured my attention. I bought the book and quickly read it in one sitting. I have returned to it many times. Even though Ogilvy predated the dawn of online advertising his wisdom is timeless. Here is Ogilvy’s passage on marketing in a recession:

What should you do in times of recession, when you need every penny to sustain your earning? Stop advertising?

If you stop advertising a brand which is still in its introductory phase, you will probably kill it – for ever. Studies of the last six recessions have demonstrated that companies which do not cut back their advertising budgets achieve greater increases in profit than companies which do cut back.

In a Morril survey of 40,000 men and women involved in the purchase of 23 industrial products over five years, it was found that share-of-market went up in bad times-when advertising was continued.

I have come to regard advertising as part of the product, to be treated as a production cost, not a selling cost. It follows that is should not be cut back when times are hard, any more than you would stint any other essential ingredient you product.

During World War II, the British Government prohibited the marketing of margarine under brand names, but Unilever continued to advertise one of their brands during all the years it was not on the retailers’ shelves. When the war ended the brands returned, the Unilever brand emerged at the top of the heap.

Keynes might have advised manufacturers not to advertise during boom times, but instead set aside the money in a reserve for advertising during recessions.

What is great about Ogilvy’s insight is that it reflects the role of advertising for a vast array of products and service areas. The idea that marketing is part of the production cost is one that law firms need to understand now more than ever. With corporations turning more frequently to in-house counsel and firms of all sizes dissolving, now is not the time to cut advertising, rather it is the ideal time to make sure your marketing plan is strong and focused.