Executive Interviews: Interview with Richard Rawlinson on Marketing in a Downturn
July 2009 - By Dr. Nagendra V Chowdary

Richard Rawlinson
Vice President of Booz & Company.

• How should small firms organize their marketing spends? They might just have a killer product but they are crippled with marketing spends. Howshould theirmarketing efforts be optimized?
  The key is to be clear and consistent with your message andmake sure it is backed up by the product and service. In practice that means harder choices than many managers are willing to make... you have to pick just one or two key messages and stick with them. Nothing succeeds in marketing like repetition. In terms of media, there are more and more interactive and targetedmedia that are becoming available and can improve cost-effectiveness – provided you can be choiceful about who your audience is. So be realistic aboutwhat is most critical and achievable, and make the choices to focus on those messages and those consumers.