Like so many businesses, we have found the last couple of years extremely challenging. At times it has seemed like there has been a never-ending procession of obstacles placed in the way of business success, each threatening to defeat even the most battle-hardy operators.
The COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of Brexit, huge increases in energy costs and spiralling inflation have all conspired to impact consumer demand and business confidence. In previous economic downturns, we have witnessed the tendency for some businesses to turn quickly to their marketing budgets when looking for ways to trim costs. Indeed, we have been able to contrast the fortunes of companies that did cut marketing investment with those that continued to invest. In the main, those that invested performed better during the downturn, and came out stronger when the recovery began.
In these current, unprecedented times, continuing to market your business to your target customers becomes ever more important. And, of course, doing so in a way that also focuses on the scale of investment, ensuring a tangible return, and enabling a nimbleness to react quickly to changing circumstances, is especially valuable.
Which is where Rare can help.
During the pandemic, we were no different to many thousands of other businesses. We saw our revenues plummet as clients mothballed their operations or scaled back their marketing activity. We placed staff on furlough and cut our costs wherever we could. Our offices remained empty, even after the end of lockdown, with working at home and online collaboration becoming the norm. As the UK emerged into the new normal, we reflected on what the pandemic, and ensuing business challenges, had taught us. And we saw a way to channel that learning into a new way of working for the future benefit of ourselves and our clients.
We used our experience during the pandemic to create a lower cost business model so we could make client budgets go further. Work with Rare and you will get an experienced team, with proven expertise of delivering results across multiple industry sectors. Our teams combine a mix of remote and collaborative working, coming together when needed, utilising flexible meeting space arrangements. Our costs are focused only on those elements that are essential for success. So you won’t be paying for flashy offices and unnecessary overheads.
In our direct teams we have only the people that we need on a sustainable, full-time basis. Roles like designers, web developers, and client project managers. But we have a proven network of go-to partners that we work with whenever needed. People like video producers, animators, copywriters, PR specialists. All managed seamlessly as if they were directly on our payroll. We don’t have expensive “head office” functions, but operate with hands-on managers and lean support services.
The benefit of this model is that we can operate in a highly cost-effective manner, ensuring that your budgets can go further and work harder for you. We have also developed a flexible approach to client projects, recognising that in some cases it will be preferable to plan step-by-step phases to marketing campaigns, using the success of one stage as the signal to proceed to the next.
Most of all, we are resourceful. We have a core team of highly-experienced people that have delivered successful, award-winning marketing campaigns for some of the region’s largest brands. And many smaller ones too. We love to succeed but we are not ego-centric. No client project is too small to benefit from our expertise. We love what we do and would be delighted to explore new opportunities in a no-obligation chat.