Back to the 1970s or is it the 1930s?
I’ve refrained from commenting too much about the chaos and mayhem sweeping the financial markets in recent months.
Not because I haven’t been aware of what’s been going on and it’s significance. After all, I worked in banking for over 20 years and I’m an avid student of financial markets and business history.
And I talked about the “social mood” back in July in the post “‘The Dark Knight’, The Social Mood And Copywriting”.
Rather, I (perhaps mistakenly) didn’t wish to appear alarmist and I did have some reservations about whether the general public really were aware of what was going on.
Well, there’s no doubt now that the general public is fully aware of the gravity of the situation. The rush to buy gold and concern about the safety of bank deposits is ample evidence of the prevailing mood.
As I write this post governments around the world are announcing various measures designed to rescue the banking system. While these are necessary, in my opinion, even if they are successful in staving off complete disaster we still face difficult times ahead.
The social mood has turned negative and this will not change anytime soon.
So, as marketers and copywriters, where can we look for guidance in this new era?
Well, my opening line provides a suggestion. The last time the western world experienced a prolonged economic downturn was in the 1970s. So campaigns and promotions that struck a chord with the market then are likely to provide some valuable insights.
Over at the extraordinary “Info Marketing Blog”, Lawrence Bernstein has been posting a number of examples of ads from the 1970s (and indeed from earlier “hard times”). Well worth your time to check out these recent posts.
Of course, the 1930s also provide material for marketing in tough times. I’m going to do a little more research on that era and present some ideas in a future post. I’m sure the copywriting legends of that era such as Bruce Barton will have some highly relevant lessons for us today.
Modern day copywriting giant Clayton Makepeace is holding a special seminar this coming Thursday, October 16 where he’ll be talking in depth about strategies to both survive and prosper in the new era (details over at “The Total Package”).
Final thoughts for today. In the more difficult times ahead, every business will benefit from adopting a “turnaround” mentality. My good friend (and client) Murray Priestley is an expert in this area and I’ll see if I can twist his arm to do an interview on the topic.
You can find out more about Murray and how he helps business owners make more money while taking more time-off at www.Systemised.com.