Marketing planning

The CIM recently reported on the potential post Brexit funding outcomes and what it means for marketers and businesses in the South West; the focus was on the material elements that affect marketing planning and the choices that marketers will potentially have to make as professionals.

No change in funding scenario post Brexit – maintaining the status quo

This outcome postulates that the level of funding from central government after Brexit will match whatever EU funding is lost as a result of Brexit – e.g., maintain the status quo.  The assumption is this will have no more than a temporary dip and thus has limited implications for marketing planning.

Optimistic funding scenario post Brexit – a dream outcome

In this outcome, central government funding after Brexit exceeds prior funding from the EU.  If this occurs we can be more ambitious in our marketing planning because the accelerating economy would be very receptive to our goods and services – we can upscale marketing activities at pace to take advantage of the economic upturn.

Pessimistic funding scenario post Brexit – doom or boom for some?

A third potential outcome is that the level of central government funding after Brexit is lower than prior funding from the EU.  Increased in local competition for public finance after Brexit means cessation of EU funding could leave a hole in local government funding for the foreseeable future.  Although this might be concerning in local government circles, it presents process innovation and new product development opportunities for businesses and marketers. For example, necessity goods and services that were previously offered free on the back of EU funding might have to be provided by the private sector – the marketing challenge in this case would be to consider how to better meet those needs, and at modest pricing, for local consumers.

Conclusion

Regardless of what post Brexit funding scenario pertains, it is certain some time will elapse  before the new reality becomes clear and the duration of any blip between funding streams is difficult to predict.  Therefore, despite widespread assumptions that Brexit might spell doom for the economy, compression in public finance would in fact offer opportunities for marketers while an unexpected upswing in public finance would mean even more opportunities for us all.