ANA: Marketers being asked to reduce marketing costs

Marketers across a wide range of industries believe their overall marketing budgets will be cut, and many are already being asked to identify cost savings, according to a new survey from the Association of National Advertisers.

by Helen Leggatt

As the tough economic climate continues to bite, marketers are feeling the pinch. Eighty-seven percent of the 100 marketers surveyed by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) said they are already being asked to look for cost savings and reductions with their current advertising and marketing activity.

Furthermore, over half (53%), expect to see their marketing budgets reduced over the next six months. According to the survey, the areas being considered for cost savings include the elimination or postponement of new projects (61%), challenging agencies to reduce internal expenses (63%) and reducing campaign media (69%) and production (63%) budgets.

"We all know that advertising and marketing is a discretionary item for a lot of CFOs who feel like that they can navigate some short-term changes in marketing spending, if appropriately managed," said Bob Liodice, president and CEO of the ANA, in a recent announcement.

"That's the real key here. You've just got to be careful about your marketing mix, what you're keeping up and what you're trading off."