This economy is forcing most businesses to take a look at their company spending line by line. What about your marketing budget? When times are tough, the last thing a business should cut is the marketing budget. 

If you are forced to cut dollars, Horton Group suggests moving marketing budget from old media to new media and online marketing. You can get more for your advertising budget by targeting customers and cultivating leads on the web. A new web design, an SEO campaign and new doors are opened.

When consumers are uneasy, the last thing you want to do is become invisible and stop knocking on doors. A shift to online communication can bring big returns. In this finicky environment it may actually be a more prudent strategy to increase your marketing budget. Horton Group advises that when the pie gets smaller, you should go for a bigger share of the pie that is there. When the size of the pie increases, you will have earned your return on investment.