Economic forecast 2020: Marketing

Company: Teri Hansen’s dream of owning and running a company started in her home. In 1992, after giving birth to her daughter, Hansen decided she needed a change, since she had been working 14-hour days as a marketing director and wanted to devote more of her time to her family. So she started her company, Priority Marketing, taking on freelancing gigs out of her home office. Four years later, the public relations, marketing and advertising business had grown big enough that Hansen moved it into an office in Fort Myers. Today, the firm has 42 employees.

Opportunities: Over the past two years, Priority Marketing has doubled its staff and revenue, Hansen says, most of which has been due to increased demands for their services from existing clients. “Part of it is due to the continued growth of Southwest Florida. The economy has been good and their business has been good, so they are investing more in marketing,” Hansen says. She believes that trend will continue into 2020 and beyond, especially as more companies pursue more new media advertising, by marketing their businesses on social media and other non-traditional outlets. 

Threats: Hansen says the hardest thing for her firm and other public relations companies like hers is the ongoing education that is needed for businesses to understand what they are buying, especially when it comes to new digital marketing options and tools available today. She says that's where her staff comes in, as they can provide a company with the knowledge and positive results a good marketing campaign can bring. The other big threat coming in 2020, she says, is the presidential election, as she has noticed businesses get a little more cautious when it’s unclear who is going to become the country’s next leader.