Why Smart B2B Companies Turn to Agencies During Tariff Uncertainty

In times of economic volatility, many businesses instinctively pull back, reduce spending, and weather the storm in isolation. The current tariff situation has many B2B companies contemplating exactly this approach—freezing hiring, cutting marketing budgets, and attempting to handle everything in-house. But is that really the smartest strategy?

The Economic Reality of Today’s Tariff Environment

The numbers paint a clear picture of our current economic situation. Recent tariffs are projected to increase federal tax revenues by $166.6 billion in 2025, amounting to an average tax increase of $1,300 per US household (Tax Foundation, 2025). More concerning for businesses, about 25% of companies have already cut their 2025 hiring plans due to tariff uncertainty (CNN Business, 2025).

The Penn Wharton Budget Model projects that these tariffs will reduce long-run GDP by about 6% and wages by 5% (Penn Wharton Budget Model, 2025), creating a challenging environment for any business looking to grow.

Why Hiring Freezes Create a Marketing Paradox

Many companies’ first instinct when faced with economic pressure is to implement hiring freezes. On paper, this looks like sound fiscal management. In practice, it creates capability gaps at precisely the moment when strategic marketing becomes most critical.

Consider what happens when you can’t bring on that digital marketing specialist or content strategist:

• Campaigns stall or lose momentum
• Competitor messaging goes unchallenged
• Market opportunities are missed
• Your team is stretched too thin, risking burnout

These aren’t just short-term setbacks—they can lead to significant market share losses that may take years to recover.

Research shows companies that maintain marketing during economic uncertainty gain market share while competitors pull back. Smart B2B businesses see tariff challenges as an opportunity to stand out. #B2BMarketing #EconomicStrategy

The Counter-Intuitive Advantage: Marketing During Downturns

While conventional wisdom suggests cutting marketing during economic uncertainty, research consistently shows this is precisely the wrong approach. According to a recent study by the IPA Bellwether Report, a net balance of 1.9% of companies actually increased their marketing budgets in Q4 2024, with over a fifth (21.7%) reporting an increase (Sopro, 2025).

Why? Smart companies understand that when competitors pull back, there’s an opportunity to gain market share. As Harvard Business Review notes, “Firms that maintain their marketing spend while reallocating it to suit the context typically fare better than firms that cut their marketing investment” (Harvard Business Review).

COVID Success Stories: B2B Companies That Thrived by Maintaining Marketing

The COVID-19 pandemic offers a perfect case study in why maintaining—or even increasing—marketing during economic turmoil pays dividends. B2B companies that resisted the temptation to cut marketing budgets during the pandemic’s uncertainty often emerged stronger than their competitors.

The Data Tells the Story

According to research from McKinsey & Company, even in the early days of the pandemic, approximately 53% of large B2B companies expected to increase or maintain their spending rather than implementing drastic reductions, despite the grim economic signals (McKinsey & Company, 2020).

The companies that maintained their marketing investment saw significant returns. Data from LinkedIn showed that B2B marketers who continued marketing during the pandemic placed more emphasis on their company’s vision and mission, with 40% adopting a more emotional style in their creative (LinkedIn Business, 2021).

Real-World Success Examples

Several B2B companies exemplify the “maintain and grow” strategy:

1. Adobe demonstrated remarkable adaptability during the pandemic by creating what they called a “squad mentality.” Their CMO Simon Morris explained how they took their biggest challenges and created cross-disciplinary teams to bring diverse viewpoints to the table (LinkedIn Business, 2021). This approach allowed them to quickly pivot their marketing efforts and maintain growth while competitors pulled back.
2. WalkMe, a digital adoption platform, shifted their entire content strategy to address the sudden remote work reality. As their CMO described, they pivoted to highlight the value of digital connection within a disparate workforce, focusing on company culture and employee wellbeing as central tenets of digital transformation initiatives (LinkedIn Business, 2021). This strategic shift in messaging resonated powerfully with businesses struggling to manage remote teams.
3. Salesforce doubled down on their “customer success” approach during the pandemic. While not a new strategy for them, their intensified focus on serving existing customers resulted in remarkable growth during a period when many B2B companies were contracting. They demonstrated that treating existing customers “like absolute GOLD” can be an extremely effective strategy during economic uncertainty (Stratabeat, 2024).

The Lesson for Today’s Tariff Environment

The parallel to today’s tariff uncertainty is clear. As nearly half of B2B marketers reported during COVID, there is strategic value in shifting focus from narrowly-focused lead generation to supporting the entire buyer journey (Avid Demand, 2024). This same approach proves valuable in navigating tariff uncertainty.

Just as savvy B2B companies maintained marketing momentum during COVID, smart businesses today recognize that tariff uncertainty presents a similar opportunity. When competitors pull back marketing due to economic concerns, those who stay visible and focus on relationship-building gain disproportionate market share—often at a lower cost, as media prices typically fall during economic uncertainty.

In fact, research from B2B marketing experts indicates that companies that quickly learned and iterated during the pandemic ended up doing things differently than before, proving the most successful marketers are those who adapt rather than simply cutting back (UnboundB2B, 2024).

Why Agency Partnerships Make Economic Sense Now

Working with an agency like Red Branch Media offers several advantages specifically suited to navigating tariff-related challenges:

1. Fixed Costs in an Unpredictable Economy

While the full economic impact of tariffs continues to unfold, an agency partnership provides cost certainty. You get predictable monthly costs and clear deliverables instead of the variable expenses associated with hiring, training, and maintaining an internal team (plus benefits, software, and overhead).

According to research from Matrix Marketing Group, companies can achieve 25-45% cost savings immediately by outsourcing marketing services compared to maintaining a full internal department (Matrix Marketing Group, 2025).

2. Specialized Expertise Without the Commitment

When you hire a full-time employee, you’re making a long-term commitment to both that person and their particular skill set. In rapidly changing economic conditions, that commitment can quickly become a liability if priorities shift.

With our membership model, you gain access to specialists across multiple disciplines—content creation, design, strategy, SEO, paid media—without having to hire each role separately. Better still, we can adjust the mix of expertise as your needs evolve.

3. Speed and Adaptability

Economic volatility doesn’t wait for lengthy hiring processes. When market conditions change, response time matters. Our clients appreciate that we can:

• Launch new campaigns within days, not months
• Pivot messaging to address emerging market concerns
• Scale efforts up or down based on immediate needs
• Redirect resources between channels as performance dictates

This agility allows you to be responsive rather than reactive to changing market conditions.

4. Optimizing Your Marketing Supply Chain

As tariffs force companies to reassess their product supply chains, savvy marketers reevaluate their content and campaign production processes. Agency partners specialized in B2B marketing have already built efficient systems for creating, approving, and deploying marketing assets.

At Red Branch Media, we’ve refined these processes over 14 years, allowing us to deliver more impact with less waste. Many clients find we can reduce their overall marketing production costs by 15-20% while maintaining or improving quality.

B2B success stories from COVID prove the point: companies that maintained marketing investment during uncertainty emerged stronger than competitors who cut back. The same principle applies to today’s tariff environment. #MarketingROI #B2BGrowth

How Red Branch Media Can Be Your Tariff-Proof Partner

The key lesson from COVID success stories is clear: maintaining marketing presence and adaptability during economic uncertainty creates a competitive advantage. Yet this doesn’t mean companies must strain their internal resources or make risky full-time hires during uncertain times.

Just as Adobe, WalkMe, and Salesforce adapted their marketing approach without expanding their internal teams, partnering with Red Branch Media gives you the flexibility to maintain market presence without fixed overhead. Our agency model provides the expertise you need precisely when you need it—the perfect solution for confidently navigating tariff uncertainty.

The Strategic Choice: Retreat or Reposition?

As B2B companies face this period of economic uncertainty, they have a fundamental choice: retreat from market visibility or strategically reposition for the next growth phase.

Those choosing the latter path find that agency partnerships offer the perfect balance of expertise, flexibility, and cost certainty—precisely what’s needed when the only certainty is change itself.

Since 2010, we’ve guided B2B companies through economic volatility, delivering over 10,000 leads with an 89% client retention rate. If you’re navigating these uncertain waters, we’d welcome the opportunity to be your steady partner when markets are anything but.

Connect with us today to learn how we can help you turn tariff uncertainty into a market opportunity.