It is counterintuitive, but study after study of every recession since 1949 has shown that companies that advertise during a recession win business from those that don’t. Increasing spending during this time can achieve the same net ROI as a cut in spending. A recession is apparently an opportunity to make significant gains in market share at the expense of smaller or less aggressive firms. One study of hundreds of companies showed that companies that advertised achieved 14 times the sales growth of companies that did not. Even more amazing, these gains can last three to five years. Even large and experienced marketers have learned the folly of cutting advertising expenditures during a recession,only to see sales fall even more, for a net loss.Perhaps one reason recessions are a great time to advertise is that personal consumer spending actually goes up during a recession and is highest at the very bottom of the recession. Companies that cut back on advertising miss their share of this spending spree.Another reason may be that the overall noise level of advertising goes down as many companies cut back, and so those that advertise stand out more. It’s also possible that during a recession consumers get a sense of which companies will survive and which won’t, based on cues like whether or not they advertise. Whatever the reason, there is no better time to aggressively invest in marketing communications than during a recession.