---
title: "10 Wrong Marketing Mindsets for FMCG During the Pandemic"
description: "This article lists 10 wrong marketing mindsets during the pandemic, such as all-staff marketing, problem-oriented thinking, shrinking the front, cutting marketing expenses, closing or merging projects, defensive strategies, layoffs, consumption downgrading, avoiding transformation, and instinctive thinking. It argues that these mindsets are based on instinct rather than professionalism, and the correct approach is to focus on speed under a closed loop, using offensive measures to activate customers and achieve positive cycles."
author: "刘春雄"
publisher: "New Distribution"
email: "zhaobo258@gmail.com"
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published: "2022-06-02"
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# 10 Wrong Marketing Mindsets for FMCG During the Pandemic

> This article lists 10 wrong marketing mindsets during the pandemic, such as all-staff marketing, problem-oriented thinking, shrinking the front, cutting marketing expenses, closing or merging projects, defensive strategies, layoffs, consumption downgrading, avoiding transformation, and instinctive thinking. It argues that these mindsets are based on instinct rather than professionalism, and the correct approach is to focus on speed under a closed loop, using offensive measures to activate customers and achieve positive cycles.

Yesterday, I scattered 10 "wrong mindsets during the pandemic" on my Moments, and many people were interested. After some tidying up, I added and deleted to form this article.
Note: The mindset direction in this article specifically refers to FMCG marketing, not others.

**Wrong Mindset 1: All-Staff Marketing**
Absolutely a bad move. Marketing is not about having more people. If professionalism is insufficient, you make up for it with people.
**All-staff marketing may discover a few buried marketing geniuses, but it will never save a company.**
All-staff marketing inevitably leads to setting "targets." Once targets are set, most people complain. When an ordinary employee suddenly starts selling, they either complain proactively or are asked about it. This will inevitably reveal the company's difficult situation and accelerate the spread of bad news. This is my feeling after experiencing many all-staff marketing campaigns.
For small 2B companies, occasionally an employee with connections can secure a relationship client for a year or two, which is a different story.

**Wrong Mindset 2: Problem-Oriented Thinking**
During the pandemic, there are definitely many problems. That's normal.
How to solve problems is the key.
American futurist Naisbitt said: **Success is not because you solved problems, but because you discovered opportunities.**
**Problems are internal, opportunities are external. Look at problems internally, look at opportunities externally. Solving internal problems with external opportunities is the way to solve problems.**

**Wrong Mindset 3: Shrinking the Front**
Shrinking the front is an instinct when facing difficulties. You are shrinking, and your customers are also shrinking.
The core issue is not that you shrink customers, but that customers shrink you. If you are listed as a target for shrinkage by customers, that's terrible. If so, you will fall into a continuous cycle of shrinkage.
My approach is: **Assist your customers in creating "incremental growth," then customers will list you as a key target, and finally you will find that you don't need to shrink at all.**
In recent channel work, I have always emphasized the word "activation": manufacturers activate distributors, distributors activate stores, and manufacturers assist distributors in activating stores. **Activation is definitely an offensive measure.**
As long as you activate customers, even if customers want to shrink, they won't shrink your business.
**The more difficult the times, the more you need to think from the customer's perspective. It's not about what you should do, but first think about what your customers will do.**

**Wrong Mindset 4: Cutting Marketing Expenses**
Drucker said that all work in a company generates costs, only marketing generates revenue.
What makes marketing expenses different from other expenses is that they determine the speed at which investments in other areas are converted into cash. Therefore, cutting marketing expenses requires special caution, especially promotional expenses.
Cash flow is crucial during difficult times. **Spending less is not about ensuring cash flow; the key thinking is whether cash investment does not add value, or the value-added cycle is long, leading to continuous cash flow reduction.**
Cutting expenses is easy, but falling into a continuous cash flow reduction after cutting expenses is the beginning of disaster.
Two perspectives on marketing expenses during difficult times: **First, the input-output ratio, whether it can achieve "sustaining war with war." Expenses that can achieve "sustaining war with war" should be increased because they add to the company's cash flow; second, the payback period of expense investment, which I call the positive cycle period. If the positive cycle period is short, it also adds to cash flow.**
If you find the value perspective of expenses, you may not need to cut them.

**Wrong Mindset 5: Closing, Stopping, Merging, or Divesting**
Closing, stopping, merging, or divesting applies to wrong projects. Wrong projects can be closed or stopped at any time.
**For correct projects, apply the activation of the smallest unit.**
Most people don't understand the term "activate the smallest unit." For example, originally you boil a pot of water, which takes a long time, and everyone can't wait. Now switch to a small pot, and you can boil a pot in a short time, giving everyone confidence.
For instance, entering a first-tier city market may require an investment period of three to five years. Developing a county-level market may show results in half a year.
**The smallest operating unit, rolling investment, sustaining war with war. If it can be activated, regardless of size, confidence is gained.**

**Wrong Mindset 6: Defense**
First stabilize, then develop after the danger period.
The idea of stabilizing is very dangerous.
Only having the idea of defense and stabilization will affect all employees and customers, and they will have similar thoughts.
**If you must stabilize, also use offense to cover defense.**
**If offense is effective, then stabilization is redundant.**

**Wrong Mindset 7: Layoffs**
Look at those companies that lay off employees; society already has a negative view of them. It's not sympathy for the laid-off, but the signal of difficulty that layoffs release. Why didn't you do something earlier!
The correct approach is: **Concentrate personnel, launch short, swift assaults, and fight mobile warfare. This is what I propose as the agile organization during the pandemic.**
The basic thinking is: quickly win battles, quickly create positive cycles.

**Wrong Mindset 8: Consumption Downgrade**
The judgment of consumption downgrade is more likely to win applause, but it is not the fact.
What I observe is: **High-end consumption is the most stable, with steady growth; consumption can reduce in quantity, but it is difficult to downgrade.**
The pandemic basically does not affect the company's structural adjustment strategy.

**Wrong Mindset 9: Not Transforming During Difficult Times**
Companies are most likely to transform in two extreme states: First, the peak period. The peak period has the resources needed for transformation; second, the trough period. Because it's a last-ditch battle.
But the reality is the opposite. During the peak, everyone thinks there's no need to transform; during the trough, everyone has a survival mentality, and transformation would die the fastest.

**Wrong Mindset 10: Instinctive Thinking**
The root of the above wrong mindsets: **Instinctive thinking.**
Wrong mindsets do not require professionalism, only instinct.
Instinctive thinking seeks safety and reliability. But it cannot bring real safety.
Instinctive thinking has a characteristic: everyone thinks of the same path, and it is particularly easy to reach consensus.
In a competition-oriented thinking system, consensus is very harmful. Because the consensus of competition orientation leads to involution.
Instinctive thinking has only one result: you can die a little later. That is not the answer.
**Only living better is the answer.**
Competitive thinking has a characteristic: the thoughts that everyone has simultaneously are ineffective thoughts. **Therefore, decisively abandon the "first three thoughts" that pop into your mind.** A German marshal always said at staff meetings, "Just present the fourth plan directly."
**Instinct goes against professionalism, common sense goes against conventional wisdom.**

**Increase-Decrease Thinking and Closed-Loop Speed Thinking**
The 10 wrong mindsets almost criticize all mainstream practices of companies during the pandemic. I only criticize the thinking, not the methods. If the thinking is wrong, there is no correct method.
Another characteristic of the 10 wrong mindsets is: repeatedly thinking in terms of quantity. I call it **increase-decrease thinking.**
- **Should expenses be more or less?**
- **Should consumption upgrade or downgrade?**
- **Should we lay off or not?**
All are thinking in terms of more or less.
This is wrong.
**Correct marketing thinking is speed under a closed loop. Specifically, it is the speed of forming a closed loop. First, you need a closed loop; second, you need speed.**
**Mobile warfare, quick-decision warfare, and annihilation warfare, combined, are speed under a closed-loop system. Mobile warfare seeks opportunities, annihilation warfare sustains war with war, and quick-decision warfare is speed.**
As long as the market forms a closed loop faster, there is no need to shrink the market.
As long as the positive cycle of one closed-loop period of capital is faster, there is no fear of high expenses.
As long as you sustain war with war, there is no need for layoffs.
The smallest unit thinking is also to form a closed loop faster.
**Speed thinking under a closed loop breaks increase-decrease thinking and leads to the correct thinking track.**

Source: Teacher Liu's Digital New Marketing (ID: liuchunxiong1964) Author: Liu Chunxiong
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