If you've spent any time talking with leaders across the outdoor industry over the past year, you've noticed the conversations have changed. Not long ago, we were trying to keep products in stock, manage supply chain disruptions and figure out how quickly we could respond to unprecedented demand.
Today, the discussion is very different. Sales have flattened, retailers are buying more cautiously, consumers are becoming increasingly selective and marketing leaders are being asked the same question in boardrooms across the industry: "How do we get this business growing again?"
It's the right question. I'm just not convinced we're arriving at the right answers.
When markets tighten, the first instinct is almost always to cut anything that doesn't produce an immediate return. Brand campaigns are delayed. Public relations budgets shrink. Research gets postponed. Long-term communications initiatives suddenly become discretionary spending. At the same time, companies lean harder on the tactics that appear to cost the least. Social media calendars become more aggressive. Influencer product outreach increases. Promotional emails become more frequent. Every available channel is expected to carry a little more of the load because the larger investments are no longer there.
On paper, that approach makes perfect sense.
In practice, it often produces exactly the opposite result.
Your customers aren't hearing fewer messages. They're hearing more of them. Every company is trying to squeeze more value from the same low-cost channels, which means social feeds become more crowded, inboxes fill even faster and creators receive the same pitches from dozens of brands. Everyone is working harder to gain attention, but very few companies are becoming more memorable. The result isn't differentiation. It's a marketplace where everyone begins to sound increasingly alike. AI is not helping with differentiation, either.
One of the things I've learned over the years is that markets rarely create problems. More often than not, they expose them.
When demand is strong, almost every strategy looks better than it really is. Customers are buying, dealers are optimistic and even average marketing campaigns produce respectable results because demand is doing much of the heavy lifting. It's easy to mistake activity for momentum and visibility for preference.
A flat market changes that equation. Customers become more deliberate about where they spend discretionary income. Dealers become increasingly selective about what earns valuable floor space. Every purchase receives greater scrutiny, and every weakness in a company's strategy becomes a little easier to see. Brands that have relied primarily on promotions discover they've trained customers to wait for the next sale. Companies that struggle to explain why they're different suddenly find themselves competing almost entirely on price. Organizations that invested heavily in awareness but not in relationships often discover that visibility and loyalty aren't the same thing.
That's not because the market changed their business.
It's because the market finally revealed it.
Ironically, this is also the moment when communications often become more tactical at exactly the time leadership should become more strategic. Under pressure to produce immediate results with fewer resources, organizations naturally focus on what can be measured this week or this month. The activities that build long-term trust, executive credibility, dealer confidence and brand preference are often the first to be scaled back because their return isn't as immediate or as easy to quantify.
I think that's a mistake.
The outdoor industry has never been built solely on products. It's been built on confidence. We ask customers to rely on our products in environments where failure matters. We ask retailers to invest in our brands. We ask conservation organizations, ambassadors and industry partners to associate their reputations with ours. None of those decisions are driven exclusively by advertising or the latest social campaign. They're driven by confidence in the company behind the product.
That's why I believe this market presents an opportunity that many organizations are overlooking.
Instead of asking how to become louder, this is the time to become more valuable.
It's the time to strengthen dealer relationships instead of simply asking for more floor space. It's the time to create content that genuinely helps customers rather than adding another promotional message to an already crowded feed. It's the time for executives to become visible because they have meaningful perspectives to contribute, not because the communications calendar says it's time for another interview. Most importantly, it's the time to invest in the trust that will determine who customers remember when they're ready to buy again.
I've always believed the best communications strategies begin by defining the business outcome before selecting the communication tactic. If the objective is simply generating another million impressions, there are countless ways to accomplish that. If the objective is becoming the company retailers trust most, the brand customers recommend first and the employer talented people want to work for, the strategy looks very different.
Eventually, demand will return. It always does. The question every leadership team should be asking today is what kind of company they'll be when it does.
Will you emerge from this market having spent two years chasing the next transaction, or having built a stronger reputation, deeper relationships and greater confidence among the people who ultimately determine your success?
Products will continue to evolve. Marketing tactics will continue to change. New technologies will reshape how customers discover brands.
Trust is different.
It compounds over time, and it's one of the few competitive advantages your competitors can't simply buy or copy.
In every market I've experienced, that's still what separates companies that survive from companies that lead.
– Allen Forkner
Allen Forkner has spent more than 25 years leading communications and marketing for outdoor recreation, conservation and shooting sports organizations. As a communications and marketing executive, he has directed brand strategy, public relations and corporate communications for nonprofit organizations and publicly traded companies while adapting to every major shift in modern media.