The economy was front and center at this year’s Providence Business Expo. Or at least it was foremost on everyone’s mind. And the headlines didn’t offer much hope either. Even speakers mentioned it by name — yes, recession.

Yet there was a certain buzz about the crowd. Not a bad-buzz per say (for the most part anyway). Actually, quite the opposite. It seemed that fellow businesses weren’t too interested in sitting on the sidelines. For some, it was business-as-usual. For others, even a bit of defiant.

Either way, it was a boost. Especially given the fact that we spent two days talking to seemingly hundreds of different companies about the advantages of marketing in a down economy. And we pressed that despite the bleak economic outlook, there are still tremendous opportunities to be had— with the right design and marketing solutions of course.

So how did it go? Guess only time — and you — may tell.

Share your take with us. How’s it affecting your business? Please join the conversation.