Many businesses struggle to create effective marketing strategies when there isn't a global pandemic changing life, and operations, on a what feels like a daily basis. However, with so much uncertainty surrounding daily life, now is the time to build (or solidify) meaningful relationships with your customers.
The truth is, no one can truly tell us what will happen when we are let out, the threat is over, and life resumes back to "normal". We don't know for certain what will happen to the economy. We do know things will be different. People will have had time to realize the things that are and are not important in their lives. Most of us will realize how we want to spend our time.
For many businesses, the effects of the pandemic will linger even afterlife goes onto our new "normal." How a business, large or small, handles itself during the climb, peak, and aftermath of a global pandemic, like this one, will most definitely impact the brand. Like it or not, conceptualized or idealized, most businesses have a brand. To be clear, not all of them take the time to craft, mold, and realize their brand into fruition. But, the lack of planning doesn't mean the elements of branding don't exist within a company.
So, How Does Effective Crisis Communication Look During A Pandemic?
Allow me to elaborate with speculation about a local donut shop in my area. Winner of local community accolades, a neighborhood favorite, with a strong social media engagement presence. Throughout the COVID crisis, the shop has communicated with customers and the community at large using social media. Even after the shop closed due to COVID concerns for the safety of their workers, they continued to engage online. Sharing the brand story. Reminiscing about fan-favorite products. Asking customers to participate in sharing their own stories.
It's difficult to know for sure if the owners haven't taken the time to build a brand portfolio complete with designing an identity or branding kit. Let alone carefully crafted their user's experiences through each touchpoint to be, ensuring everything is on-brand. Still, a quick stroll on the donut shops Facebook or Instagram feeds and it's clear to see there is a distinct personality. Unique flavors, a welcoming atmosphere, and authentic passion for their product are evident in every touchpoint, online, and the moment you enter their store.
As restrictions loosened in my area, allowing for curbside pickup, the donut shop reworked its business strategy to accommodate this new reality. Either open, learn how to do online ordering when you didn't before, and create a safe strategy for customers to enjoy your goods - or risk never reopening. To me, the choice is clear. Business owners are nothing if not scrappy innovators daring to take a risk to make their dream a reality. For this donut shop, the soft re-opening was a huge success. Pre-orders for the initial three-day curbside pick up trial run sold out in one day. A week later they expanded adding another day. Each week, they sell out of pre-orders and have added new brand partnerships with other local small businesses for limited release in new markets.
Okay. Great Story, But How Does This Relate To My Business?
The most important takeaway from the donut shop is simple - communication. Don't ignore what's going on. Or worse yet, act ignorant about the impacts of the pandemic on everyone. In marketing, there is a lot of science and theory behind understanding consumer behavior. Still, one constant in all marketing theory is - people remember the good and the bad. Meaning, customers remember experiences, brands, and products that make them feel good. Adversely they also remember negative interactions. Communicating with your audience (and customers) about what's going on, how it's impacting the business (including your staff), and what you're doing about it is just good business sense.
Not doing so is naïve for two reasons. People's patterns of engaging, shopping, and spending their time have changed. They'll remember the brands that made an impact on them during the crisis. Two cohorts to pay attention to, Millennials and Generation z, are very much driven by a sense of authenticity and community. Give them a chance to be part of something bigger than themselves and they'll remember it. Harness the COVID crisis as an opportunity to demonstrate value, build communities, and make a positive impact.
What Can Be Done To Create Value?
The delicate balance of capital, financial and people, can lead to poor communication with consumers and low resulting marketing tactics. So, as a business what can you do? To be honest, with most enterprise businesses there is a level of bureaucracy, which can complicate navigating crisis communications. In the case of "big business," it might even be about deviating from your brand strategy to be more open with customers.
Now, for a small business, as I mentioned above, it's all about communication. Rather than let fear dictate how, where, and when you communicate with customers - think about what you as an individual would want. Would you find it reassuring to have a business (or brand) relate to you on a human level and simply reiterate that it's unprecedented times? I know, I would. Most people aren't looking to brands for answers unless maybe you're in the medical field. What people are looking for is inspiration, distraction, and a way to help - be that.