Brands to the Rescue
“Marketers—many working remotely from home—are faced with an entirely new situation: How should we be talking to our customers? Where should we be spending marketing dollars and where shouldn’t we? How should we be working with our teams and our colleagues across the business? How are we going to stay in business? And all this on top of how can we support our family, friends, communities and planet.” McKinsey, How Marketing Leaders Can Both Manage the Coronavirus Crisis and Plan for the Future, April 2020.
Marketers have had to justify their existence since the dawn of digital, and now the pressure is even higher, with budgets strained and all eyes on cutting costs. While marketing teams are being scrutinized, the Wall Street Journal tells us that the role is more crucial than ever. Caren Fleit of Korn Ferry explains to WSJ: “I don’t think anything changes in terms of needing marketing, but in some cases the kind of marketing will change.” How that will change includes being relevant to customers in this time of crisis, with authenticity and mindfulness. Savanta Group specializes in Coronavirus Trackers, and their survey of 2,000 consumers (published April 30) proves that Fleit is spot on: “consumers say they actively want to hear positive advertising from brands, with four in ten (42%) consumers believing that brands should focus on life after coronavirus in their ads.”
From Instagram Live classes, hackathons and virtual bingo nights to production of hand sanitizer & PPE and donations to frontline healthcare professionals, Yola Robert gives several examples in Forbes how "many businesses have had to re-strategize, temporarily shut down or pivot offerings to stay afloat during these times". This re-strategizing and pivoting is happening globally, from the US to India. Brands who will come out on top are those who will be able to respond to the pandemic with the ability to change all of their plans in an agile manner and shift from regular mode to crisis mode. Wade Paschall of Westerra Credit Union aptly explained the situation to Muse by Clio: "I think brands are going to be remembered for what they do right now, good or bad".
Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) data "shows that 73% of advertisers have modified or developed new assets since the start of the pandemic. Of these, over half (53%) are increasing messaging that emphasizes the mission of the company". I would say in general that brands are doing remarkably well, because according to Edelman, 55% of those surveyed “said that brands and companies are responding more quickly and effectively than government".
Ann Handley, Chief Content Officer of MarketingProfs describes what she sees as trends that came out of the COVID-19 epidemic that will define marketing for years to come: “1. The importance of truly valuable content in marketing that’s stuffed with empathy, inspiration, and utility. Is your customer newsletter a must-read? No? Fix that. 2. The importance of direct-to-consumer messaging, branding, communications. Especially important for companies who have relied on retail brick-and-mortar distribution. 3. Virtual selling and online sales appointments. We might be feeling some element of Zoom fatigue. But face-to-face virtual meetings had a moment in a COVID-19 interrupted world."