The whole world is living in unprecedented times right now. With the spread of the novel coronavirus or COVID-19, not only are people’s health threatened but so are their livelihood. From small businesses to multinational companies, no one has escaped the impact of this pandemic.
Beyond the basic actions of protecting your employees, though, it’s important to remember that you must address this crisis with tact and empathy.
Marketing Amid the COVID-19 Situation
In the U.S., stay at home orders and lockdown measures are being implemented from state to state. This is why most businesses are expected to temporarily close. However, this doesn’t mean that you should stop marketing your brand. In fact, it’s the best time to show your audience that you are someone they can count on in times of crisis.
Marketing in the midst of a crisis presents unique challenges, including how to be empathetic instead of sounding like you’re taking advantage of the situation. Below, we have a few tips on how to do responsible marketing during a pandemic.
1. Don’t Capitalize on the Crisis
One of the worst things you can do in your marketing campaign is to take advantage of the crisis to further your sales. Fear mongering, for example, was rampant when the coronavirus started, with some brands telling customers that mask prices will increase. So, people bought them in bulk and at a heftier price due to fear. Remember, people are already afraid, so don’t add to their anxiety.
In addition, if you are about to implement changes in the way you conduct business like if you need to increase your prices because of limited operations, let your audience know and try to communicate the reason effectively.
2. Make Your Content Relevant
At a time of unprecedented crisis like this, people need factual information the most. Your blog posts, social media posts, and other pieces of content must be timely and relevant, as well as visible to your audience.
Let’s say you’re a biohazard cleaning company. Creating content that teaches readers and followers how to disinfect surfaces properly will show them that you are helping the public avoid the virus and navigate uncertainty. You can make your content more visible to your audience through local SEO for your biohazard cleanup services.
3. Evaluate the Messages You’re Sharing
The language you use for your content, whether it’s your blogs or social media posts, plays an important part in how people view your brand, especially during this crisis. KFC, for example, is known for its tagline “Finger Lickin’ Good” but with the spread of coronavirus and how the hands and mouth are usually responsible for transmitting the virus into the body, the tagline is not appropriate now. So, KFC pulled out “Finger Lickin’ Good” from all their ads. This is the type of marketing that shows responsibility for the messages a brand is sending to its audience.
No one knows when the coronavirus crisis will end, but it’s important to remember that it will. When all of this is over, you want your audience to remember you as a brand that helped instead of hindered them during a pandemic. This is possible through responsible marketing tactics.