Over the past few weeks, COVID-19 has affected us in new ways we had not yet considered day by day. For many businesses, the sharp and immediate impact requires immediate actions to be taken in order to mitigate further losses, and digital marketing is often the first thing to go.
However, despite the difficulty of the global health crisis, keeping your customers informed and engaged is more important than ever as online media consumption is up significantly due to measures that are keeping us at home self-isolating in an effort to flatten the curve.
As with any global crisis, there isn’t a hard set of rules that businesses need to follow to adjust their marketing and communication. However, there are some dos and don’ts to consider when reassessing your digital marketing plan amid the pandemic.
Remember, marketing does not strictly lead to a direct sale, but the series of strategies to address how people know your brand, why they need you and should buy from you. This may be easier said than done, but it is essential. Keep in mind that no business is truly excluded from the impact of COVID-19 globally.
Do: Make a digital marketing and communication plan
Think about how to reframe your business in light of the ever-changing macroclimate, and how to improve your digital footprint and provide your customers with a better user experience as they engage more with your company online. Evaluate historic digital marketing results and the immediate impact to all campaigns amidst the current pandemic.
Use social listening to monitor customer discussions about health concerns or information needs relevant to your brand. The idea is to identify where you are now before deciding what to do next. While they may not be ready to spend now, don’t leave them in the dark. Businesses who leverage online content well, are poised to steal future market share from competitors that are sitting back and waiting for clarity we may not get in the immediate future
Don’t: Eliminate all of your paid advertising
While it is important to reevaluate your digital marketing strategies, this isn’t the time to eliminate all of your paid advertising. Within any crisis, there are opportunities and those that pause all of their paid efforts will be left behind once things start rolling again. With more people spending time online, customers are still looking for certain information, services or products.
Look at your most effective, converting campaign and shift your marketing budget into those. In addition to this, businesses need to get creative by asking themselves if there is a way that your brand can be relevant and helpful through all the uncertainty.
Do: Adjust email communication and pause automated message
Depending on your industry, it might make sense to reevaluate your automated email communication and message copy for sensitivity purposes. Take a look at your existing messaging and ask yourself if your ad placement is right for this moment and in this context.
Language should be adapted to the current environment and you should think about how to position your business in a way that feels relevant and real to people right here and right now.
Don’t: Capitalize off of a global health crisis
The goal for all businesses during these difficult times is to convey brand messages organically, in a non-intrusive way: how to stay top-of-mind without appearing to capitalize off of a global health crisis.
People may be spending a lot more time in front of a screen right now but that doesn’t mean they want to be bombarded with irrelevant ads 10 times a day. It is important to provide specific messages to instill a sense of trust and value, and it is completely fine to include subtle promotion with a softer approach.
Do: Grow your presence through content marketing
Consider refocusing some of your efforts into content marketing on social media and owned media, such as Facebook, Instagram, blogs, emails, or organic SEO. Do some keyword research and trending topics according to your industry and inject those keywords into the content you produce across all platforms.
Take advantage of growing online media consumption by delivering engaging and user-generated content - this is a great opportunity to create a robust content marketing plan.
Don’t: Be afraid to ask for help
Depending on your industry, you likely have a lot to handle right now, but an experienced team can help immensely. We are all collectively facing uncertain times ahead and we would like to help you to make some considerations into your digital marketing activity over the next few months.
From developing a digital marketing strategy and communication plan, to adjust and maximize your digital marketing and online resources, we have experts to help your business market and sell through this situation and make the most of your marketing effort and spending. Learn more and get a free audit.
We are hard at work in helping out customers through this crisis, and we’re now launching a variety of offers and resources at discounted rates for any businesses. If you are facing any of these challenges, we're here to help.
