1. Turn on all marketing communications efforts to online channels.
Be human, share from your heart, and be empathetic.
If your branch/office is closed at first notify vie email your clients about the changes in the working hours or when your office will be open. Put the same info in google maps or similar service.
Adapt your content to current situation. Create content that address the situation we’re in but provide a positive spin. Ask yourself: is my content going to hurt my brand identity or help people in their time in need?
If you are B2C communicate with audience: face-to-face, in-store/by phone with clients.
Provide webinars, live-stream for concerts and even fitness classes and even online party/bar, radio, tv, be active in social media.
If you are restaurants and cafes offer home-delivery only or free delivery, discounts, weekly or monthly subscription-style deals and other incentives helps to stay ahead of the competition.
For B2C or B2B financial services offer directly to customers. Until now, customers may have chosen you over automated solutions for the perceived reliability and security of your individual, personal approach. Now, at a time of prolonged home-confinement for many, customers will go over to automated, remote services.
2. Provide and extend empathy through all marketing channels
Giving vendors and customers the benefit. Reassuring others what we will get through this crisis.
Work actively with partners’ channels, find opportunities to help your audience and make PR on it.
3. Don’t turn off your advertising.
Right now is the time to accelerate in your business. Use all possible channels and technologies.
Implement online platforms for home office: planning and comms, Google Docs for collaborative documents that everyone can edit and comment on, Asana or similar software for business planning that keeps everyone on the same page, Slack for communication, Coggle or Stormboard for brainstorming and file-sharing.
4. Keep in mind: Many successful businesses were born in crisis
Things might return to normal within a few weeks, or we might be facing a worldwide recession a year down the road. For businesses of all kinds, it’s important not to give up, to have a firm strategy in place and to remain adaptable and flexible in order to remain successful.