Marketing in the Covid-19 era-Some direction for these Very Strange Times
BEFORE I DIVE ON INTO THIS, PLEASE KNOW:
If you’re not ready for this conversation, that is DEEPLY ok. Heck, I don’t even know if I’m ready for this conversation, but it’s the one I keep finding myself right in the middle of, so here we are.
Anyway, in case you need it: full permission to walk away from this blog post, favourite it for later, or pretend you never saw it. There’s no ‘right’ way to be at the moment, so you do you. Just know that you’re wonderful, and the second knuckle of your left index finger is particularly majestic.I do *not* have all the answers. Not even close. This whole situation is completely and utterly unprecedented, and everything I know about COVID-19 comes from the deep, dark hole that is the internet. So the things I’ll be honing in on here relate to the parts of this strange new territory that I do know about, like working with fear, confusion, loss, and uncertainty in a way that moves people forward.
In other words, I’m doing the best I can with the tools I have at my disposal. So please, don’t fling poo at me…
I’m wearing a white t-shirt.
ALRIGHT, YOU CLEVER CHICKEN. HERE ARE 5 THINGS I THINK ARE PRETTY BLOODY IMPORTANT, STARTING WITH THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM…
Thing #1. Permission to proceed
I had coaching calls with 11 fellow copywriters this week, specifically around lead gen and launches, and every single one of them was worried about being seen as an opportunistic a-hole if they tried to sell people things right now.
You know who’s not worried about that?
Con artists, frauds, and exceptionally large wankers.
So, if you have been feeling the uncertainty and ‘ick’ around whether to keep making offers and keep making money—
You’re someone with ethics and compassion, and we should high-five congratulate each other from a safe distance.
Thing #2. Be responsive, not reactive
One of the first signs shiz was getting real last week was a barrage of emails from all sorts of businesses telling us they were busily cleaning ALL THE THINNGZZZ and making sure no-one with flu-like symptoms was at work.
And I don’t know about you, but for me, those emails didn’t instil any additional sense of trust, *or* do anything that made me more likely to buy from them in future...
They just highlighted how many business were making decisions based on knee-jerk, copycat reactions, rather than out of genuine concern for and understanding of their prospect’s current experience, coupled with a strategic look around to see what they could offer in response.
The two emails that did stand out were:
one from Deliveroo (which is essentially another Uber Eats) that introduced a contactless delivery service so meals can be delivered without anyone touching each other (man, that sentence would've sounded so weird two weeks ago!); and
one from one of my fave local restaurants that introduced a pop-up takeaway service complete with ‘survival hampers’, so you can pick up a delicious meal *and* a basket of fresh produce, pasta, wine, and toilet paper (aka the gold bullion of 2020) without leaving your car
Bloody genius, right?
Now, it’s worth noting that both these emails landed in my inbox these past few days, which means the businesses behind them resisted the urge to jump on the bandwagon of updating everyone on their internal policies, and instead tuned into their prospect's needs to adjust business as usual to fit a time where there isn’t a whole lot of ‘usual’ going on anywhere.
Which is something you can do too.
Speaking of…
Thing #3. You’re talking to the same prospect, but their immediate needs have probably shifted
For example, instead of trying to scale their business, your prospect might now be far more concerned with how to keep it afloat.
Instead of figuring out how to successfully pitch in-person events, your prospect might now be wondering where she can get the same kind of visibility and traction online.
Instead of searching for a way to get healthy meal plans in his inbox every week, your prospect might be looking for guidance on how to create something edible with whatever random collection of ingredients is still available at the shops.
Of course, this won’t go on forever (see Thing #5), and I don’t think you should run around and change your whole business model (see Thing #4), but I *do* think it’s hugely beneficial to align your messaging with the current climate —
And this alignment might be as simple as shining the spotlight on different parts of your existing offer/s.
I think it’s *pretty* safe to say that the things people are searching for right now centre around:
Certainty
Routine
Connection
Control
Permission
Purpose
And I’d bet my Amazon Prime login (I’m in self-isolation, so these stakes have NEVER BEEN HIGHER!) that the thing/s you sell offer at least one of these.
Got a group program? Those live workshops and that Slack group just became way more valuable.
Selling some sort of framework? How *relieving* for your prospect to know what comes first, what comes next, and what they’ll walk away with at the end.
Offering a 1:1 service that steps your client through a process? The fact that your client gets to book in all their touch-points now just became something concrete they can plan the coming weeks around… even if almost every other thing in their diary gets cancelled or postponed.
Thing #4. Consistency is Kween
There is so much value in being a known quantity when everything around us is shape-shifting like the world’s craftiest boggart. So, you know…
Tell niche Harry Potter jokes. Lean heavily on the comedic value of gifs. Mention farts in every content piece.
Or, in broader terms…
Stick with what you know
Show up as you always have
Continue offering things that align with your known zone of genius
Thing #5. This too shall pass
There were 0 new COVID-19 cases recorded in Wuhan yesterday. HOW COOL IS THAT!
So this *will* end, whether that's a result of isolation measures, herd immunity, or a vaccine. And yes, things probably won't go 100% back to normal (my money's on the idea that we'll all be sneezing into our elbows from this point on), but rest assured that we humans are incredibly good at adapting, persisting, and generally finding ways to make things work.
This feels like a good time to remind you that as someone with a business, your whole skill set is based around solving problems. And there’s no better time than now to get to work.
TLDR? HERE’S THE SHORT VERSION....
If you want to keep marketing in these strange times:
Remind yourself you’re coming from a position of service… and if you stop talking to your people now, you also stop serving them
Acknowledge the strangeness, uncertainty, and fear that’s in every room
Talk to your prospect on a human to human level
Think about how or if any of your offers can be tweaked to address this new knot of problems
If they can’t, no worries! Think about how you can make little shifts in the messaging to ensure things hit home in this strange new climate
Show up consistently — there’s so much value in being a known quantity right now
Don’t freeze *or* burn it all down — this too shall pass
Want some strategic insights that are relevant both now and in more normal times? Find them right here