Covid-19: Communicating During The Coronavirus Crisis
What Covid-19 Means For PR Pros, Marketers And Brands
As a PR professional or marketer, you had your communication plan in place and your budget allocated for the remainder of 2020. Then coronavirus came out of nowhere and turned your life and that of everyone else upside down, both in your country and in your export markets.
Right now, are you asking yourself how your brand should communicate during the crisis? What exactly you should say on social media? And what about traditional media? Can you still send out pitches? Read on for our top tips on communicating during the COVID-19 crisis.
It’s time to be flexible and pivot your message
Coronavirus has had a dramatic effect on our work at A Nomnom Story PR. Tastings that took weeks to plan have been cancelled and a major B2B event in the food industry has been postponed. Until when? We don’t know. Nevertheless, with the right approach, brands can keep communicating and find new opportunities (yes, they are out there). The secret is to stay flexible and pivot by adjusting communication plans and brand messages. Here’s how:
Media consumption is changing during the coronavirus crisis. Let’s make the most of it
With billions of people around the world on lockdown, people are turning to the media more than ever. German print magazines are increasing their reader numbers. And we all know how much we turn to online media ourselves, looking for the latest stats about coronavirus and changes to social distancing rules, for useful information on how to get through these weird times or just for ways to get our minds off COVID-19. And then there are food and lifestyle influencers. They are consolidating their status as role models as fans turn to them for inspiration during this uncertain time.
So now is definitely a good time to be seen in digital and print media, on blogs and on social media.
But what can a brand possibly say right now?
At the moment, your focus should not be on pushing a sales and marketing message. It’s all about your customers and how your brand can serve them.
A good place to start is to look at the coronavirus situation in your target market. Right now in April 2020, people are in a complete lockdown in France. In Germany however, you can still meet with another person outside while keeping your distance. At the same time, the people in Sweden are working from home and practicing social distancing while schools and restaurants remain open. If you look at the situation your customers face right now, you’ll get a sense of what type of information might be useful.
The German news media is currently packed with tips on working from home, running, and keeping the kids active indoors. Quick and easy family meals are also a popular new feature on the homepages of major daily news outlets.
Maggi is rocking it
The food brand Maggi is a great example of a company that is striking the right chord at the moment. They have pivoted to keep their content relevant, changing the copy on the homepage of their German website to make it all about staying at home. The first thing you see on the site is not the main brand message but the hashtag #wirbleibenzuhause (we’re staying at home). They share work-from-home-friendly recipes and give tips and tricks for cooking with the kids. This is a great way to become a go-to brand during this crisis—they are publishing exactly the kind of helpful content that consumers are looking for right now. And it’s not only that. According to the latest Edelman Trust Barometer, people expect brands and businesses to do their part in protecting the community. By communicating about staying at home, Maggi is helping to flatten the curve.
Should you still pitch to journalists during the crisis?
Individual pitches with interesting angles that are relevant to the readers and match the needs of editors during this crazy time will still be well received. Reporters are actively looking for helpful information for their audience and for upbeat stories. Although big publishing houses are putting their employees on short-time (due to the crisis’ impact on advertising sales), there are still journalists working from home who need to fill the media with interesting stories. So yes, we’d say make sure you don’t miss out on opportunities to pitch if you have something valuable to contribute.
4 tips on how to stay on the radar on social media
Not communicating itself sends a message. It’s therefore important to stay on the radar during the crisis. Here are 4 content ideas for social media:
Be informative about how your company or brand is handling the coronavirus crisis
Give your followers guidance in these crazy times
Be helpful and provide value
Be entertaining. Sometimes it can be good to get our minds off Covid-19
Now is a great time to connect with your audience!
Because brands that communicate in an authentic and empathetic way during the crisis will stick in consumer’s minds.
How is your brand handling the crisis?
If you need advise on how and what to communicate for the remainder of the year, let’s get together over a virtual coffee (no strings attached). Think of us as a sparring partner you can bounce some ideas off or as consultants who can chip in with a couple helpful tips based on your brand’s individual situation. We’d love to hear from you.