It seems that businesses have had to undergo radical change to survive in a world now ravaged by serious disease. Some firms have been forced to fire some if not all their staff, and others are trying to grapple with moving an entire workforce online to maintain operations remotely as much as possible.
Yet, even as nearly every aspect of business changes, one practice must remain close to the same: content marketing. Businesses hoping to endure through the end of the pandemic must continue participating in marketing to ensure their audience at least remembers their brand. Still, businesses should subtly alter their content marketing efforts to ensure they are keeping up with consumers’ sensibilities during this time of crisis.
Here are a few ways COVID-19 should impact content marketing for the foreseeable future:
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Increase Sensitivity
Most people who catch the new coronavirus will suffer mild symptoms of COVID-19; many people won’t even know they are infected. However, by the end of this pandemic event, everyone in the world will know someone who has suffered greatly from SARS-CoV-2, either from the disease itself or from the financial repercussions of closed businesses and economic recession.
As a result, businesses need to take this crisis seriously and be sensitive to their content. Already, several businesses have felt the pain of backlash due to tactlessness during these times of stress.
Corona beer, which knew of the spread of the coronavirus for weeks, launched a marketing campaign with the tagline “Coming ashore soon!” – and now Corona beer is ceasing production after months of declining sales. Businesses need to be aware of shifting public opinion and outlook and produce content accordingly.
Focus on Accuracy
Every day, there is more news about COVID-19 – and too much of it isn’t true. Unfortunately, not much is known about the new coronavirus as yet; it has spread much faster than it can be researched, so health officials aren’t certain how exactly it transmits, how the disease presents, how long people are contagious, how best to fight the infection and other details.
Even so, individuals and businesses alike are sharing all sorts of unfounded insights about the disease, which in turn causes people to behave in certain ways. For instance, a few weeks ago, President Trump touted chloroquine phosphate as a sure-fire cure for COVID-19 – which it could be, but only when taken under close doctor supervision. Unfortunately, this information spread around the web, leading to a man dying after drinking fish tank cleaning solution which uses chloroquine phosphate as an additive.
The last thing businesses should want is for people to misconstrue any information and behave erratically. An emphasis should be placed on accuracy, and any claims – especially about the new coronavirus – should be checked and double-checked to ensure truthfulness.
Pursue Goals for Marketing
Now as always, businesses need to have content marketing goals. Goals ensure that content is being made and applied to directly benefit some aspect of business; producing aimless content is an expensive endeavor that usually has low-quality results.
Many businesses should maintain their content marketing goals from before the crisis, but it might be wise to extend deadlines and generally be more lenient, especially while working with remote workers and freelancers.
Then again, some businesses might need to pivot their marketing strategy during the pandemic and develop new goals to stay on track for success. Working with content strategy services to consider new goals and timelines is essential to ensure that businesses are doing the most to market themselves at this time.
Modify Offerings Appropriately
Some businesses have been forced to close completely, but others merely need to pivot their offerings to remain relevant, continue serving their customers and raking in profits. For instance, many businesses in the foodservice industry have begun focusing on takeout and delivery, and they are generating content around food safety.
Content marketing is an effective way to communicate how products or services will be modified during the pandemic – but it might be wise to produce versatile messages, in case further regulations further alter how businesses can operate. Generally, businesses should avoid content that compels them to “act now” or accomplish some task “before it’s too late.” Calm, sensitive content that communicates new or altered offerings is best.
Marketing remains a critical element of business success, especially when so much is uncertain about the future. By participating in the right kind of content marketing, businesses can maintain the audiences they have worked for and perhaps continue generating profits in some form.
Featured image source: Freepik
