In a new business landscape due to COVID-19, brands need to immediately update their marketing and ... [+]
With business moving online overnight, retail locations shuttered, and entire industries on pause due to COVID-19, many companies have had to quickly pivot their marketing and social media in order to move forward, stay in business, and be relevant in a new world. Brands and small businesses that have tried to stay the course without acknowledging the different landscape, are often branded as tone deaf or out of touch by frustrated consumers.
So what do you say to your clients and buyers when the world has radically changed? I spoke to 5 entrepreneurs and business owners large and small in real estate, wellness, furniture, beauty, and fashion. They shared how they’ve updated their businesses, changed their marketing strategies, and reinvented their social feeds to reflect the current moment. Here are eight things you can do right now to refresh your own brand.
Create community
What resonated with buyers a few months ago, may hold little interest now. Entrepreneur Bobbi Brown who founded her wellness brand Evolution_18 and lifestyle website justBobbi after leaving her eponymous makeup line in 2017, believes that brands should focus on building an interactive community. “People are looking for a connection. People are looking for answers and certainly things they can do themselves. I do think it’s an opportunity for all brands to be able to really listen to what people are feeling and what they really want,” says Brown. “The truth is we all want the simple things—not just during this pandemic, but always. We all want to be loved, be safe, we want to be comfortable and we want to take things down a notch and be more real and authentic.”
Brown has been connecting with her audience regularly through her personal Facebook and Instagram live sessions where she talks from her living room couch about positivity and health during the pandemic. “It’s not product focused at all,” says Brown. “It’s about building and strengthening community. I also see it as giving back.” For Brown, doing chats from quarantine also means letting go of high expectations about how her video will look. Explains Brown: “We’re not doing slick videos. My hair is probably a mess in some, which is fine. In the long run it will help the brand because people will see me as normal and not perfect.” That attitude taps into Brown’s belief that more than ever buyers want the brands they interact with to be real.
Share your wisdom and expertise
What do you do when your industry is on hold? With the real estate industry almost completely shut down due to the quarantine, Manhattan-based Corcoran real estate broker Cary Tamura experienced an immediate halt to his business. Posting images of gorgeous apartments that he could no longer show, seemed like an exercise in futility. A flood of calls from panicked buyers and sellers inspired him to start using his social platforms in a new way. “I found myself in constant contact with my clients updating them on what was going on with pricing, mortgages, and what I was hearing about the industry,” says Tamura. “I realized that there were probably a lot of other buyers and sellers out there who would be interested in knowing what I was learning.” Tamura began posting short videos sharing his insights and advice on the real estate market from his living room to Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. “I thought, where do you turn to hear about the real estate market in NYC? Even in my small way, I wanted to provide a channel for that.”
Be positive
In a nonstop news cycle with alarming reports at every turn, many brands have wondered what tone to strike on their own social feeds. Some companies, like fashion brand Veronica Beard have made a conscious decision to keep their social feeds uplifting. “As soon as we closed our offices and went into quarantine we made the decision to change the direction and tone of our social,” explains Co-Designer and Co-CEO Veronica Swanson Beard. “We always say ‘we are our customer’ and it was that intuitive nature that made the decision for us. We wanted to become a source of entertainment, a destination where our audience feels a sense of community and is understood, but can also get a good laugh.” On the Veronica Beard Instagram feed, viewers will now find funny or inspiring quotes and videos, and even movie clips. To find glamorous images of models and clothes, viewers need to scroll back to before quarantine hit. “We’ve turned down the marketing on social and tuned into the zeitgeist. Lots of humor has helped,” explains the brand’s Co-Designer and Co-CEO Veronica Miele Beard.
Understand that your clients needs have changed
The consumer response to social media changed overnight. Posts that would have garnered positive feedback a few months ago, can now be branded as tone deaf by critical masses. For Nina Bradley Clarke, a podcast host and Beautycounter Managing Director, staying tuned into what her clients are going through has been important to her. Clarke who is based in Connecticut where there have been many COVID-19 cases, has tried to frame her posts around that awareness of her clients’ current needs. ““It's critical to be aware of what's going on in your community and be sensitive to how people are feeling. They don’t want to be sold to right now. You have to be in the space of sharing,” says Clarke. “My clients aren’t looking for a makeup tutorial or eye shadow, it’s more about self-care and skincare right now. When I am posting about Beautycounter now, I am only focusing on the specific products and ideas that make people feel good.”
Say thank you
Thinking beyond yourself and your brand when so many people are suffering is the right thing to do. For Brown, acknowledging those workers risking their lives to help is is at the forefront of her pandemic messaging. “To me, what is really making sense is when brands and people are out there saying thank you to the front line workers, thank you to the doctors, the nurses, the garbage men, the grocery stockers,” Brown explains. “Those are the things that need to be said right now. It’s not about tying things to sales.”
Put the spotlight on other businesses
While many brands are used to putting the focus solely on their own company, it is a good time to share your audience with other businesses too. “As a small businesswoman, I think the best attitude always is to come from a place of service,” says Clarke. “Especially right now, adding value on your social channels will go a long way. I am passionate about my community and supporting small, local businesses so I am currently posting a lot about those companies and entrepreneurs and ways we can all support one another during this unprecedented time.”
For Clarke, the move to celebrate others is in keeping with her brand, but feels more urgent now. “When I started my podcast Nina's Got Good News in 2018, my mission was to share the good stuff and help lift others up. That mission is the core of my personal brand, and I truly believe that people need that now more than ever before. Being optimistic and helping others will always win.”
Use social to communicate in real time
With changes happening to stock availability, shipping, and businesses overall, social media, email newsletters, and brand websites can provide updates to clients and buyers immediately. Anna Brockway Co-Founder and President of Chairish an online marketplace for vintage furniture, has used their brand’s email marketing outreach to update clients about what’s happening with the company. “Our message increasingly is about being open for business, supporting the over 10,000 small businesses that sell through us, reassuring folks we are delivering reliably, and of course, offering the chicest options for upgrading your home,” explains Brockway.
Even for businesses that aren’t currently continuing at the same pace, marketing and communication efforts should continue. Tamura has been posting daily as well as reaching out to his clients. “In a time like this, clients don't know exactly what to expect because there are massive changes happening each week. What they should expect is timely, consistent communication and updates. They should expect someone who is not just throwing up their hands and saying "Well, there's nothing to do right now," he says.
Think long term
Brown has been utilizing this time to reflect on what’s working and what’s not in her businesses. She cautions other business leaders against trying to lead with a reactionary, fear-based response to the current climate. “This is the time to not freak out, not be frantic, but to take a moment of reflection and see what is working, and what is not working,” Brown advises. “Listen and pay attention to what your customers are saying and really curb your spending. It is really about thinking smarter and doing what’s right for your brand long term. It is not forever. This is a moment”
