Navigating Marketing in a Post COVID-19 World

A crisis can either make or break a business. Today, a global health crisis like what we are facing can either paralyze an organization or force it to thrive.

Business owners understand that they can’t stay idle for so long. Organizations are now making tough decisions just to keep themselves alive.

Some companies are cutting back on their marketing efforts. In some instances, they are even laying off their entire marketing team. Some companies are also cutting back on its core business operations. In contrast, others are more agile in coming up with more interesting ways to engage their audience during these difficult times.

The Fear and Quarantine Period

The first period started during the first few weeks of March 2020 and went on through the lift of the quarantine lockdown. This period brought about uncertainty and panic for consumers.

Adding relevant and compassionate marketing messaging can strengthen the brand and establish post-COVID-19 brand loyalty to consumers. Communicating at the right platforms with messages that emphasize the brand’s commitment to their stakeholders will go a long way.

Organizations need to offer relevant and truthful content across their digital platforms to show that they are a helpful and compassionate brand. Create relevant and informative content that is strategically curated to keep consumers updated. The tone of the messaging should neither be depressing nor apathetic. Brands should stay positive and optimistic amidst the crisis.

To move past the hurdles of this pandemic, companies need to market strategically and compassionately during this period. Those that do so will undoubtedly reap the rewards of their hard work once the crisis abates.

The Reprieve Period

This period begins once the lockdowns have been lifted, and people are slowly starting to transition back to normal activities. It is expected to last up to six months if there are no reported cases of COVID-19 resurgence.

Businesses that successfully gained the trust of their consumers during the quarantine will find themselves reaping the benefit of their marketing efforts. Companies need to demonstrate that their compassion is authentic.

They need to provide sincere and altruistic messaging during the reprieve period and show that the organization cares more about their consumers than the company’s bottom line. Thus, this is not the time to pay lip service to consumers.

The Back-to-Normalcy Period

As the world starts to adapt to the new normal, marketers need to shift away from heavy COVID-19-related messaging. Businesses will have resumed to a new and more agile operation.

Ensure that the organization is prepared to adapt to this period with a robust marketing plan that will play out strategically in a post-COVID-19 world. Remember that a good business continuity plan does not end after a crisis is over; it should continue until the organization has been successfully back on its feet.

A road map for post-COVID-19 recovery

As the crisis finally abates, organizations should expect a change in their consumer’s purchasing behaviour.

Businesses need to understand that they should be agile enough to withstand the crisis and its aftermath. Expect changes both in the high and low ends of the market. Whether intentional or not, brands will also be shifting to digital channels.

Their products and services will be offered to a digital storefront. Thus, brands need to be market-savvy enough to fight the battle for new and existing consumers.

Management consulting firm McKinsey & Company noted that organizations need to craft an effective marketing approach that drives revenue at a scale that makes a difference. Effective organizations build a model around SHAPE which contains these five core elements:

Start-up mindset

The start-up mindset is characterized by an organization’s agility. It biases action over research and testing over-analysis. Companies that adapted to the global health crisis have successfully reallocated their marketing budget in a few days and launched an eCommerce business in a matter of weeks.

Human at the core

As the global workforce shifted to remote work, companies also need to rethink their business operating model and work around how their people work best while at home. This can be done by enabling employees with new skills and the right tools to work remotely.

Accelerate digital, tech, and analytics

Any forward-thinking the organization knows that shifting to digital is a must at this point. Successful companies are enhancing and expanding their digital channels. They have also successfully used advanced analytics to combine new sources of data for their consumer insights.

Purpose-driven customer playbook

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses need to reassess how consumers make their purchasing decisions. Companies need to recalibrate their buyer’s journey and understand new insights on customer experience in the post-COVID-19 world.

Ecosystems to drive capability

Disruptions in supply chains and physical stores have forced organizations not just to adapt and survive, but also quickly to pivot by assessing new opportunities. Both short-term and long-term initiatives have enabled new partnerships and non-traditional collaborations between organizational stakeholders.

McKinsey and Company also noted five themes that will help organizations recover their business operations:

THEME 1: Building business operations resilience

Forward-thinking organizations understand the need to redesign their operations and supply chains to succeed in a post-COVID-19 world. This means they need to protect their business against broader and more disruptive black swan events.

Companies need to trace their global asset footprint and look for loopholes in their operations. The new normal that will shape the post-COVID-19 recovery efforts means that companies need to step up their supply chain risk management strategy. Organizations also need to find ways to increase their adoption of online and omnichannel delivery models.

THEME 2: Accelerating end-to-end digitization

Before the rapid spread COVID-19 virus, some organizations were already on the road to digital transformation. The crisis has only strengthened the belief that end-to-end digitization is a critical factor that helps organizations survive and thrive.

Thus, digital technologies are expected to be the core of an organization’s business operations in a post-COVID-19 world. It will enable businesses to meet the needs of their customers and improve the agility and responsiveness of their services.

THEME 3: Increasing expense transparency

The economic impact of COVID-19 is expected to outlive the pandemic itself. Companies are expected to bounce back to their new normal operations with a different budget structure. The allocation for the marketing budget alone needs to be made as quickly as possible.

Organizations may want to rethink the way they handle and execute their projects and campaigns. Leading organizations need to adopt sophisticated project management structures that strategically recalibrate capital planning and ROI predictions as the new changes in the post-COVID-19 environment emerge.

THEME 5: Reimagining sustainable operations competitive advantage

Dramatic shifts in supply and demand, along with customer expectations in the post-COVID-19 environment will create an opportunity for companies to make dramatic shifts in their business operations.

Organizations need to find ways to create lasting competitive advantage amidst the COVID-19 aftermath. By meeting environmental and social responsibility goals, companies can transform the way they develop their products and deliver them to their consumers. Companies need to leverage digital technologies to improve service delivery and introduce new and innovative products.

Post COVID-19 Marketing Strategies to Help Brands Thrive

STRATEGY 1: Start with customer empathy.

Once the crisis ends, the whole world needs to move forward from the harrowing events brought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizations need to follow suit by showing genuine empathy towards their consumers.

Marketers can help their organization by being the provider of consumer insights towards the brand. Companies can take the appropriate steps to promote consumer engagements that will unravel the shifting attitudes and behaviours of consumers in a post-COVID-19 world.

STRATEGY 2: Tell relevant, authentic stories and give back.

Some brands already have compelling and relevant campaigns that reflect the effects of the pandemic. It’s great to provide a creative narrative. However, marketers know that brands need to push the envelope even further at this point.

It’s time to give back and provide as much value to customers and communities. The goodwill the organization will get from their COVID-19 relief efforts will help drive long-term customer loyalty.

STRATEGY 3: Be agile for the new normal.

Some employers and marketers are holding the fort by not taking action at all. However, the assumption that everything will be back to normal in a few months may be a bit premature. No matter how long this crisis will last, COVID-19 is expected to leave lasting changes to the consumer landscape.

Companies cannot simply pick up where they left off and adhere to their old marketing playbook—strategies, brand personas, and messaging need to evolve to face the realities of the post-COVID-19 world.

STRATEGY 4: Rethink offerings.

Rapid changes in both consumer behaviour and market dynamics are expected in the aftermath of a global health crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic. Brands need to carefully monitor their communication and messaging at all times during a crisis.

They need to be agile enough to pivot quickly and adapt to the changing circumstances. Organizations do not just need to understand the changing market conditions. They should also make their products relevant in the new normal landscape of a post-COVID-19 world.

STRATEGY 5: Solve pertinent issues.

Organizations need to anticipate a slow recovery during the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this is also an opportunity to reach out to consumers and initiate new and meaningful conversations.

Conclusion

Organizations need to communicate effectively and show how they are helping consumers face challenges. By providing tangible solutions that will help consumers navigate the post-COVID-19 environment, consumers will know that the brand’s compassion is more than just lip service. The brand needs to show that they really practice what they preach.