Dear business friends, while just last month restaurants and shopping malls were full, we were attending sporting and cultural events, and work calendars were full of meetings, today we are considering every contact because of the coronavirus. Although we have all been following events in the world and in our own country for weeks now, the situation has changed rapidly and our country is different. However, times continue to change rapidly and we need to react quickly.
Crisis and sudden change is an uncertainty for people, clients and employees alike, and it has to be lived and worked with. It is responsible to take care of yourself, your family, your business, your employees and your clients. Strong brands – companies, organisations and individuals – look for ways to find and provide certainty for people in times of uncertainty and rapidly changing conditions. In the current climate, this is a challenge. The situation can last for a long time, perhaps months. We get used to many of the changes, but we have to respond to many of them.
1. First of all – communicate, don’t be silent
Keep your brand alive. But instead of selling, offer support – how your brand can help in tough times. The quicker we take measures to protect our health, the slower we will be to get rid of them and the longer it will take to recover. In the meantime, however, provide support to your customers and employees, keep the lines of communication open with them, and adjust your marketing and communications strategy accordingly. This will put you in a good position for the post-coronavirus period.
2. Be calm and responsible
Don’t panic, don’t make ill-considered statements that can hurt your brand. Inside the company, create crisis communication teams from representatives of each department and try to coordinate not only your business, but also your communication. It is highly advisable and ideal to have an external partner with experience on hand who sees the situation from the necessary perspective and in a broader context.
3. Employer branding
Behind every brand there are people, and people are insecure in times of change and crisis. You need to reassure them and stand behind them. This is a huge opportunity to improve and strengthen your relationship with your own employees. In addition, many international companies have regulations from the parent company that need to be respected. However, your brand works locally. Therefore, tailor your communication to your conditions as far as possible.
4. How to communicate
Do not try to make money from the crisis. The crisis will pass, customers will remember, and reputation is only one thing. Building rapport and fostering loyalty is more important today than ever. Build a closer relationship with your customers in difficult times with targeted and helpful communication. Tailor first points of contact to the situation, prepare your people for different questions and reactions. It’s an opportunity to show the human side of your brand.
5. Crisis communication
Protect your brand by communicating wisely. Consider planned activities, product roadmap. Refute untruths. Proactively avoid creating a negative impression of the brand and damaging its reputation.
6. Be open
This is a difficult situation for everyone, inform truthfully, openly, responsibly and sensitively. Do not exaggerate or make light of it.
7. Be positive (we are too)
Offer support, solutions, perspectives. There is enough panic in difficult times. Lots of people are quarantined at home and have time on their hands, so offer content, services and inspiration to pass the time.
We have more than 20 years of experience in brand building, we have survived many crises and found solutions in many serious situations. If you need help, we can help your brand find confidence during this time and know how to communicate it well. Contact us at daniel.bradac@generations.sk.
We wish you and your loved ones good health.
Sincerely Generations
