We’re all flooded with all sorts of communications from all businesses right now. The stream has been coming in steady, and a couple of things immediately stand out.
From the point of view of a marketing professional, there is a lot to be learned in times of uncertainty and news changing by the hour. Small businesses managing their own digital marketing, this is for you!
Pause all marketing automations
If you haven’t already, go and pause ALL of your automations right now. This includes, but isn’t limited to, scheduled social media posts, newsletters, transactional emails intended to advertise and/or upsell, online ads (Facebook, Instagram, Google) and anything else you prepped before the COVID-19 crisis hit.
Review all of your messaging
Go through each planned piece of content one by one. Look at it through your customer’s eyes. Does it need to be communicated right now? If yes, does it acknowledge the tough situations everyone is in without coming across as opportunistic? Review your messaging carefully for sensitivity and appropriateness. Now is the time to be human (and humane).
Decide on the next steps
Depending on what content you’ve got planned, you may want to:
- save the content for future use;
- edit it to reflect the current situation;
- create new content to reflect the new reality;
- pause all marketing communication entirely. It’s totally okay to do.
If your business is in a position to adjust to the difficult conditions we are all facing right now, you’re probably already on it. Best of luck and please reach out for advice.
If you’re in a position to help others, please do so. Stay safe!
