LBS Insight
Marketing in the COVID-19 era: Take a step back
Vanessa Burgal
Airplanes are grounded, restaurants and churches closed, streets empty. The world seems to be on standby, waiting for something to happen.
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n the meantime, companies are trying to survive. Those that shut down in response to government directives on the pandemic are planning what to do next, and those allowed to open are under pressure to deliver under challenging circumstances. There are not enough raw materials; blocked roads are not allowing product deliveries. Customers are on some variation of lockdown. Marketing Directors need to take a step back and rethink their whole strategy. With the postponement and cancellation of most of their action plans, marketing teams have to redesign and quickly create short-term and long-term campaigns. No more events, parties, or fancy influencers. Consumers are no longer looking at brands as personality or image tools to help them reinforce their external perception. They are now focusing on 'surviving' with limited essential products, threatened by potential job losses, and under the threat of an ominous virus. Brands have stopped their traditional communication to start connecting with the urgent needs of their consumers and society, reconstructing their customer relationship and thus, building a new communication strategy. But where do we start? Where do we focus? The starting point should be to understand the consumer. Consumers are currently confronted with a new reality, with new obstacles and problems. If we consider Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory, these days, we can see consumers seeking to fulfil their physiological or basic needs. They are moving from 'esteem' and 'self-actualisation' levels to the base of the pyramid, where 'physiological' and 'safety' needs become critical due to the current crisis. Therefore, many brands are adapting their communication messages from the image and personality objectives to more sensitive issues. For example, some brands are producing sanitizer gel instead of beer or soft drinks, ventilators instead of cars, medical uniforms instead of fashion items.
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Lagos Business School
Vanessa Burgal During the Crisis, communication is vital in two ways: Ÿ
From the company to the client, using major media channels (digital, social media, television, radio), but also through more traditional and personalised channels such as the telephone, emails or text messages. This communication strategy is particularly right for B2B (Business-to-Business) companies with a database of loyal clients, who can be contacted regularly through a phone call or a personalised email.
