10 Marketing Techniques During the COVID-19 Crisis

This has made marketing more critical than ever for many companies. Much of this marketing has to be done online, as the cost of traditional advertising, especially on television, is currently prohibitive for many businesses. Of course, there is another great reason to focus on online marketing today. People spend more time at home (either voluntarily or due to movement restrictions) and use the Internet more often.

Here are some marketing ideas that you can consider during this Coronavirus period.

1. DO NOT CAUSE PANIC REACTIONS.

Yes, times are tough right now. Trade may have dropped for your business. You may even stop trading at all for reasons beyond your control. But things will get better.

China has shown that coronavirus cases peak and then begin to decrease. She lifted the containment and the workers returned to work. They even started to export and import again, although international travel was compromised until the coronavirus vaccine was developed and widely distributed. We begin to perceive the end of the tunnel.

This does not mean that the terrible effects of the Coronavirus should be underestimated. They are very real. Many people around the world are catching the virus, their numbers increasing at an exponential rate. And you may have to stop your activities for a while. You may need help, and it will vary from country to country. But you shouldn’t make hasty decisions out of panic. Most businesses will survive chaos, just as they did in times of war, recession, depression and pandemic in the past. You don’t want to realize that while you are closing your shop in a panic, your competition has stood still and is ready for takeover.

Even if your income dries up and you have to rely on any public aid available in your country or region, you should continue to do digital marketing. This will keep your business visible and on people’s minds when customers decide to return.

2. STAY CONNECTED WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS ON SOCIAL MEDIA

People are using social media more than ever during this difficult time. This is especially the case if they are afraid or do not know what is going on around them. If you are in confinement right now, social media will be one of the most important forms of communication.

Internet use has increased significantly in the past month. While this is due to the fact that people turn to Netflix and other streaming networks while at home, it is also largely for communication purposes. And social media is now a preferred form of communication for most people.

Of course, people cannot go to their hairdresser or take their car to the cinema. They cannot be allowed to order a takeaway or go to a bar. But they will still be interested in you. They will be particularly attentive to useful and engaging content that you can share and will probably remember your name, even if they have never used your services before.

3. TAKE EVERY OPPORTUNITY YOU HAVE TO HELP PEOPLE WHO NEED IT.

The best form of marketing is always when you create good will. People remember the good deeds your company does.

If you can help people get through this time, do it.

For example, in New Zealand, several breweries and distilleries have changed some of their production lines to make hand sanitizers. “We put our whiskey and gin production aside for a while, and we thought the world needed more hand sanitizer than gin and whiskey right now,” said the co-founder of the brewery. Good George, Brian Watson.

In addition, dairy giant Fonterra and fuel company Gull Service Stations have donated high-quality ethanol to help alleviate the shortage of hand sanitizer.

Marketing may not have come to the fore in the minds of these companies (or other companies making similar decisions around the world). However, people will remember their actions when they start spending money again in the future.

4. IMPROVE YOUR ONLINE PRESENCE

The presence on the internet to explode during this Covid 19 crisis, certainly, essentially in order to take news of their loved ones. But that doesn’t mean they’ve lost interest in the companies around them. In some cases, the time spent on the internet gives more possibilities to search on Google and to search for future and potential purchases.

A number of companies devote part of their marketing budget to trade shows, exhibitions and events. However, many of them are now canceled, and fewer and fewer people are interested in meeting in person. This is particularly the case for B2B companies. Figures released by data intelligence company PredictHQ show that in February there was a 500% increase in cancellations and postponements of major events.

You may need to modify your website to better reflect current demand.

For example, if you run an e-commerce site with a fairly wide range, you may want to focus on your food and home essentials rather than more “luxury” items in these times of crisis. In some cases, when government restrictions limit what you are allowed to sell, you may need to modify your website to temporarily remove the prohibited items.

However, remember that digital marketing has a significant advantage over most other types of marketing. It requires no face-to-face interaction. It is also one of the most measurable types of marketing, making it easy to set clear ROI goals.

5. IMPROVE THE SEO OF YOUR SITE

It’s great to have a strong digital presence, but it’s worth little if people can’t find your website on the search engines. Any business with a website must apply good search engine optimization (SEO) principles if it is not to get lost among the competition.

Google and other search companies continually modify their search engine algorithms, so you need to make sure your site changes frequently to keep up with trends. Good copywriters and content marketers know how to write their content with SEO in mind. Likewise, developers should be able to guarantee that your site works in a way that makes it easier for search engines.

The goal of good SEO is that when your potential customers are looking for key terms essential to your industry, the publications and pages of your website appear at the top of the search results, preferably in the first positions. There is a lot of competition for these niches, which means that you need to have better SEO than others in your sector.

At the moment, your competitors may be too busy surviving financially than thinking about the quality of their websites. Exceptional SEO gives you a great opportunity to be the first from the moment things get better.

This applies even to companies in the sectors most affected by the coronavirus. As long as you have access to the Internet, you can easily work on your SEO. And even if your business has to go on hiatus, a good SEO will make your job easier for a better reconstruction.

6. USE PPC ADVERTISING

It probably depends on your industry, but it may be the perfect time to increase your Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising strategy. More people are online than ever before, making it more likely that your ads will appear in front of relevant pairs of eyes. This can give you a huge competitive advantage.

Of course, you will want to balance this with the possibility that few of your customers will be able to use your services. There are few travel agents who use their cash flow for paid PPC advertising at the moment, there are few if any people likely to click on their advertisements for the actual purpose of buying international travel.

However, this is a great time for companies who want to stand out from their competitors in specific sectors.

For example, with so many people isolated at home, sales of software useful for home offices will skyrocket. And if companies can deliver them digitally, there is no worry that they will be caught in distribution bottlenecks.

Some products have quickly climbed into the bestseller lists. The products that will gain in importance in March 2020 are basic necessities such as toilet paper and surgical masks, digital infrared thermometers, cloth diapers, sports clothing and accessories.

7. ADAPT YOUR OFFERS TO THE CIRCUMSTANCES

Have you noticed all these recent TV commercials that seem unrelated to the current situation?

Television networks have even run advertisements for travel agencies, suggesting that you should take the time to travel the world.

You will also see many announcements imploring you to embark on a frenzy of consumer spending, to take advantage of the spring holidays and to save on the brands of toilet paper, sold for a long time to buyers of panic.

It is likely that these advertisements are more an indication of the long wait times in the television advertising sector, rather than a true belief on the part of companies who announce that the viewer will suddenly buy their products at the moment .

Successful marketers act quickly and adapt to circumstances. There is no point in continuing your marketing as usual if consumers are unable or unwilling to buy your products at this time.

8. STAY AGILE AND ADAPT TO MEET CUSTOMER NEEDS

This ties in with the previous point. You must be agile and adapt to the needs of your customers.

Ford is providing an example for the moment. The demand for new cars is probably very small at the moment.

In some countries and regions, sales will be zero. Ford therefore realized that they could reuse some of their 3D printers to print vital respirators. Ford has partnered with 3M and GE Healthcare to rapidly increase production of medical equipment and emergency supplies for healthcare workers.

Small businesses can change their operations depending on the situation. If you are a gym that has been shutting down for a while, you can make videos of exercise routines that your clients can do at home, uploading them daily to YouTube.

9. STAY ON TOP OF YOUR MARKETING EFFORTS

It is more important than ever to closely monitor your marketing data. Take note of what works and do more. If successful marketing previously lacks impact, it has become pointless; reduce or stop this type of marketing for a while.

This should, of course, be your everyday philosophy. Examine the data, observe trends and make the necessary changes.

It is relatively simple to determine the return on investment of digital marketing activities. You just need to identify a specific marketing objective for each campaign and decide on the relevant measure to measure.

10. IF YOU ARE FORCED INTO CONTAINMENT, PLAN YOUR FUTURE MARKETING

If you are in confinement, you probably have more free time than usual. Just because you feel stuck at home doesn’t mean you can’t plan things out after the coronavirus crisis is over.

Many marketers complain that they are always busy and do not have the time to do things like analyze the performance of their website and check their SEO. If you are in confinement, you have your time now.

Now is the perfect time to plan your future marketing and how you will get back on your feet and become more efficient. Depending on your situation, you may need to plan your marketing renaissance on a shoestring budget, but digital marketing doesn’t have to be too expensive.

This is one of the reasons why you should keep keeping your website up to date and updating your social pages. You won’t have to spend time rebuilding them from scratch when the world comes back to life.