Marketing Communication – Authenticity is the Key in Times of COVID-19

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    Marketing Communication – Authenticity is the Key in Times of COVID-19

    With more human-centric approaches and genuine communication, businesses can come out from this phase as reliable and successful

    With increasing market uncertainty, brands are forced to rethink their business plans and market strategies. During a sensitive period, people look for content that provides them with a sense of trust and confidence – which can distract them from the existing disruptions around. Unsurprisingly, this crisis period calls for authentic brand communication.

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    However, it is crucial to understand the purpose behind marketing communication at this time, making sure it makes sense to the customers – keeping aside their profit margin. People today need transparency and honesty like never before.

    Basically, there is no precedent or any map to navigate what the world is going through. Only patience and understanding of the fact that we live in a digital era with an abundance of martech tools help to solve even the bewildering challenges. Thankfully it has enabled businesses to continue with effective communication with their target audience.

    The same digital communication mechanisms have prompted hefty of COVID-19 related emails. Greg Kimball, Validity‘sSenior Director of Product Management, said that one in 15 emails from businesses now has COVID-19 content. And at the same time, Coronavirus related spam has increased up to 14,000% within a matter of weeks – claims the IBM X-Force study. Thus, many marketers need to understand that this is not the time for attention or clicks in the inbox. Simply put, genuine context and awareness messages have touched their new level of importance in the words that brands say and send to their customers.

    Thus, before sending out that “COVID-19 email”, brands need to have their intentions full of empathy and honesty – to sound concerned to a broader audience. For many organizations, there cannot be any “business as usual” situation right now. It is important to listen to consumers’ inputs–interactive and engaging content, initiating conversations, etc. can make people feel valued and connected to the brand. Content with information and inspiration to stay safe is the most preferred. Nearly 37% of consumers reported that when they get such recommendations – they feel more assured and interested, according to Twilio. Another smart tactic could be tracking various social media platforms to analyze customer behavior to craft better and effective marketing campaigns.

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    In this essence, it is also essential to understand customers’ channel preferences. The Global Consumer Engagement report by Twilio stated that about 83% of consumers prefer email communication from companies. However, for urgent communications, consumers prefer 2.5x of text messaging over emails.

    Clearly, the key is to realize the urgency and ensuring that it’s aligned with the right channel with the ‘human touch’. Customers will remember if they are treated with empathy and care amid the crisis – resulting in an unrivaled strategy for businesses to retain customers in the long run.