When an unexpected event disrupts the market, your media plan must shift to align with new consumer behaviors. The era of COVID-19 is no different, as many people around the world are settling into their new routines, spurred by social distancing and stay-at-home orders.
Customers are still purchasing products and consuming media, but their methods of engagement are shifting. Many consumers are spending an unprecedented amount of time inside their homes, making certain offline channels less effective while other digital channels are seeing a spike in activity.
As the current climate evolves, marketers will need to make the most of their investments and ensure they’re reaching customers where they are. They may also find their role to be more reactionary than ever, as they seek out the data to better understand this world of new consumer behavior.
Let’s look at a few tips and tactics that will help you allocate and plan your media budget in the coming months.
Maintain a Steady Course with Ad Spend
Many buy-side decision-makers believe that the novel coronavirus will affect ad spending in the United States more profoundly than the 2008 financial crisis, which has contributed to some panic amongst marketing teams. Shortly after businesses began feeling the impact of the pandemic, 24 percent of media planners paused their budgets entirely, while another 46 percent made significant adjustments during Q1 and Q2 2020.
Out of the marketers that adjusted or paused their budget, 64 percent were unsure of what changes will be necessary for their Q3 and Q4 2020 media plans. However, it’s crucial that these companies do not continue to dock their marketing efforts and find their footing as soon as possible. According to the Advertising Research Foundation, it can take up to five years for a brand to recover their previous market share when they stop advertising – so if you’ve ramped down your marketing spend significantly, begin course-correcting now.
Focus on New Customer Data
Analyzing the history of your campaigns and relying on tried-and-true strategies simply will not have the same impact post-coronavirus. Marketers must take a different approach to marketing measurement – it is crucial to have a solution in place that can intelligently discard irrelevant, outdated customer data but still learn from certain scenarios that are pertinent in today’s environment. This is done through a machine learning algorithm that pairs behavioral data with other types of data (such as location or brand awareness metrics) to determine which data is still relevant despite changing circumstances.
Marketers need to truly hone in on customers and fully understand how an individual or small segment of consumers are impacted by COVID-19, and not only make this part of their strategy but central to how they do business. This will make data quality an increasingly important aspect of decision-making among marketers and media planners since poor quality data can lead campaigns astray.
Value Brand Strength Over Short-Term Sales
Building your brand instead of solely encouraging sales is a promising way to emerge from this pandemic with a stronger market position. To make this shift, first examine your KPIs. Sales-based indicators will no longer truly reflect the growth of your organization as customers avoid purchasing non-essential goods.
Instead, move on to awareness-based indicators. Rather than measuring how much an advertisement affected net sales, focus on how many web visits it translated into. Other common indicators of brand health include search volume, reach, share of voice, and favorable sentiment among consumers online. These metrics are unlikely to turn into sales overnight – but when consumers resume their regular purchase behaviors, your brand will be top-of-mind.
Don’t Put COVID-19 Under a Microscope
At this point, consumers are beginning to become tired of advertisements that begin with “In these uncertain times…” and end with “We’re here for you.” If your organization doesn’t have anything particularly impactful to say about the situation at hand, it may not be necessary to divert any marketing spend on these kinds of advertisements.
If you have useful insight on coronavirus, then by all means – talk about it! However, gather some information from your audience first. Ask how it’s impacting their day to day life and consider how your products can lend a hand. For example, imagine an outdoor goods company. Instead of assuring customers they are “there for them,” they could share the thrill of the great outdoors while highlighting its role in social distancing.
If your business has little to offer in regard to coronavirus, and your current marketing plan doesn’t seem tone-deaf given the current situation, it’s not necessarily a bad thing to continue business as usual. People still need goods and information that aren’t directly associated with coronavirus – and in turn, it’s your responsibility as a marketer to provide and promote this type of messaging. However, always keep empathy in mind. Even if you don’t create a fully-fledged campaign around coronavirus, consider sharing a kind message on social media just so customers are reminded of the human connection that underpins many successful businesses.
Final Thoughts
COVID-19 has brought significant changes to the world of marketing – but none of its challenges are insurmountable. With a careful analysis of consumer attitudes and an empathetic approach to their struggles, marketers can find new opportunities to build the value of their brand while developing a closer connection with their customers.
Interested in more practical tips for improving your marketing strategy during the COVID-19 pandemic? Watch the experts at Marketing Evolution address ten pressing questions from marketers during our free on-demand webinar, Maximizing Marketing Impact in Unpredictable Conditions.