Christopher Lee WNY Holdings LLC Marketing Manager Discusses Marketing in a Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought hardships to personal lives as well as upended how businesses operate in 2020. Marketers have had to adapt as purchasing routines have changed for many target audiences. Businesses are recreating the ways they sell to customers as they widen customer bases and keep in touch with the public.
Christopher Lee, the Marketing Manager at WNY Holdings, shares eight tips for businesses to carry on with marketing efforts during a global pandemic.
Stay Up on Communications
Marketers should maintain open lines of communication with customer bases. First and foremost, businesses should acknowledge the pandemic and its immediate impact. Customers will appreciate and support companies that empathize with them and ensure that they will continue to be there. If the pandemic has impacted operations in any way, inform your audience of any changes and their impacts. It is also crucial to reassure your customers that the quality of your products or services will not be changed regardless of the circumstances.
Refocus and Refine Marketing Strategies
The landscape of successful industries has shifted amidst the shutdown and pandemic. Good marketers can identify which markets have been successful and modify strategies to target new audiences or refine existing customers.
Increase Content Creation
Some businesses may choose to go dark during a lockdown or reduce the amount of content produced. Strong marketers will increase spend on content creation to help address customer questions, provide reassurance, and help boost their name in search results. Taking advantage of downtime will set up businesses for a strong competitive advantage when things begin to settle down or return to a relatively normal place.
Review Marketing Automation Initiatives
As the environment changes, it is essential to review automation initiatives for your business. While some strategies may have been effective before the pandemic, those activities may need to be modified to focus on current business and customer needs. Customers may become sensitive to the frequency of campaigns and feel that profits are more important than people.
Maintain or Increase Marketing Budget
Many businesses will have to cut back expenses across the board to stay afloat during this period. If your company can maintain or even increase the marketing budget, it may be able to go much further than it had before. Rates for advertising will most likely decrease, which gives your campaign more reach for every dollar spent.
Recharge Your Digital Presence
With many businesses shut down across the country and globe temporarily, successful companies must take to online channels to continue to serve their customers. Adapting an online presence to fit multiple audiences from social media to podcasts to other online forums can help stretch a business name further.
Change How to Meet with Customers
Some industries are turning to virtual events to engage with audiences. Find a way to interact with your customer base, whether it is a webinar on current trends for customers, tutorials on new products, or conferences to learn best practices from others in the industry.
Help the Community
Demonstrating that your business is a valued community partner can go a long way. Find a way for your business to aid the local community through donating food, supplies, resources, or volunteering. Customers will follow companies that are stepping up in difficult times.
About Christopher Lee
Christopher Lee is the Marketing Manager at WNY Holdings LLC – a digital marketing company that was started in 2018 to provide industry-leading marketing services for small businesses.
Christopher Lee goes above and beyond for clients, helping them make data-driven decisions that will increase their keyword rankings and visibility to attract and convert more customers.
WNY Holdings LLC offers services such as content marketing, web design, graphic design, media creation, SEO, and Facebook advertising. They focus on creating an excellent user experience that keeps customers coming back for more. Throughout the process, ongoing data analysis and custom reporting help clients track and understand how their digital marketing efforts are helping their businesses thrive.
Mr. Lee is focused on fostering a productive and stimulating working environment. This helps WNY employees grow and develop professionally, making them excited to come to work every day and grow along with the company and with their clients.