With more and more people working from home or remotely during the ongoing crisis, digital marketing strategies are now more important than ever. However, marketers should also acknowledge the fact that this global crisis will have a significant impact on brand perception, with some individuals allegedly feeling offended when receiving marketing emails from companies they hadn’t heard from in a long time. Up-to-the-minute knowledge is essential in boosting brand awareness and establishing a great digital marketing strategy during a crisis.
As the COVID-19 pandemic goes on and the words “second wave” are used more and more frequently, marketers may also need to evaluate the insights into audiences, markets, and brands obtained during the past months. Digital marketing strategies should be based on our new normal while focusing on the things we already know about the future. Classic digital marketing strategies can be efficiently combined with new inspirational stories and conscientious brand awareness actions to design great marketing strategies for the final months of 2020. Here’s what marketers should consider:
Shopping on Social Media
With people still spending most of their time indoors, and fears about a second wave of the pandemic rising, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and other social media platforms are now essential for socializing with friends and family. Many people around the world have started to use these platforms not only as a way to connect with their loved ones, but also to discover new products and brands. One of the best ways of improving your marketing strategy in 2020 is by making products visible and available for shopping on social media.
Using Influencer Marketing
According to a recent report, 61 percent of people interact with an influencer daily and 87 percent of shoppers are inspired by an influencer to make a purchase. One of the most successful marketing strategies in 2019, influencer marketing has taken a step back in 2020. However, while this marketing trend seems to be going down and celebrity influencers are no longer as popular as they used to be, more and more brands are using teams of micro-influencers to promote their products.
Creating Great Content
Marketers already know that “content is king,” but they may be surprised to discover that these words are more important than ever during a crisis. Distributing great content is the first and most important step in engaging your audience. With people feeling the need to get involved, this remains a great way of building brand awareness. One of the best methods to do this is by using virtual reality, social media, and interactive videos in a way that allows your audience to remain truly connected to your content.
Focusing on the Right Industries and Products
The road toward the new normal actually means that many people experienced important changes in their daily habits, changes that also transformed the way they shop. Although many will adapt, some of the more recent shopping trends are here to stay, at least for the moment. Deloitte has recently shown that companies are splitting into two groups, with groceries, household goods, pet supplies, and others being overwhelmed with orders, while other companies are not even interacting with their customers. Although automotive, furniture, luxury, appliances, and hospitality seem to have borne the brunt of the crisis so far, Deloitte notes that markets will continue to change as the crisis persists.
Adapting Marketing Strategies to Previously Improbable Changes
Deloitte also observed that, while some changes were to be expected given the international crisis, some were hard to anticipate even by the most experienced marketers. While the rise of digital sales by 18% in Q1/2020 compared to Q1/2019 was foreseeable, the firm also showed that desktop traffic grew by 9% in Q1/2020 compared to that of the previous year. Since desktop traffic used to be on a downward spiral, marketers may need to adapt their holiday campaigns to accommodate this improbable change.
As the COVID-19 pandemic is still a part of our new reality and continues to change the world we live in, marketers must find ways to readjust their strategies to the new normal. Autumn may be the perfect season to rethink marketing strategies and adapt digital actions to recent changes. As marketers everywhere struggle to prepare for the future, one important question remains: what other trends will affect industries and businesses in the long run?
