With millions of people out of work and countless businesses shutting their doors temporarily, or even permanently, many businesses are wondering whether they should maintain their marketing communication activities.

This is not the time for blatant sales pitches. But, it’s a good time for customer communication. The tone of that communication should shift, though, from blatantly self-promotional to other-focused.

In reality, that’s the tone that good communication and advertising should always take: what’s in it for them, not “buy my stuff, buy my stuff, buy my stuff.”

So restaurants are, by and large, doing a good job of sharing menus and special offers with local communities. Delivery and curb-side pick up are services that people value right now.

On the other hand, if you’re selling jewelry, clothing and home decor, this may not be the time to continue with your traditional advertising messaging. In fact, Vermont has even stepped forward to forbid Walmart, Target and Costco stores in the state from selling certain nonessential items. It’s an effort to continue to limit the number of people shopping and, potentially, infecting others to only those with essential needs.

Many companies are pulling back on their advertising right now and that’s a good thing in many cases. What they shouldn’t do is pull back on their communications.

We’ve been seeing a number of exceptional examples of how businesses are creatively reaching out to, and engaging, their audiences with messaging that is helpful, supportive and non-self-promotional. That’s a great way to remain real and relevant to your audience.

In some instances, we’ve heard from our colleagues in digital marketing that customers are pulling back on, or even halting, their online communications. That might work out okay for big brands with high levels of awareness and preference among a loyal audience. But, it’s not likely to work for smaller brands that may be less well-established. For them, keeping the lines of communication open is more important than ever.

While paid advertising may not be the best investment for many companies right now, communication still matters. To some, it matters a lot. Don’t pull the plug on your critical connections with customers right now. They’d like to hear from you.

About Us

Strategic Communications, LLC, works with B2B clients to help them achieve their goals through effective content marketing and management with both internal and external audiences. We work with clients to plan, create and publish high-quality, unique content. Whether on- or offline, or both, we’ll help you achieve desired results.

(Strategic Communications is certified as a Woman-Owned Business Enterprise through the Wisconsin Department of Administration.)

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