The first week in isolation and homeoffices due to the Corona crisis is over. And for the first time af days of shock, fear, helplessness, hope, purposeful optimism and very honest positive team spirit, the moment has come to take a deep breath.
COVID-19 also hit us at Content Glory with all its force. But in the meantime, something like normality has returned to the home offices of our employees, who are all in good health. And even though we can continue to provide our customers with the fullest service, I can't avoid big questions: What is the future of Content Glory? And what does the crisis teach us about corporate communication, marketing in general and online communication in particular?
Admittedly, all these are big questions. But if we don’t use the time right now to tackle them, when else?
The Corona crisis comes with severe economic consequences especially for small businesses and agencies. Sadly also for us. We lost customers and contracts were reduced. I had to make personnel decisions, that were not easy for me but necessary. We could ensure continued service for our existing customers, which worked without problems even in the first hectic days.
Work joins the kitchen table
And even more than that: Apart from a few neighboring construction sites and keyboards besieged by cats, our everyday life in the Content Glory home office runs smoothly. So smoothly that I believe I can make a statement even after a relatively short runtime: The changes we and many others are all witnessing in our daily working lives will persist. We are in an ultimate live test of our state of digitization and a certain local independence in everyday professional life. A test under enormously difficult conditions - and yet one that we have to face. Because the reality we are experiencing every day shows how far we have already come with digital and networked work. Right now we are communicating via chats and video conferencing, accessing important data even from home and getting the chance to consume various content simultaneously. So, is everything fine?
No, not yet, because the crisis is all to real. But it is precisely this - often strange - juxtaposition of provisional and functioning practice that must now be made productive. In my opinion, this is a difficult task that every company and its employees must now face.
Crisis communication is teamwork
Delivery bottlenecks, slump in bookings, limited production, suspended customer contact, cancelled events. For practically every industry, the measures against the coronavirus mean sometimes brutal cuts in the workflow. But especially during an existential crisis it’s worth asking existential questions. What is our current core business? What messages do my customers need to hear now? And what do I take with me for "normal operation" after the crisis? How do we develop as a company? Are we reinventing ourselves? But most importantly: which messages and informations do my customers and my target group need right now to feel safer?
These are big questions, but you are not alone with them. With professional help it is possible to make an analysis of your situation and to work on the messages that really matter. Courageous and appropriate marketing, which really finds its goal, is now even more important than before. It helps that the audience is listening a little more carefully than usual...
Crisis? Content and platforms were never more important
For in the felt moments of total isolation, even more communication takes place than before. Digital platforms can now show what they are good at. Educational content, social media, especially videos, but also podcasts, are on the upswing during this time.
The emotions that are transmitted so immersively in this way can give people a feeling of social closeness and compassion, especially in this situation. Take the opportunity to address people in this way!
Not having to rely on physical contact for company presentations and workshops may be unusual, but isn't it also an advantage? Online trainings, workshops and webinars can now be perfectly integrated into everyday life and all of a sudden even quarantine can become productive. And you save a lot of time as well as travel expenses. A period of crisis always means time for experiments. Dare now to take new and unconventional paths of online communication! Perhaps by sending a personal video message directly from your home desk to customers via social media or email? The statement: “We are here for you even now!” Making a virtue out of necessity today also means establishing sustainable digital communication channels for tomorrow. Contacts that you can make or intensify in these turbulent times will most likely survive in a future after the crisis.
That's where it helps that we have already been involved in the creation of various online content for our customers in the form of webinars and coaching sessions, which can now be played out.
And because the crisis and change are omnipresent at the moment, my colleague Dominik Flener and I will now focus on these questions in the Healthcare Marketing Changers podcast. Because right now it is really worth taking a look at the Healthcare sector. You will hear from us!
Good content has no end
I know that it is not always easy to continue to think productively, especially in critical times. But at present, realities are being created that will continue to exist after the crisis. We are experiencing a paradigm shift. The future of content and many parts of life are digital and they must adapt to the new working realities that the crisis has simply created - without demand and at an unpredictable pace. Let us help you arrive at normality and the future at the same time! And combine short-term crisis communication with a communication strategy that lasts in the long term.
In my search for new answers for Content Glory, I could also rely on my team. Because the way out of the crisis becomes a little clearer when you don't have to walk it alone. For a conversation about the marketing of your company now and in the future, I am at your disposal at any time, free of charge and without obligation. Together we will find a way to master the crisis and implement the findings in the best possible way.
I am firmly convinced that in the end, everything will be okay. Come through these times well, both personally and as a company!
Yours sincerely
René Neubach
