1st of April 2020, April Fool’s Day – you’re anxiously awaiting someone to announce that the lockdown was a joke and you can go on with your business, but no, it’s real. You may have had to close shop for these 21 days but that doesn’t mean your marketing should. If anything, your online presence matters now more than anything.
With almost everyone spending most of their time on social media, it’s pivotal that your brand’s online presence is at its peak. As a small business, you may have not had to rely on online marketing for this, and thus have no idea how to do this. We’re here to help. As industry leaders in marketing, one of our areas of expertise lies in online marketing. We know how crucial this time is for businesses, and that is why we have put together a list of 5 marketing tips every business should be utilising during this time to retain their prominence in the industry and to remind their audience that they still care.
- Content Marketing
Curating consistent, engaging content for your audience to enjoy may be challenging but proves to be well worth it. Creating genuine content that appeals to your audience can help retain customers who will carry a sense of brand loyalty towards your brand. Take Nike for example. The apparel giant has created unique ways to give a voice to the marginalised groups in sports. Through their unapologetic support for women and disabled people, the brand was able to appeal to their audience in a way that many brands fail to do so. Your content needs to be relevant and creative; it must give your audience a reason to back you up when asked why they love your brand so much. In this case, your content can advise people on how to practice good hygiene.
- Video Marketing
Videos tell a story, and depending on the production, it can either be a good one or not. During the lockdown, you may be a restaurant owner that looking for ways to engage with your audience. If that’s the case, then recording a video detailing the preparation of your signature dish may do the trick. Or if you’re a nail technician, creating a video of you achieve a flawless gel nail look might just do the trick. Remember, the video needs to be engaging – reminds your audience that they’re not alone and that you can still assist them even during a lockdown.
- Email Marketing
Have a lot to say in a short space of time? Email marketing is the perfect solution. The great thing about email marketing serves like Mailchimp is that they give you a variety of templates to choose from, which allows you to tell 2-3 stories in one go. Are you a homeopath practitioner? Then you can use email marketing to suggest immune-boosting recipes, run a special on consultation and promote your yoga videos on YouTube. The possibilities are endless. Knowing that you can communicate multiple messages to hundreds of people in one go makes email marketing the perfect tool, and it’s great to reach those who aren’t on social media. Email marketing also works best for B2B providers, it’s professional and consistent.
- Organic social media
Your 3-5 posts a week on Facebook and Instagram count as organic – content that is curated to grow your audience without spending a cent. Take Instagram for example, on your Explore page, you’ve come across many brands and accounts’ content to browse through, and in some cases, you follow the accounts that appeal to you. Instagram’s algorithms curate content according to your preference and supply your Explore feed with content that is like the accounts you follow. If you’re a beauty brand, then your followers’ feed will be flooded with makeup and cosmetic brands. If you post consistently and use the correct hashtags, your brand will appear on other feeds – and if your content is great, you might just get a few followers. And with everyone on their phones during the lockdown, you’re guaranteed to get more followers.
- Paid media
Or sponsored ads as you may know them as. This relates to videos and images that a brand puts money behind to push it in front of more people, with the hopes of gaining followers, generating leads or promoting a brand. You can never go wrong with paid media, especially during the lockdown. Creating adverts that remind your existing and new audience that your products and services will be back after the lockdown is a great way of cost-effective marketing. Music streaming service, Spotify for example, has put together several work-from-home playlists that you can jam to. The brand uses paid media to reach as many people as they can – with the hopes of receiving new subscribers.
Online marketing doesn’t have to be complicated. We’re here to help you navigate the complexities and create brand awareness for your organisation during this difficult time. If you’re a small business and you want to find out more about our COVID marketing special, send us an email at hello@hachoo.co.za and we’ll gladly assist you and your brand and ensure that your marketing is done right!
Don’t want to read? Watch Our MD give out the 5 marketing tips on our IGTV!