COVID-19: Why Upping Your Content Game is Your Company's Best Bet Right Now
Here’s a wild thought — just last Wednesday, the NBA hosted four live games in front of packed arenas. With all that’s happened since, that feels like six months ago.
The week since has been unlike anything we’ve ever experienced. Many adults are adjusting to working remotely, while children stay home from now-canceled public schools. College campuses have closed and professors are moving entire courses online for the rest of the semester. Movie theaters, restaurants, sporting events, churches, and virtually every other public event you can name has effectively shut down until gathering is once again considered safe.
It’s a uniquely confusing time for every organization, trying to navigate the challenges posed by the COVID-19 virus and pressing forward as a company while protecting employees and prioritizing their health and safety.
Normal life is on pause for much of the workforce across the globe, yet many jobs still need doing. Unfinished projects, tasks, and presentations aren’t going anywhere, and we’ll all need a new kind of focus to accomplish our goals in the weeks ahead.
This is indeed a challenging time, but also an opportunity for those who claim to be thought leaders to prove that title is more than just talk. Here’s how.
The True Meaning of Thought Leadership
While social distancing may be keeping us physically further apart as teams, friends and coworkers, it also gives us all a rare chance over these next few weeks to reorganize, refresh and reconnect with our vision for 2020. Part of this self-evaluation includes taking stock in your organization’s marketing plan and content quality, and taking time to brainstorm creative new ways to connect with customers under these special circumstances.
Millions of workers and learners will turn to the internet for solutions to this month’s quarantine measures, which means “one of the biggest mass behavior changes that the nation has experienced” will surely push networks to their limits. The number of citizens in your organization’s digital neighborhood will be unusually high for at least the next two months — how will you handle it?
The best place to start is by being a good Internet neighbor. This is not a time to greenlight ultra-aggressive targeting measures or in any way prey on customer fears. On the contrary, this is an opportunity for brands and businesses to lead the way in being helpful, informative and even charitable.
This is a time for your brand to display its human side. And no, that doesn’t necessarily mean sending out an email blast telling your entire subscriber base you’re taking COVID-19 seriously (our team has received dozens of these already, and they aren’t particularly creating brand loyalty). It means looking honestly at your organizational values and determining the steps you can take now to provide course-corrections.
How Comma Can Help
Creating this type of human connection with customers in times of crisis can be challenging, especially with many companies frozen in place without the ability to follow their normal processes. Nevertheless, it is crucial to establishing your brand as an embodiment of your business values. Leadership means providing your audience with positive, helpful, informative content at times when many others might be satisfied to simply ride out the storm.
Comma Copywriters is uniquely ready to help your organization demonstrate that brand of leadership. We are also believers in strong thought leadership in times of crisis, and have built our team remotely since 2016 to support organizations in need of insightful content for times like these.
We know the disappointment of being unable to participate in this year’s office bracket pool, and understand the strain these next difficult weeks can put on writers, content managers, brand marketers, and everything in between. Comma is here to be a helpful solution to any organization looking for content to bring its compassion and optimism to the forefront.
Now, perhaps with more eyes on webpages than ever before, there is a thirst for content worth writing and worth reading — a principle Comma swears by in everything we do. Every word counts to us. So while we’re social distancing, let’s get up close and personal with your unique content needs.
To learn how we can unite and build thought leadership through high-value, positive content, sign up for a free 20-minute Comma consultation today. We care. We’d love to help lift the content burden for you in these heavy times.