NOW IS THE TIME TO: ASK, LISTEN,TUNE IN.

What I would’ve done to have the technology and tools we have right now back when I was a wet-eared marketing exec! The sophistication current martech allows us to bring into our marketing is mind-blowing. The onslaught of Coronavirus has only pushed the needle further.

More than ever before (in my professional lifetime), has the ability to tune in, have empathy and adapt become crucial to being a responsible marketer. In fact no, this isn’t just about responsible marketing, this is about being a responsible human being.

Here are a few tools and tactics I’ve been leaning on recently to help me tune into what’s happening and refocus my business, while being sensitive to others’ situations (professional and personal situations).

NEW NORMAL

It’s surprising to hear phrases like “when we’re out of this” and “when things go back to normal”:

A)    It’s unlikely there’ll be a normal as we knew normal to be, pre-Covid.

B)    If there is a chance of getting back to some kind of pre-Covid normality, it’s unlikely to happen in the next 18+ months.

Keeping fingers crossed hoping for a situation that feels more comfortable and familiar seems super-risky. Instead mapping out various scenarios which could unfold is the first step towards being prepared for what’s next.

Hands up, I had no steps in place to deal with something like C-19. But sure as hell now I’m getting some new measures in place and am ‘pivoting’* so that the business, team and I cope better over the months to come.

It doesn’t make for ‘comfortable’ planning, but with questions like the below in mind, I know the team and I are better prepared for the coming 12-18 months.

• What will working life be like for our team, our clients, partners and suppliers? What shifts are likely, how do we prepare and embrace them?
• How do we manage cashflow and what changes do we need to make to ride any new waves that may come? What’s the impact of battening down the hatches a 2nd or 3rd time?
• What forecasts are out there that indicate what will happen to our client industries? How are they tackling increased/decreased demand, change to their supply chain and delivery to market?
• What other measures of ‘streamlining’ may we, our clients, our partners need to have lined up, and for how long?
• How are we going to evolve as face-to-face channels open back up - or don’t?
• What new partnerships, collaborations and approaches are there to explore, given the changes likely to unfold?

Braving these, and other key questions, has given me at least some sense of control. Control during a time when C-19 has made us feel like we're anything but in control.

How do you feel?

I used the word mind-blowing earlier and now use it again as I introduce Sympler’s technology which gives real-time insight into how people all over the globe are feeling about Coronavirus. The brain-child of @Ben Jenkins, is essentially an ‘empathy tracker’ which makes for riveting viewing.

“How Do You Feel is a new Coronavirus tracking platform that reveals the world's emotional state in real-time during the pandemic. This is not content you will find on social media. 

The platform reveals the real-time thoughts and feelings of people across the globe through conversations, stories, video chats, and pictures. The end result is a comprehensive global empathy tracker that not only provides a fascinating look at global sentiment at any moment, but allows for people to feel less alone at a time when that's sorely needed. “

I’ve been looking at the regions my clients are focused on, as well as London where Your Allies is HQ’ed. Whilst there isn’t yet a way to directly link the sentiments on this beautiful map to specific industries, businesses or employees, a mere glance at the UK map tells a story.

(Listen to their series of interviews - run by @Alannah Wesley - with business leaders and experts which delve into how they’re finding new ways to communicate and make a difference while everyone is physically divided.)

For me this is ‘one to watch’ as the potential here to feed awareness of how people are feeling into our sales and marketing approaches feels very, very ripe.

JUST ASK

We know for certain that the events, conferences and multitude of networking forums we previously fed into our sales and marketing plans have been turned on their head.

What we don’t know is whether everyone we’d expect to meet face-to-face is up for transitioning to virtual events, webinars and Zoom sessions.

Revisit people’s communication preferences

Now is the time to ask people how they’d like you to communicate with them, and how frequently. Show them a breadth of ways in which you can stay in touch, and let them choose what it is you stay in touch about.

The additional challenge of communicating with people who are working from home is something to have your GDPR expert advise on. Where businesses are yet to have forwarding systems set up for phone calls and physical post, reaching people WFH on the phone and via mail remains a challenge.

This is just good practice by the way. And something we should be doing regularly anyway.

Diversify your digital channel mix

Cutting and pasting your physical events calendar with a virtual one won’t do the trick. Offering up your thought-leadership and company news with the market in as diverse a way as possible is a must.

-      Chop down long tail content and webinar recordings into bite size chunks.

-      Share the transcript for your virtual presentations.

-      Make it available across as many relevant channels and platforms as possible.

-      Ask people how they’d like it delivered – via email, through a closed forum,

-      Explore podcasts as podcast listening has shot through the roof these past few months.

Now is the time for diversifying your digital channels and how you deliver your story.

Speaking of digital channels, here’s one that’s having a whale of a time right now (shares in Zoom soared 30% in May)…

Zoomagedon

‘Zoomagedon’ - a brilliant term coined to describe the way many of us feel now that we walk zombie-like through hours and hours of Zoom meetings. The novelty has long worn off.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m infinitely grateful for what Zoom gives us. It’s been a god send to see our family, friends and peers through video calls.

But there is no replacement for face-to-face.

Enter ‘HopIn’. Another example of some awesome innovation going on in this space. A now online events platform with some slick twists and features I’ve not seen elsewhere. It’s not fully available yet, but offers the chance to sign-up and be an early adopter and try out their online events platform first hand through their own conferences.

Well worth a test-run if you need virtual events to fuel your next 12-months. It has some neat randomised networking, 121 and meeting room features and a few other capabilities I can see working well.

JUST LISTEN

I’m showing my age by saying this but social listening blows my mind. We can tune into so much, so easily with a few clicks and by following the right accounts and #s. Instead of reeling off a list of social listening tools, I’ll share this review from @Influencer Marketing Hub which has a rundown of the top 20 social listening tools and what they’re good for.

These tools offer real-time insights into sentiments and reactions going on with your clients, the competition, and the wider market.

To bring this back to empathy, these kinds of insights are what’s needed to increase our awareness of what’s going on out there.

Still on the subject of listening…

…there are some groups and forums doing a stellar job of listening to what’s panning out in the market. I’ve recently been welcomed as a member to the @Revenue Collective. A private group for revenue-focused executives, with global reach and which is rich in resources and support. From benchmarking surveys, and interviews with some of the world’s leading CROs, to round tables and Slack channels discussing the latest impact of the C-19 situation… this is one incredible resource and network to have to hand.

Groups like this offer more sound ways to plug into the impact of Coronavirus is having on our industry and the ways in which leaders are tackling it. Look out for these – and tune in when you find them.

JUST GOOD PRACTICE

Isn’t most of this just good practice anyway - asking people what they want, tuning in, listening, having empathy and using that to evolve?

Nothing like a crisis to refocus us on the right stuff and remind us what matters.

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* Is this the new, most over-used buzzword right now? I think it might be…