#quarantinelife week 1: a pandemic begins, how it's shaking up marketing and communications

[This communication originally ran in a client newsletter on March 20. Here are our second and our most recent posts.]

We’ve entered an unprecedented time for our businesses, our families, our community, our nation, and our world. Businesses and schools everywhere are going virtual. Your companies are part of a bigger movement where working from home is about to become the norm.

During this time, when there is no playbook for what to do, we want to remind you we are here as your partners to help however we can. As a virtual team for two decades now, we are operating business as usual.

Every Friday, we will be sending a summary of COVID-19 news for your reference and/or to share with your teams as you see fit. We’ll try to include ideas, tips and trends as we spot them. We hope you enjoy our commentary. We'll do our best to help you keep up with changes in the marketing and communications industry as we move through this time together without a manual.

The media is moving fast to keep up with evolving news cycle, as you all know. This morning TechCrunch reported on a Bloomberg report that the FDA has approved a new coronavirus test to expedite the ability to test patients for the virus, which hit after 11p last night. 

David Leonhardt wrote this opinion piece for the NYT with a quote, which I love, from Harvard Economist Jason Furman (who helped design Obama’s response to another financial crisis we all remember). This originally appeared in last week’s WSJ: 

The likelihood that history judges the economic response to coronavirus as too little and too late is much higher than the converse. If the economic shock is small and stimulus proves to be unnecessary, its negative effects are likely to be small. But if the shock is bigger and policy makers fail to act now, it will be harder to reverse the economic damage. With the federal government able to borrow at a negative real interest rate, doing too much is a minimal risk.

While there is a lot of good information out there, there is also a lot of misinformation. This could call for a reminder to your teams to beware some information they may receive, even from trusted sources. Ina Fried reported today in Axios Login:

Tech platforms have gotten smarter about handling deliberate disinformation from bad actors. But the coronavirus' spread presents a different kind of misinformation threat: False information spread by people who are well-intentioned, but fearful and naive.

Why it matters: Bad coronavirus information spreading across Facebook, Twitter and other platforms could lose lives.

The threat was vividly illustrated Thursday when actress and activist Alyssa Milano tweeted out an image (later deleted) listing incorrect recommendations for how to avoid contracting the virus.

Marketing as we know it is changing, at least for the next few months. Forbes is now a running list of events that have been canceled, which includes not just industry events but large-scale celebrations. Here’s the link. For our healthcare clients, Modern Healthcare is also running a list of cancellations here. For tech companies, ZDNet just put out this list.

Companies are making quick shifts to adapt as well. Airbnb extended a no-cancellation policy in response to the coronavirus. Autoworkers are telling non-factory workers to work from home, and AT&T, Comcast and Verizon agreed not to overcharge customers during coronavirus.

And while the US is being hit, we must remember we are in this together with the rest of the world. We are up to 125,000 cases globally, according to CNN live updates, a great resource for the latest news on coronavirus. Abroad, doctors in the UK are urging the NHS to cancel planned surgeries and non-urgent activity to free up beds and help hospitals prepare for an expected coronavirus surge. A Czech hospital was hit by a cyberattack, and France is embracing a distance learning experiment. This news also reminds me that news organizations are looking for every coronavirus connection they can find in their reporting — something to keep in mind as you plan your news cycle.

As expected, we’re starting to see coronavirus coverage shifting to stories about those on the front lines helping to contain and treat the outbreak. From the front line doctors and first responders treating patients to the patients themselves, the story is taking on a more personal tone. Here’s an interesting NYT read on what’s happened in one Washington hospital.

Cogenta was founded in the throws of the Dot Com Bust, we expanded our business through the Banking Crisis, and we’re planning to stand strong during the Coronavirus Pandemic.

We’ll keep you in the know as we learn more, are looking for ways our clients can navigate the news, and are here as you need us.