As we march towards the supposed end of lockdown, boutique PR agency Ashwini Publicity lists down the best practices for brand owners to ramp-up their brand’s communication strategies amid the Covid-19 pandemic
For a communication agency, having strived since last three decades and serviced 1000+ clients across the industries over the years, this phase makes one sit back and retrospect on the time how PR has emerged over the years and gather all machinery to stay motivated in such challenging times
Stay calm:
If you are calm, you are able to understand that you or your brand is not alone. Everyone around the world is going through this pandemic as Covid-19 is undoubtedly a difficult time for start-ups, MSME’s, SMB’s and more alike. So it’s high time brand owners take time to relax, retrospect & react.
PR is earned, not paid:
Public relations is the most cost-effective option for small, medium and large businesses alike, as opposed to marketing and advertising budgets. Brands can thus consider PR as free advertising depending on how you choose to use it. This is because the content isn’t about trying to sell something, but rather, about creating awareness.
Form a COVID-19 task force to redefine Content:
Understand that, the heart of your public relations campaign is content. The success of any campaign thrives on the research-led data, quality of content, creativity, narrative, and how it’s weaved with your marketing strategy. That is where the core strategy is.
Establish a team from different functions to assess your organization’s coronavirus needs and risks. The team should include representatives from your key functions, including supply chain, human resources, CSR, communications, operations, sales, legal, health, safety and environment (HSE), and more. Pull out the right content and let the PR machinery take charge.
A move over Influencers, emotional motivators are here:
Emotional Motivators should be at the top of the radar of your public relations strategy, especially if you’re trying to get more consumers on board with your product or service. When a PR strategy taps into emotional motivators, you can earn a brand ambassador better than any celebrity spokesperson. These motivators help bring a higher return on investment for any PR campaign and increase the chances that your brand will spread via word-of-mouth. The personal social media handles of the journalists from prominent media houses also have become an effective standalone medium to communicate. These trusted voices from the industry can also serve as your brand’s emotional motivators or influencer.
Distribute wisely…digitally :
Your brand needs to make optimum use of Digital PR and the time now. Distribution of information which is all about combining traditional PR with content marketing, social media and research. The key is transforming static news into conversations, effective narratives and bypassing media to speak directly to your target audience online. It will allow you to maximize news like never before. Instead of being satisfied with a single placement, your news can be shared exponentially.
Take risks, weave narratives & fight clutter
If you or your client have the fear of missing out, take risks. Everyone knows that social is a serious piece of “creating relationships with the public” (the core definition of public relations, right?). For the last five years, social media has impacted brand visibility with the force of a tsunami. Take advantage of it to share your content. Create a strategy, weave the right narratives if you want your business to stand out from the crowd.
Is this relevant?
Now is the time to stay within your area of expertise, not the time to start making tenuous links between your industry and the coronavirus. Please do not try and make a connection where there is none. Journalists (and their readers) are intelligent enough to know what you are doing.
Look for requests from journalists
Even communications with the best of intentions can damage a brand’s reputation, and you do not want to be seen to capitalize on a tragedy. Instead, why not have a look and see what journalists are asking for and respond to those queries.
Use this time to prepare for the future
While your current efforts are on hold, why not use this time to plan your next campaign? Life may not go back to how we previously knew it, but it will go back to a new normal. And when it does, you’ll be ready with a cracking PR campaign
(The article is authored by Shraddha Jadhav, Business Head, Ashwini Publicity)
