Brands shouldn’t shy away from talking to their customers at this time. It might seem superficial to discuss brands and customer behaviours in the midst of a global pandemic. But there are some pretty compelling reasons why you should. A recent study found that 65% of consumers said that how a brand responds to the crisis will impact their likelihood to buy from it in the future. And when it comes to the inevitable economic downturn that the Coronavrius will bring, all the studies show that the stronger your brand, the quicker you will recover any lost ground. So now is not the time for radio silence.
But how do you do it? How do you talk to your customers in an unprecedented time like this? And most importantly how do you get your message right? And that’s the rub of it. It's tricky for brands. They need to walk a fine line between trying to make themselves and their products feel relevant, while at the same time being sensitive and empathetic in the midst of the challenges everyone faces. Let’s have a look at brands getting their message in video content right (and not so right) during COVID 19:
HITS
In this film, Guinness shows how brands can be relevant during COVID 19. St Patricks Day was obviously very different this year, but that message of togetherness is more important than ever.
For some brands, a relevant message will come easier than others, but that withstanding the execution of this film by IKEA about staying at home is really strong.
While we not entirely convinced by the execution of the spot from Nissan, the voiceover and script verge on being a little OTT for our liking, the idea of a brand saying it will be taking a back seat at this time is honest, refreshing and very smart
MISSES
GEICO didn’t create these ads during the Coronavirus, but their fatal error was not to stop running them. A concept called ‘High Five’ obviously has some fairly big challenges while all try to stick to social distancing:
Another brand that didn’t consider the ramifications of the advertising content it was still using on TV as the world went into lockdown was KFC. Releasing a piece of content that focuses on licking your fingers is also an obvious fail right now.
While this isn’t a single example, it does show one of the major pitfalls brands fall into when creating video content. Following the lead of other brands. As the video shows, by highlighting some of the advertising tropes that are fast becoming the norm, the “Generic COVID 19 advert” already exists:
If you’re trying to keep video rolling then virtually get in touch to discuss your brief.
