The Importance of Advertising During a Crisis

Do you offer a product or service that helps people? If so, then now is the most critical time in recent history to be advertising your products or services to business owners who need your help. First responders are trained to run toward danger, not away from it, in order to help those who are in peril. Their goal is to help prevent others from being hurt in dangerous situations. These are the scenarios in which first responders are needed most.

At the moment, the COVID19 virus is putting a lot of people and businesses in dangerous situations. Many will be hit hard financially through a loss of business that is not their fault but regardless of that fact, cannot be avoided. If your product or service can help these business owners avoid a dangerous situation – like potentially closing their doors – it is your duty to make sure they are aware of what you have to offer. If you don’t, you could be withholding the help that could make the difference between life and death for that business. In these situations, you need to consider your product or service as lifesaving as that of a first responder.

If your business has been more focused on how you profit from your customers or what you can get out of the relationship, then you need to have a mindset shift and ask yourself what your customers are getting out of their relationship with you. If you’ve made a misstep with a client, it’s time to say, “I’m sorry”, find out what they need, and discover how you can deliver it. If you have underdelivered, it is time to step up and fix your mistakes. The ability of clients to financially tolerate poor delivery and/ or poor results is going to vanish. When times are tight and money is tough to come by, business owners are not as tolerant of less than stellar service. However, people will find the money to pay for things that help them even during the darkest of economic times.

If you are going to convince clients or potential clients to spend their ad dollars with you, you need to be ready to deliver superb products, services, and customer service with heart. Your clients are human beings, not ATMs. They experience the same emotions as you do, and during times of crisis they are just as nervous and confused. They need your help right now probably more than you can even imagine. The service providers who go out of business in the next few months will be those who fail to help their clients. It’s that simple.

We are facing an unprecedented shift in how we do things, and it’s changing almost daily. If you don’t know how to pivot and shift with the times, the time to learn is now. Those who survive the longest in business are the ones who change when necessary. If you are really good at understanding what people need and giving it to them with a heart of service, you will be successful. If you aren’t good at that yet, you can learn. It all comes down to understanding and knowing what people need right now and getting as good as you can at giving to them. If you’re not sure what your clients need, think about what you need. They are no different than you.

The most important thing to remember about advertising during the current crisis? Don’t stop now! You can help others get through these hard times. Yes, you. You can be the service provider who props up struggling businesses – businesses who employ people just like you. The people who buy products and services so businesses can continue to employ people. The best and fastest way through any trial is by helping others. There really is no better way.

For a great example of a heartfelt, appropriate ad for these times, watch this commercial from Guiness: https://youtu.be/GWVW5p62sO8