How U.S. Advertisers Responded to the Pandemic
Although the Covid-19 virus began to rapidly spread during January of 2020, infecting vulnerable populations (the elderly and those with preexisting conditions), it wasn’t until March 15, 2020, that states began to implement shutdowns to prevent the spread of the virus. No one could tell the nervous public when a viable treatment would be available or when the lockdown would end.
In the wake of shuttered stores, schools, and restaurants, there was genuine concern that the economy would be severely damaged. Businesses began to develop strategies for sustainable profitable growth during a recession. The immediate goal was to limit unemployment, declining sales, and diminishing consumer optimism.
In a survey of more than 35,000 consumers -- conducted on a global basis by Kantar, a global media consultancy -- consumers indicated that they want companies to take CARE of their employees and they understand that companies must stay in business to do so. In fact only 8% of those surveyed believed that brands should stop advertising. But consumers DO expect brands to “do their part” in terms of supporting government and society during the crisis. A marketing consultancy in Milan, Beyond Research, released a report on March 19, 2020 regarding how brands in Italy can support consumers during this period of enforced isolation. They suggested that consumers tend to develop one of four types of fear management strategies and that marketers should be aware of them to effectively market during the lockdown. The following summarizes the four fear management strategies and examples of advertising that address each set of concerns.
Type #1 Denial & Challenge:
These are the people who need someone to blame. They are angry and exasperated by the situation. Brands addressed their anger by explaining the seriousness of the situation in a non-confrontational way.
Facebook’s wonderful campaign was voiced by a great grandmother cheering on the nervous expectant mothers who were fearful of the experience ahead, using her own experience during the Spanish Flu epidemic.
In January 2021, Ford debuted a spot encouraging people to come together, protect each other, and help save lives in the months ahead until COVID-19 vaccines become more widely distributed.
“We’re in this together and Ford’s goal since the pandemic started has been to try to help save lives…While many are weary from the challenges 2020 has thrown at us, now is the time for us to pull together, protect each other and finish strong until COVID-19 vaccines arrive more broadly. Lives are on the line.”
Kumar Galhotra, Ford President, Americas & International Markets Group
Brands also put their resources that were going unused to good work: Dove pledged a donation to Direct Relief, Budweiser sponsored blood drives in football stadiums, and Marriott - with American Express and JP Morgan Chase - committed $10 million to provide free hotel rooms for doctors and nurses in major metropolitan cities. Burger King sent free hamburgers to healthcare workers,
#2 Denial & Mocking:
These are people that need comedy as a refuge. Brands can remind us that the situation is serious but cheer us up at the same time.
Burger King and Hotels.com, brand messages and personalities, cleverly walked the tightrope between a serious reminder and silliness.
These people want to impose order onto the chaos. They need to find ways to normalize the abnormal.
Brands can show us the positive side of the situation! This ad for IKEA, produced in Spain, reminded us of the pleasures of staying home.
#3 Acknowledgment & Normalization
Brands also showed consumers different ways to do the things they were missing at home. Local health club sent out weekly emails to remind their members to work out at home and Pelaton offered a 90-day free trial. Drybar sent helpful hair styling videos and Starbucks maintained drive-thru counters. In each case, these brands remained true to their mission and helped consumers adapt to the lockdown.
#4 Recognition & Need to Get Out
These people are worried. They feel powerless and disoriented and they’re getting cabin fever. They need to keep in touch with the outside world.
Brands reached out to provide home delivery, internet access, free data, and a variety of digital means to connect with friends, including Zoom conferencing, Netflix Watch Parties, and more social media options. Brands also offered ways to make consumers feel safer when they left their homes.
CostCo offered special hours for the most vulnerable populations to do their shopping and many retail operations adopted the practice. Sneeze guards at the registers, sanitization of shopping carts, and assistance in the aisles also contributed to an out-of-home environment that felt safe. Starting in April 2020, Kaiser Permanente ran this ad on all media platforms to remind people that compliance with the mask mandate and social distancing was essential to ensure the safety of others.
Brands also offered encouragement! This commercial from Monster.com acknowledges the setbacks that COVID-19 created, but reminded us that we were going to have to get back in the swing of things sometime so…get prepared!
Conclusion
Marketing plays a vital role in the U.S. economy and the marketing profession made every effort to keep brands and services in business during the pandemic. While crises provide opportunities, it’s very important to adhere to a brand’s mission, personality, and unique selling proposition (USP) before launching into an unfamiliar situation. Know your consumer and know your brand. Most important: avoid even the appearance of profiteer-ism: maintain fair pricing, and don’t oversell your mission. Keep it in perspective. Snickers (a brand I used to work on) is not a COVID-19 vaccine. But it helped keep spirits up during a pandemic. Successful marketing efforts during the pandemic found ways to make brands part of the solution.
