Why You Need a Brand Strategy That’s Built for the COVID-19 Era
Based on a deep dive into The Harris Poll’s "The Essential 100" study and our client work, it is clear that the COVID-19 pandemic is causing a once-in-a-generation reappraisal among consumers. As people adapt to their new circumstances, new habits are being established, long-standing attitudes are changing, and those brands that miss out will miss their window. Brands need a COVID strategy that gets beyond the immediate practical changes to address the long-term transformation that is taking place. Below, we explain why you need a new strategy now. Our next article will detail the new elements that are required to succeed.
"Essential” is the new frame of reference.
Many of the essential workers who make the economy go were largely invisible before COVID. Likewise, essential brands that have always been consumer staples now have the spotlight on them like never before. They have a rare opportunity to ride this wave and harness consumer mindshare in ways that simply were not possible pre-COVID.
What steps have you taken to make your brand essential?
If you’re in a category or industry that is already seen as essential, what are you doing to deliver a differentiated, consumer-motivating positioning that breaks you out of the pack?
New habits are emerging, and old habits are dying. There will be big winners and losers.
Almost overnight, COVID radically changed our day-to-day lives. It’s unclear that old habits will return, even when things “go back to normal.” How will Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts replace lost volume when a significant chunk of their customer base no longer commutes to an office? What is Keurig doing to take advantage of greater in-home consumption to make this a long-term habit vs. a short-term blip?
Do you understand how consumer habits and practices are changing for your brand / category?
Do you have a strategy in place to take advantage of new opportunities, as well as pivots in place to mitigate downside risks?
Scarcity and forced choice have disrupted purchasing behavior – in some cases dramatically.
In times of scarcity, consumers have shown that they will buy toilet paper and paper towels, or meat and poultry, wherever and whenever they can. This was driven by supply shortages where manufacturers and meat processors could not keep up with demand and consumers went into at-home lock down. And while these categories are certainly essential, the question remains: as supply chains catch up to demand, will consumers who’ve been forced to buy brands outsides their prior consideration set switch to private label or “come home” to their old brands?
If you’ve benefited from this “forced trial”, what steps are you taking to retain these new customers?
If you’ve had supply disruptions, what are you doing to “re-introduce” your brand to your customers and ensure you win them back?
What You Need to Do Now
At a time of unprecedented change in consumer habits, marketers need to identify, isolate and amplify the new drivers of purchase behavior for their brands, recognizing that what is driving purchase now is very likely to be different than pre-COVID-19. Brands need to elevate above COVID and the other societal shifts underway that have accelerated change and shuffled the board of consumer expectations. Brands that proactively and boldly ride this wave will win out over the late adopters. And while brands and businesses still need understand and deliver on consumer needs, those expectations have changed, often dramatically. The bottom line is: we’ve entered a new era, and you need a new strategy specifically designed to meet this moment.