Unmasking Best Practices for COVID-19 External Communications

By Rachel Baldacchino

Rachel Baldacchino offers best practice tips for communicating externally with your customers/clients during a global pandemic.

When you’ve made communications your career, you pretty much live by the mantra that every day is a different day and change is constant. And that’s why we all have strategies in place for crisis communications. These have been in place, but they’ve significantly evolved ever since the threat of the technology issues associated with the year 2000 (or “Y2K” as we so lovingly called it). We anticipated chaos as the clocks turned midnight, causing a computer glitch to wreak havoc on everything relying on technology. I recall working at a former place of employment, along with many of my colleagues on New Year’s Eve, 1999. We huddled around the clock, as we counted down to midnight, with trepidation. It’s as if we expected Rod Sterling from The Twilight Zone, to appear with a sly grin on his face, and say, “we are so sure villains lurk around every corner that we create them ourselves if we can’t find them…it’s also a fear that tears us apart – a few that sadly exists only too often; outside the Twilight Zone.” Fortunately, such a foreboding event never took place and armed communicators with the Colossal Communications Handbook we quickly created.

Fast forward to January 30, 2020, when the World Health Organization declared a global Public Health Emergency — COVID-19. In addition, Canada declared a state of emergency between March 12 and 22 in all provinces. Organizations’ leaders rallied behind the scenes to work with their communications teams to relay new processes and ways of communicating to customers to alleviate concerns. Nothing could have prepared communicators for the sheer amount of correspondence that had to be prepared. I wanted to dust off the Colossal Communications Handbook, but low and behold, I think Rod Sterling absconded with the chapters on how to deal with a pandemic!

While there is no playbook for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, here are some best practices for communicating externally with your customers.

1. Trade Places. Forget that you are a leader or a communications professional. You are just like everyone else who is experiencing this pandemic. You are scared for your family and friends. You don’t know what to expect and whether things will ever return to normal. Trade places with the customer and talk to them like a customer. After all, we’re all customers. Think of what you as a customer want to know — how is your organization keeping your employees and customers safe? What are your processes and procedures? This will provide reassurance.

2. Know your audience. Most organizations know their target audience very well – that’s why they slice and dice consumer criteria into market segments (based on demographics and other interests). However, COVID-19 just mixed a cauldron of new factors into your market segments. Did some of your customers lose their jobs? Are any of them sick? Do they need financial aid? Some of your customers may be facing some of these scenarios and may not be so interested in your products.

3. Transparency and Trust. When you don your customer hat, it’s so much easier to create authentic, meaningful communications that customers actually want to read. Corporate speak will NEVER win over transparency and a trusted, empathetic tone. During times of crisis, you can reassure customers that you’re still there to help them. And if you don’t have all of the answers, just say so. “Trust, honesty, humility, transparency and accountability are the building blocks of a positive reputation.” -Mike Paul, former baseball player

4. Touchpoints. Don’t wait to communicate. Consumers want to hear from you immediately. Once you’ve initiated the first touchpoint, figure out the cadence of the next trail of messages — how many times your customers want to hear from you.

5. Keep it simple. Ditch the corporate jargon and speak like a real person reaching out to your customer. Make sure you are succinct and clear. Why are you connecting with them? Do they need to take any action? Are you just reaching out to reassure them? Remember — every company they do business with is reaching out too, so stand out from the others and don’t overwhelm your customers.

6. Communicate on their terms. Some consumers prefer phone calls while some prefer clear information posted on your website or a face-to-face Zoom call. Make sure to use all communications channels.

7. Tell me, please. Set up a system to get feedback from your customers. What questions and concerns do they have? And don’t forget those customer testimonials! If you’re praised for your efforts during the pandemic, don’t be afraid to boast. Ask your customer’s permission to post it on your website.

8. Update messages. If you’re running an ad, radio or print campaign, don’t just run the same old ones because it was planned. Customers expect to hear how you’re keeping them safe. They also want to hear shout outs to front-line workers, and any donations your company has made to COVID-19 relief funds.

9. Adjust your external communications plan. The messages to your customers will change as the pandemic changes. Messages of hope, reassurance and “we’re in this together” should be weaved into campaigns too.

10. So, what are you doing about it? Consumers want to know they’re dealing with organizations that are giving back to the community. Whether your company has a small or behemoth budget, donate to COVID-19 relief efforts, whether it’s a food bank or helping children in underprivileged areas to buy proper school supplies for online learning.

11. Keep it compliant. Have those checks and balances in place to ensure all communications comply with regulatory, compliance and/or your legal department.

The COVID-19 pandemic can be a defining moment for your organization and your brand. If you aren’t demonstrating empathetic and honest messages, and communicating regularly, this can harm your brand. As the late Maya Angelou once said, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”