Why it’s more important than ever to communicate

Effective’s Managing Director, Alastair Milburn, advises on what you should be doing to engage with your audiences through the Covid-19 crisis.

The increasing signs that the current situation is the “new normal” for some time to come means organisations, services and products must adapt accordingly.

Previous economic crises have shown that the organisations who continue to engage and communicate with both their internal and external audiences will ultimately survive and thrive.

With extremely busy digital landscapes and the threat of a UK recession, how, and more importantly, what you communicate, is important.  Investing in your digital share of voice (your brand’s share of digital exposure) should be a top priority over the coming months.

You need to increase your brand’s awareness using clear communication that generates exposure and conversations across news sites, blogs, forums and social media.

To help you raise you increase your share of voice, there are a number of key activities you should be considering now:

• Regular communication. When did you last communicate with your customers, suppliers, prospects or staff? If you don’t have it, build a database of segmented clients and prospects. Then plan what to communicate with them, and when.

• Improving your website. How do you compare to your competitors? Is your content still appropriate/relevant and up to date?  How is your website being found?

• Building your online presence. Build a stronger network across social media and LinkedIn as the world heads towards a more virtual existence. What does your content look like? Where are you appearing? How are you engaging your audiences? How are you being perceived?

• Improving your content. Improve your social media profiles, your email footers, your e-marketing materials. Consider video as a tool to further promote your content.

• Blogs and case studies. Think about your brand – how you want your organisation to be perceived? Be the expert in your niche through blog posts and previous case studies. You can share these via email targeting, on your website and across social media channels.

• Sector Intelligence. Understanding what is trending and making news, helps you to plan. Effective has invested heavily in listening and monitoring software and resource. Always research what is happening in your sector, to your competitors, and to products and trends right now.

• Reputation Protection. How will you manage your reputation through the next six to 12 months? Consider whether your business is likely to require communication policies, media preparation or crisis communication responses for potentially difficult situations.

Find out more on our website www.weareeffective.co.uk or message Alastair directly on AMilburn@effcom.co.uk