COVID-19: When Marketing Sprints Become Marathons

During any crisis situation working nimbly to assess, address and act in real-time is critical to achieve success. However, when crisis periods are as fluid and uncertain as today’s COVID-19 pandemic is, nimble isn’t enough.  

“With a bit of hopefulness, Covid-19 was at first perceived as a sprint. Unfortunately, it has achieved marathon status,” remarks Strategy+Style Marketing Group Founding Partner and Chief Strategist Karen Fluharty. 

“On the marketing communications front the ongoing crisis has now forced the retail real estate industry to shift from mere nimbleness to that of a pivot. Marketers who prepared early on with forward-thinking and adaptable strategies, flexible supporting tactics and close day-to-day budget management beyond the springtime closure period are now sitting ahead of the curve as the all-important, yet uncertain status, of the fourth quarter approaches.”

For instance, as the outbreak began causing Town Square Wheaton, a mixed-use center in Illinois, to close operations almost overnight, Strategy+Style was charged with pausing planned annual marketing initiatives to that of managing the center’s immediate marketing messaging. The delivery of best practice crisis recommendations was quickly followed by the creation and deployment of both B2C and B2B COVID-19-related creative and messaging across all center touchpoints. Temporary store closures, enhanced safety and sanitization measures, open and operating essential services and store re-opening timelines moved to the forefront of marketing communications activity.  But, it did not comprise all marketing communications activity.

In fact, as mandated closures went into effect in the state, Strategy+Style worked to maintain enthusiasm for the new businesses slated to celebrate grand openings, but now with delayed timelines, at the center. The team continued close dialogue and marketing preparation with a trio of newly-signed concepts in an effort to ready and deploy promotional messaging once the time allowed.

During closure Strategy+Style also worked to develop the center’s Covid-19 Marketing Plan for tenant and other stakeholder distribution. Outlining its three-phase approach - Reassure.  Reopen.  Recover. - the plan was designed to assure its various constituencies of ownership’s commitment to the health and well-being of their businesses through its ongoing marketing investment using an array of marketing tools that we no cost including the center’s website, blast email capabilities and social media feeds.

And finally, realizing the fourth quarter holiday shopping season would be a critical time of recovery for consumer businesses this year, Strategy+Style undertook early, thoughtful industry research and a careful assessment of what the upcoming season might look like ahead in the regional marketplace to develop Town Square Wheaton’s holiday 2020 marketing program. Designed with built-in abilities to shift, pivot and even abandon, if necessary, holiday season marketing efforts no matter what the pandemic may bring are in place to strategically adapt to the future fall/winter season scenario ahead.