It’s safe to say the coronavirus pandemic has affected us all in some way. Businesses are closing,...
The coronavirus pandemic has impacted all businesses in some way or another. In certain industries, companies are struggling while in others, they’re thriving. Whatever your situation, it’s likely you have questions or concerns. Recently, Rikki, Founder and Director of Digital 22, was invited to B&B Press’ BeBrilliant webinar series to help digital marketing professionals navigate the challenges caused by COVID-19.
We also invited five expert speakers for our own webinar series to discuss everything from organic search during COVID-19 to video and email marketing. You can find out more about them further down this blog but if you want to check out Rikki’s webinar, hit the play button below.
Rikki started by highlighting what’s happening right now, with a focus on how more content is being consumed than ever before. Why? Well, people are stuck inside during the lockdown, which means internet usage is at an all-time high. He also showed an analysis of which categories are doing well during these unprecedented times and also those that are declining.
He also provided some insight into our own traffic. What you’ll see is how we started the year, how our traffic decreased when people started to take coronavirus seriously and an even bigger drop when lockdown came into effect.
In the second part of the webinar, Rikki’s focus shifted to the top three marketing considerations you need to focus on right now. Some of the attendees also got involved to share how their marketing has changed over the last month, so I’d recommend checking out the video above to hear from others that could potentially be in a similar position to you for some extra tips.
Here’s a quick overview of some tips Rikki shared:
- Context matters...a lot: Audit what you’re doing right now and what you had pre-planned so your content doesn’t fall out of context during the pandemic.
- Don’t stop marketing: It’s a dangerous cycle to fall in. The fear and uncertainty can result in reduced marketing spending, that turns to a reduction in sales which means businesses cut costs and lay people off - eventually leading to reduced marketing spending again.
- Look at both situations: If you have an essential product or service, market it and let people know more about it and your brand. If you have a non-essential product or service, expand your audience during this time and build trust.
For a more in-depth explanation and for pointers on search volumes during this time, check out the full video.
Along with Rikki’s appearance in this webinar, we had five expert guests who joined our own webinar series during these testing times. We were also joined by:
- Olivia Kirwan from HubSpot - dealing with uncertainty during COVID-19.
- Mike Donnelly from Seventh Sense - making the most of email whilst being respectful to the situation.
- Yaniv Siegel from Vidyard - six videos you need to create today.
- Peter Caputa from Databox - predicting your company’s performance in unpredictable times.
- Fernando Angulo from SEMrush - the impact of COVID-19 on organic search.
Right now, people have time. They’re at home, they’re researching and internet usage is up. This is a time to fill the top of your funnel for when they’re ready to buy. Create content to drive strangers to your brand and fill your database with good-fit MQLs. Whether it’s through blogs, online courses or even long-play channels such as SEO, don’t stop your efforts entirely.
That’s key when it comes to inbound marketing. It’s a long game but the rewards speak for themselves. Whether you’re brand new to the methodology or want a refresh, you’ll benefit from checking out (and bookmarking) our all-in-one guide to inbound marketing.
It covers everything from the foundations of inbound, tools you can use, the different channels to invest in and so much more. To get your copy, hit the link below.