How to Reach Your Customers in Times of Crisis

Blogs

Apr 22

Written By

What a crazy year it has been. March alone felt like an eternity. We’re living in a unique environment. We’ve experienced unprecedented social restrictions. Although I don’t have a verified stat to back it up, if I had to guess, people are spending more time in their homes than literally ever before.

To practice safe physical distancing and quarantining, it’s a necessary precaution. But it has also been a catalyst for chaos in the business world. If you’re a marketer, I’m willing to bet that you’ve restructured your 2020 campaign and strategies. You’d be hard-pressed to find a marketing plan that predicted empty streets and packed homes.

So, how can marketers adjust? How can companies take advantage of this bizarre situation and turn it into an opportunity? Direct mail.

Tips for Using Direct Mail during the Pandemic

Think about it. Everyone (for the most part) is home – for hours on end. So, it’s the perfect time to reach out, communicate, and inform your customers.

Crisis marketing is a delicate procedure, be careful with your message and word choice. You must walk a fine line between empathy and exploitation. Now is not the time for companies to sell, but rather the time to educate and help.Which leads us to tip #1...

Read the Room

Marketers capitalize on emotions every day. However, there is a time and place for everything. While it may feel like low-hanging fruit, now is not the time to play off of people’s fear and anxiety. On the contrary, your communications should reassure prospects and customers, empathizing with their current struggles.

Answer Questions

We’ve been thrust into a period of involuntary change. Unfamiliarity and uncertainty breed unending questions. So, your direct mail content should provide clarity by answering key questions, such as:

Are you still open?
What are your hours?
What’s the best way to reach you or your customer service center?

If you’re still operating, but your norms have changed, make sure to let people know. If you’re unable to remain open, it’s equally as important to communicate this to your customers.

Communicate Value

If your company created a community initiative or is promoting donations for nonprofits/healthcare companies, let your audience know. This demonstrates your concern and how you’re trying to help. For instance, in March, Anheuser-Busch announced that it would be redirecting its sports and entertainment investments to its non-profit partners, like the American Red Cross.

How Sepire Can Help

Direct mail will allow you to take advantage of the current “stay-at-home” environment. If you want to personalize your direct mail campaign and maximize your marketing spend, consider direct mail automation, variable data printing (VDP), and data segmentation.

By using these tools, you can efficiently process high volumes of targeted and personalized content. Sepire can produce over 1 million full-color, fully personalized pieces a day. On top of that, Sepire’s CompliChain technology allows for seamless workflow monitoring and controlling.

Finally, through data segmentation, Sepire can help you leverage existing data to maximize the impact of your direct mail campaign. Let me know how I can help.