As we close out 2020, one thing is clear: the pre-COVID world is gone for good. Tried and true traditional marketing strategies will likely no longer create the same impact, requiring communications professionals to rethink plans for the next normal. With an eye towards 2021, we wanted to share six strategies to help inform your marketing roadmap.
#1. Audience appreciation. While demographics might remain consistent from month to month, attitudes, beliefs and motivators have rapidly evolved in 2020. This means customer needs and priorities have shifted, requiring a new understanding of who your audiences are — and what’s important to them right now.
Before hitting “go” on any communication, brands need to step back and empathize with audiences as they navigate the cumulative effects of societal, personal and professional pressures. Otherwise, your message might be dead on arrival. Reconsidering your communications approach, tone and messaging can help your brand remain relevant and in sync with customer expectations.
#2. Authentic action. Healthcare and life sciences has been put under a magnifying glass this year. In 2021 the industry will be called upon to address care equality, pricing and health service gaps in more meaningful ways. With consumers increasingly holding companies accountable — a recent Harris Poll revealed that 78% of Americans believe companies should take action on important issues facing society — organizations must take stock of the national conversation and social issues to understand which are important for their stakeholders and internally align on how to respond.
Organizations that are authentic with their marketing and communications campaigns to demonstrate benevolence and purpose for the greater good will ultimately stand out to maintain trust and credibility for the brand.
#3. Drive with data. We have more data available than ever before, but it’s critical to leverage this valuable information to strengthen marketing plans and uncover new opportunities. The simple act of combining data with our own human experience automatically offers a different lens to operationalize — providing an added layer of valuable context that helps better relate to our audience stakeholders.
#4. Meaningful mainframe modification. Digital transformation isn’t just a buzz word. It’s reality. Healthcare marketers need to get more sophisticated about how to apply digital marketing tools to meet today’s shifting priorities. According to a recent CMO Survey, in the wave of COVID-19, 60% of marketers shifted their programs to focus on developing better customer-facing digital interfaces to help maintain customer and brand loyalty.
This momentum needs to be carried into 2021. While new customer acquisition is still important, customer retention should be top-of-mind, and identifying the right marketing mix of digital tools to meet customers where they are will be key to engagement.
#5. Create virtual value. To address the disruption caused by the fact that in-person events will not fully recover in 2021 and business travel will be limited, marketers need to seek out new channels to engage stakeholders and creatively leverage traditional ones to reach customers and prospects. Pivoting to smaller, virtual roundtables with key stakeholders to discuss an industry challenge or creating interactive content that allows users to see the impact of a new technology or changes to data are going to be 2021’s antidote to strengthening relationships.
For those that put 2020 marketing efforts on hold or held back on key announcements, investments or product launches for fear of making less of an impact than in a “normal” market — now is the time to revisit those temporary plans and carve out a creative path to positively impact business growth and the bottom line.
#6. Expect the unexpected. No one wants to think about or prepare for a crisis before it happens, but doing so can give you a leg up on competitors when it hits. While some industry peers are spinning their wheels working through a pivot strategy, creating and implementing a response plan during an already chaotic time allows for nimble and effective execution. Moving quickly creates opportunity for thought leadership and shows stakeholders a level of preparedness and security.
A crisis of any scale does not have to upend the business. Budgeting for preparation in the quiet moments can have a positive impact not only on internal and external communications, but also brand reputation and competitive positioning.
Finding your footing moving forward
While the “next normal” continues to evolve, it’s critical to look outside the box, think creatively about how to bring strategic initiatives to life, and have a plan to leverage data, insights, and market resources to make smarter decisions and propel your business forward.
Contact us at mergecomms@mergeworld.com if we can help to carve out a marketing roadmap path to deliver on these strategic imperatives.