new problems and challenges they have
in this new world that you’re well placed
to solve. Businesses now more than ever
need to avoid knee-jerk reactions and
make smart decisions. They should also
use data and numbers to drive decisions
and, most importantly, avoid panicking.
And remember that your marketing can
make a tremendous difference between
success and failure,” he concluded.
Given the need for speed in gathering
data, one can turn to a recently launched
research firm OnePulse; who say they
exist wholly to do this kind of research.
They conduct interviews on phone and
use an existing data base that allows one
to ask only five questions and are thus
able to provide the results very quickly.
In fact, they put it thus ‘we can get the
results to you in the time it takes to
brew and finish a cup of coffee’. Ipsos
have a Social Intelligence Analytics Tool
(Synthesio) that enables one to monitor
what people are saying on social media.
This tool was launched on the realisation
that businesses cannot ignore discussions
on social media. This was presented by
Neema Wamai Director, Ipsos Media CT
Sub Saharan Africa, during Marketers
Night on March 6th. Given the growing
use of social media during this period the
tool is even much more useful.
Observing how consumers are buying
at retail outlets as well as gathering
information from the trade can be useful.
Interrogating retail sales figures can reveal
a lot. For example if you are marketing a
product with a number of variants (SKU’s)
performance across different supermarkets
can reveal consumer behaviour. Are there
noticeable differences in sales of your brand
in different locations of say a supermarket
chain? Are some SKU’s struggling? Your
brands are constantly speaking through
what is happening at the retail outlets and
it’s important that we pay attention and
decipher the messages being sent. There
are also a number of webinars hosting
thought leaders that can prove useful.
Innovative Mindset
The third lesson is the need to innovate,
given the times we are living in doing
things differently is not an option. It’s
generally assumed that innovation is that
big thing that’s ground breaking and
something that comes once in a while to
a few of us. However sometimes we need
to be shaken out of our comfort zone
to think and act differently, to innovate.
Innovation according to Craig Groeschel
does not happen when all is well but
during difficult times. Winston Churchill
said ‘never let a good crisis go to waste’.
Obviously this sounds like an oxymoron
given that a crisis cannot be good but the
message is clear. Innovation does not have
to be big, it can be simple, and we are all
capable of being innovative.
Marketing and brand management is about
manipulating the 4 or 7 P’s. Thus, during
times as these we should ask ourselves’
which of these ‘P’s need to be adjusted?
And this goes back to understanding
what is relevant to consumers during
this unique period. As Stephaine Burnes
wrote in Forbes Women on May 4th,
‘never create an offer in a vacuum. Know
who you are speaking to, their pain points,
fears and desires then create something
that can be a solution to their problem’.
Here-under are two examples to illustrate
how innovation worked and how it relates
to the P’s of marketing.
Simon Wanjau, an award winning Chef,
quit his job to join his wife in running her
bakery, Kobbis Oven, which specialises in
cakes and pastries, located in Thika. They
were doing well pre-Covid-19. When it
happened, their business fell by 85% as
weddings and corporate clients cancelled
orders. To survive, they had to think
differently, be creative, and innovate. In
his own words ‘we had to re-invent our
cakes and create products that resonate
more with families since everybody is
home. We are calling it the ‘curfew cake’.
In addition, we have leveraged on the
‘grab and go’ concept similar to Starbucks
where everything is packed and ready to
go. We had minimal sitting space and
after Covid-19, all we took out were the
seats and business continued as normal.
Personal deliveries have always been part
of our revenue generation, accounting
for a third of total revenues and the
fact that our business started on a takeaway
model has helped us adjust to the
current situation’. If we look at the P’s of
marketing, Simon adjusted among others
his product (‘curfew cake’ and ready to go
packaging) and place (personal deliveries).
This is innovation. (Standard, Hustle
column of 29th April).
The second is about a florist as told by
Robert Shaw, Economic Analyst, writing
in Daily Nation on 29th April. He wrote
‘last weekend I was offered a bunch of
quality roses at a much discounted price
by my local vendor. This is because there
is little or no export and so the destiny of
these flowers is, at best, the small domestic
market or, at worst the shredder.’ Thus
the vendor lured him by manipulating
the price. We’ve also seen an increase of
virtual beauty and hair consultants who
offer their services via zoom or WhatsApp
and charge a lower fee. Thus the place ‘P’ is
provided using technology. Some furniture
shops have started reaching out to those
working from home to buy office chairs
that are made to be better for our backs.
They are even renting the chairs and small
desks that can fit in home spaces for those
who cannot afford to buy. As one told me
recently ‘sitting on the dinning chair for
long is not just uncomfortable but bad for
our backs’. This kind of innovation may
continue into the future as some of the
behaviors we are witnessing now will be
carried on post Corvid-19.
Don’t Go Dark
The fourth lesson is that of communicating
the brand. The question is ‘should one
advertise during this period?’ If so,
what kind of message should one push?’
According to Gil Kemami, APA Kenya
Chair and MD BBDO Media Edge,
most of their clients are shying away from
coming out strongly as they are sensitive
to the situation and what’s happening
to the consumers, meaning how overt
advertising might be received. They are
more into the social space such as revising
prices and assisting in activities such as
hand washing. Moreover as expected most
have reduced their marketing activities
and consequently their advertising. ‘The
agency understands this’ he says. However
there is contrary belief and evidence to
keep advertising the only difference being
what and how the message is put out there.
Below is what I picked up.
In a 2019 September Forbes magazine
article titled ‘When a Recession Comes
Don’t Stop Advertising’ by Brad Adgate
a Media Consultant, it’s clear that
advertising during a recession, or times
when the consumer is hurting does have
its benefits. He quotes a popular adage
that says, “When times are good you
should advertise. When times are bad
you must advertise.” Though the article
was written few months before Corona, a
time when economists were predicating an
economic slowdown it’s relevant today as
we are indeed experiencing an economic
slowdown, without doubt. The article was
almost prophetic.
Brad Adgate gave three reasons why
a brand should keep advertising in a
downturn. First, given that most brands are
quiet, the message of those who advertise
will stand out and be noticed. Secondly,
one can negotiate better rates resulting
in value for money and budget efficiency.
He called such times ‘a buyers’ market’.
Lastly, he cites research on brands that
continued advertising during the 1920,
1975 energy crisis, 1990 recession and
2008. In 1920 Kellogs overtook Post,
the cereal category leader then, because
they out spend the latter. In 1975, Toyota
overtook VW as the highest selling
imported car as they did not stop spending
despite the recession. During the crisis
in 1990, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell took
advantage of MacDonald’s decision to
stop advertising. To this end, they grew
their sales by 61% and 40% respectively
while that of McDonalds fell 28%. To
conclude, Amazon sales grew by 28% in
2009 during the “great recession’’ as they
continued to launch new products such
as the new Kindle resulting in growth
of market share over printed books.
‘As a result, in the minds of consumers,
Amazon became an innovative company
by introducing a lower cost alternative to
cash-strapped consumers’.
The important thing is to ensure that the
tone of the message resonates with what
consumers are going through and their
feelings. Messages that project empathy,
offering understanding and comfort
during this period are more likely to
lead to consideration and action. Also
important is to make sure that the message
is in line with the brand ethos, identity
and attributes to ensure believability and
alignment. To this end, keeping quiet also
referred to as ‘going dark’ will not do the
brand any good either in the short or long
run. ‘Although the natural inclination for
advertisers is to cut back on advertising
during a recession, those brands that
maintain their ad budget and/or change
their messaging can get a long-lasting
boost in sales and market share’ concludes
Brad Adgate.
Collaboration Matters
The last lesson is the need for greater
collaboration at all levels: personal,
businesses, and community. If there’s a
time that we are in ‘this together’ as is
commonly said, it is today. As marketers,
reaching out to research, advertising and
direct marketing agencies to collaborate
and work together is critical. In the
same breathe, learning from others even
from different sectors from the ones we
operate in, and borrowing experiences
will be beneficial. For example even
though they are competitor Sanofi and
GSK (according to Fred Kamunzyu of
IQ Marketing) are collaborating to find
a vaccine for Covid-19. World Health
Organization (WHO) is working hard to
try and convince those that develop the
vaccine to offer it for free and also share
the technology (not to patent it, which
affects the cost) for the benefit of human
kind. Those who work for multinational
companies can borrow best practices
from other markets and also share what
they are doing locally to keep their brands
relevant and in the shopping basket.
No one has the monopoly of the answer.
In a Vogue article written first week of
May, a hair dresser in Georgia USA, Van
Michael Hair Salon, was considering reopening
when they were given the green
light but conscious of their customers’
fears and safety concerns, they turned to
a saloon in Japan for best practice. They
learnt of new measures the Japanese salon
had instituted to gain their staff and
customer’s confidence. Their number one
objective and priority is to ensure that
staff and customers are safe. They ensured
their staff wore masks and gloves and the
salon was sanitised thoroughly across the
day and if need be with the customers
watching. Furthermore they rotated their
services such that those seeking to do
their nails and hair came on different days
to avoid overcrowding. They measured
their temperature and had them fill
a health questionnaire in addition to
restricting what they could carry into the
salon. They instituted the same measures
at their salon.
There’s no need to re-invent the wheel.
The same is happening in Kenya where
barber shops and salons are operating
on appointments limiting the number of
customers being served at any one time.
Those barbers and stylists not serving
customers stay outside the salon to ensure
social distancing. This brings me to an
important point brought out by Jane
Katuga a Wellness & Life Coach and
trainer, in the Webinar referred to earlier.
She said ‘employees matter, and as we talk
brands we must never forget them. They
need to know they are cared for and felt
at all times. Their emotions count and they
too have anxieties and fears’. That should
be ‘the starting point so they can take care
of our brands’, she added. In short take
care of your employees and they’ll take
care of your customers.
To end, I will quote a leading East African
Scholar, Prof. Bukenya, who runs a weekly
column in Saturday Nation, Reflections of
a Scholar. He stated ‘The virus is a reminder
of the global interconnectedness and the
need to work together as humanity’. He
regurgitated the quote by John Donne who
survived the 17th Century Black Plague
that swept through Europe and wrote, ‘No
person is an island, entire of itself, each
is a piece of the continent. Each person’s
death diminishes me, for I am involved
in humankind. Therefore, send me not to
know for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for
you”.
Be your brother’s keeper; keep advocating
for your brands, and most importantly
stay safe for even the experts admit we are
in unchartered territory. “This is a novel
virus, new to humanity, and nobody knows
what will happen,” said Anne Rimoin, a
professor of epidemiology at U.C.L.A.
Robert Wamai is a trainer and
advertising consultant, a passionate
consumer advocate and believer in the
power of brands. You can engage him
on this or related matters via email
at: [email protected].
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