When I was in college, I took a course from legendary screenwriter David Gerrold - who, among other things, wrote many episodes of Star Trek the Original Series. On the first day of class he made a challenge, “If any of you write anything truly life affirming, you’ll get an automatic A.” He didn’t mean a sticky sweet story where nothing ever went wrong for the hero. Or a script where the hero’s problems are magically solved. What he was looking for was a story that was empathetic to the human condition but made you feel real hope that things could be better.
Nobody was able to do it. Of course, we were all a bunch of 18–20-year-olds who, even though we thought we had seen it all, had very little life experience. But the challenge demonstrated how easily creatives can turn to dark content or try to express optimism through toxic positivity or spiritual bypassing.
As marketers, David’s challenge is exactly the issue we’re facing right now. A large percentage of our audience is going through a hard time. Joining the chorus of negativity doesn’t help. In fact, it makes our audience tune out. At the same time, we can’t stick our heads in the sand and pretend nobody is upset or just offer platitudes. Here are a few ways to be there for your audience during challenging times:
Don’t disappear
A natural reaction of many marketers is to go dark when something bad happens. However, this can be a really creepy experience for the audience. Suddenly, when everything's already crazy, someone you’re used to hearing from on a regular basis just vanishes.
Understand your brand’s role
Your customers might be looking to you for a POV on the situation. Or maybe your role isn’t to comment on the news of the day but to provide a distraction or escape. When 911 happened, a lot of us searched and searched for anything on TV that wasn’t about the crisis. Suddenly, the Golf Channel became a lot more interesting.
Be careful about interrupting the conversation
During the George Floyd protests, many brands thought they were showing support by sharing a solid black image and using hashtags about BHM. Unfortunately, what ended up happening was a lot of essential conversations between people involved in the movement were blocked by a barrage of messages from brands. Before using images or hashtags from a community, be sure you really understand what they mean.
Take action, don’t just say words
It’s easy to say, “we support you”. So easy, in fact, that it falls flat to most audiences and gets put in the “thoughts and prayers” folder. As a brand, you have more power than the average person to help - whether that means donating to a cause, initiating policy within your company, or celebrating employees who are making a difference.
Coming up with the right solution takes teamwork. At times like this, top social brands bring marketing, leadership and social management to craft messages that are relevant to the audience, authentic to the brand, and truly helpful to the community.
Daniel Quentin Zuber
Co-Founder of 2113 Labs and influencer in trance music and EDM culture on Instagram @therealquentinZ.
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