Marketing more important than ever

Once the pandemic settled us all into a new way and the "unprecedented times" began to reveal some serious economic struggles, many companies were forced to reevaluate their entire P&L. Some furloughed employees, some cut pay, and many cut back on various expenses - particularly marketing. It seems to make sense on the surface for industries like travel that are vastly underutilized at a time when everyone is ordered to stay home. However, some experts are warning that keeping up with marketing and maintaining a brand image during this time is actually of utmost importance. It does make sense to reevaluate, but the decision should be in a shift in how those marketing dollars are spent, not in the removal of them. Following through a Fast Company article (https://www.fastcompany.com/90489914/why-airbnb-made-a-big-mistake-by-ditching-its-marketing) we can see that marketing budgets can be used not to create demand - which wouldn't be practical as consumers can't actually consume the product right now - but instead maintain, if not fortify the entire customer relationship.

It's safe to assume that in time, industries will be able to re-open. There will be a new normal of course, but if a brand was present and part of the consumer's mind space all throughout the time at home, it would be safe to conclude that consumers will turn to that brand when they can consume again. Air BnB is losing a huge amount as the travel industry screeched to a halt, but consumers will travel once again. And if Air BnB has been out of their mind for several months, its possible a different accommodation solution will become preferred -- particularly if that accommodation has been regularly in touch with the consumer, letting them know updates and change and how precautions are going to be taken when business resumes.

I've already seen many brands shift from their regularly scheduled advertising messages to those sympathetic to everyone's struggles, or encouraging of the positives, or helpful in new ways. These are the types of messages brands should adopt, and I think those that do a good job of staying relevant and keeping a conversation with their customer going, will fare the best as things begin to reopen.