It’s the question that many email marketing companies are pondering; how to respond to the threat of Coronavirus. Ignoring it has a lot of attraction. You won’t be wrong in your conclusions, but then you might give the impression that you don’t care about your subscribers.
My inbox has been inundated with Subject Lines that include the word Coronavirus. Some weren’t even trying to sell me something. There’s a great risk of getting lost in the crowd, or seeming to follow the herd, but can you afford to be out of step? It is going to be difficult for all of us to find a balance. What about subscriber fatigue?
You probably think it is a good idea to reassure your customers, the hope being that they will feel more positive and therefore more likely to buy. However, unless you have sources of information denied the rest of us, your message will be little more than guesswork. More importantly, it will show. We are all aware by now that predictions by those in the know are very broad.
There’s a temptation to take advantage of the situation by upping prices of products in high demand. It’s one you should ignore. If the price from your suppliers has increased, say so and be honest as to how much. It’s a way of empathising with them. If it is their best interests to wait a while, or buy a different product, tell them so. It shows you are aware that they have to cope as well.
Some of those on your email marketing lists will be especially concerned, so create a split list for an email that is positive. Don’t belittle the crisis by trying to be funny or making an insensitive joke. Be clear as to what you mean.
What you can do is describe what you are doing, and will do, to deal with their particular problems. It’s only a slight modification of what we do all the time. The difference is that now their problems are modified by their health risks and the financial ones as well.
I’ve had a rather clever marketing email from my regular garage. It points out that a service is overdue by a matter of weeks and that I have an MoT coming up in a bit over two months. If I book a service in the next ten days, they will pick up the car and deliver it once the service and MoT are completed. They point out, in some detail, that I will ‘lose’ a couple of months on the length of the MoT period. However, they will reduce the price by a similar percentage.
It is slick, it is clever and it solves my problems, even the ones that were not at the forefront of my things to worry about. It’s specific to me. Not only that, it provides income for their company at a time when many people might put off such things. There’s got to be something similar in your business segment. Find it and answer your customers’ needs.
