Following on from the government's announcement yesterday, most of our team are moving to remote working after today.
A little sooner than we were expecting but as a business we utilise a number of tools that make this much simpler than it would have been 10 years ago (Slack, Jira, Monday) and as such you should not see any real disruption to the service we provide. We envisage zero downtime on the system (client.addintel.co.uk) and are continuing to print, fulfil and mail campaigns for our clients. When you call the normal office number, this will divert through to the team and your account managers will also be available as always on email and via mobile or web-calls.
Whilst I don't believe you'll see any drop in service level from our hardworking team, I do know that we will continue to see changes as a supplier, as this situation evolves. Right now, we're all in the same boat and it's a challenging time for all of us. There are lots of questions and uncertainty and we know that one of those will be a big one - do you keep marketing?
As a supplier, we are seeing some clients cut back and others increase budgets to capitalise on the share of voice they achieve at times like this. When huge numbers of people are in their homes, direct mail is a channel that really does get your message directly into the hands of your potential customers. It doesn't get lost in the noise of digital advertising and it provides a welcome, tangible break from the computer at home. For that reason, engagement rates are likely to be higher and, if you have a strong call-to-action - especially something redeemable online - then response rates should be higher in turn, too. That's possible across all industries. You can use this time for data capture, engaging potential customers, positioning yourselves as a reassuring voice and making sure they are in the funnel in time for when the storm passes.
For lots of brands, building relationships with potential customers now is crucial. Ensuring that your brand remains front of mind now means that it still will be when we settle back to normality in the coming weeks or months and every competitor goes into overdrive (trying to make up for lost time). Based on our experience from other uncertain times we believe the best way forward is to keep going but to approach your marketing a little differently. Make sure your messaging is empathetic, educational and engaging. That could include working with us to create campaigns that emphasise the core USPs you can offer and the benefits you can offer customers, particularly in unsettling times.
Our team are on hand to help you craft the right campaigns to get your business through the next few weeks and months. If at any point you want to discuss proactive marketing to engage the captive audience in so many of your key target areas, we are available to help you make that happen. Please don't hesitate to get in touch directly with myself or any of the team.
