The Covid-19 pandemic has affected employees, consumers and corporate communications alike. For businesses navigating this changed world, people and purpose are touchstones amid an ever-changing landscape.
Research conducted by Dubai-based brand agency Brand Lounge, explores the ways in which brands are addressing the four dimensions of brands -purpose, innovation, culture and image- post-Covid19 without exploiting the crisis to their benefit.
To uncover questions executives within the branding world were asking themselves during the pandemic, Brand Lounge believed that only by asking the right questions, could it gain real insight into the areas that really matter for brands. The agency reached out to 15 c-level executives in the Middle East and North Africa region 10 different industries- ranging from healthcare to real estate to automotive- to gauge which were the top three most challenging questions they were constantly pondering on during the pandemic.
The research found that although diverse in their natures, purposes and client bases, all businesses were reflecting on three core topics when the pandemic hit the world: people, or how to retain and hire the right employees and keep them in their best form; business, in terms of revisiting the business model and reassessing cash flow and profitability; and customers, specifically how to meet their needs and stay relevant as a brand.
“The fact that most executives were all asking the same questions was an ‘aha’ moment. It’s interesting to know that these basic queries are the fundamentals of doing business and building brands,” says Mohamad Badr, CCO and head of strategy at Brand Lounge.
Thought not a surprise, but rather a confirmation of an idea that was already present before Covid-19, the research demonstrated that because people, specifically consumers, are at the centre of brands’ success, understanding their changing needs and attitudes must be businesses’ core focus. Change in conditions causes a change in needs, and it is a brand’s responsibility to analyse and map those new needs, priorities, and challenges.
According to Badr, businesses must understand that their brands are multidimensional in nature and should be treated as such. During the crisis he witnessed an increased focus on people, employees and consumers alike. This achieved the right brand culture and, therefore, an enhanced brand experience.
“People are becoming the focus of these crises because people mean culture, innovation, change. So even technology, for example, is linked to people who come up with the ideas and manage the technology,” he says.
Amazon, for one, leveraged its understanding of changing consumer needs through the Covid-19 phase by offering real life solutions with their products. One customer tweeted ‘Using our #Alexa to manage the kids’ daily schedules & this #wfhmom has one thing less to remember.’
To truly reflect consumers’ needs, brands must acknowledge the current crisis and offer solutions that specifically target it, the paper suggests. However, there is a thin line between support consumers through the crisis and acting as self-serving with the wrong kind of marketing. Car giant Ford struck exactly the right tone. While it pivoted its ads to explain how it had met global-scale crises in the past- for example, by building military equipment during World War II- it recently now committed to manufacture medical equipment in short supply to fight Covid-19. The brand is also supporting consumers facing financial hardships through the Ford Credit payment relief programme.
For employees, wellbeing has been the fundamental consideration in this crisis. The survey reveals that 85% of respondents foresee an internal behavioural shift with employees and management. Employees’ wellbeing is directly correlated to the brands’ progress and prosperity.
The report suggests for brands to focus on practical gestures, including extended leave, additional sick days and expanded health coverage, all of which will free up employees’ capacity to keep contributing to the organisation’s purpose and objectives.
“Make sure that employees are supported during and post crisis. If for example you have the right culture and you have to cut salaries because of financial hardship, you will see support and loyalty instead of resistance” Badr says.
People and purpose are intrinsically tied together and work in tandem, as people are increasingly attracted to brands that transcend their products and have a deeper meaning than their profit. Those that can communicate their purpose that at a higher level, by taking concrete actions that demonstrate their authenticity, are the only ones that will make it in the post-Covid19 phase, the research finds.
“The brands that will succeeded are those that are not purely functional but those which empathise with the challenges of their consumers,” Badr says.
The paper highlights a few examples of brands that during the pandemic have demonstrated a clear understanding of their purpose, and have backed it with concrete actions during the pandemic. These include Adidas, which took part in the global donation relay to raise funds for the W.H.O Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund through its #HomeTeamHero challenge, and appliance manufacturer Dyson, with its design a new ventilator from scratch, the ‘CoVent,’ engineered specifically for Covid-19 patients.
“The pandemic exposed the difference between brands that claim a purpose that they cannot own, and brands that actually have a purpose, but are also are living it on daily basis and can use this purpose as a driver for business decisions and change,” Badr says.
The future may still be uncertain, but what BrandLounge has uncovered is that businesses are clearly identifying the challenges that they face with regards to their audiences and taking steps to meet them.
Five Minutes with Mohamad CCO and head of strategy of branding agency Brand Lounge.
What pushed you to conduct the research and publish the report? How does it help brands in the current climate?
We were trying to uncover the questions that the executive or the senior people were asking during this challenging time. We wanted to understand, ‘if I’m an executive, what are the top three questions that I should be asking?’ And when this happened, it opened a great opportunity for us to understand the real insight, the challenges they’re going through and the drivers behind their decisions.
When we saw that there was a common pattern between the 15 CEOs and CMOs we talked to, it pushed us to actually extend the discussions and try to validate if these questions were actually similar to what other executives were asking as well facing. r From people, in terms of supporting their employees during the pandemic and changing their way of working; to business, such as how to change ones business model, and how to react to these sudden changes, manage financial aspects; and customers, specifically how to react to customer needs arising from the pandemic. These three points became the core of our survey and research.
What were the most unexpected findings from the research?
The fact that most executives were all asking the same questions, that was an ‘aha’ moment. It’s interesting to know that these basic queries are the fundamentals of doing business and building brands. Aside from that, we saw that people are becoming the focus of these crises, because people mean culture, innovation, change. We cannot separate technology from people, since technology is driven by people’s needs and ideas to solve human-centric problems. It is a mean to solve real business and life problems. Lastly, we noticed that people really believe that brands’ purpose are going to play a bigger role, because they look for brands that have meaning and can communicate at a higher level. Brands that are not purely functional, but can also have this level of empathy to the challenges that their customers are going through.
In what ways has the Covid-19 pandemic changed brands’ purpose? How should brands address consumers’ emerging concerns?
Now it’s not about only having a purpose, but about living the purpose. The pandemic exposed the difference between brands that claim a purpose that they cannot own, and brands that actually have a purpose, but are also are living it on daily basis and can use this purpose as a driver for business decisions and change. Purpose will become more and more relevant as a tool for differentiation going forwards. It’s now about how does one actually use the purpose and embed it and roll it out across all functions within the business
Should the ‘new normal’ brought about by the pandemic become intrinsic to brands’ identities?
I do believe that these changes are going to be a part of our new normal behavior. Brands need to rethink their way of working and way of being. The new normal means you are bound to change to survive; you need to instill an innovation mindset to uncover new growth territories and new opportunities. Brand culture will also become an essential dimension moving forward; Brands need to invest in the right brand culture, meaning they should focus on people as the core driver for change and growth. Make sure that employees are supported during and post-crisis. If you have the right culture and you have to cut salaries because of financial hardship, I assure you, you will see support & loyalty instead of resistance. Lastly, brands will become increasingly digitalized, which means different touchpoints must be taken into consideration. So, on the communication front, Brands need to invest more in meaningful & engaging content that can connect with customers and can add value to their life.
What would you advise to help brands post-Covid?
My number one advice is to understand that change is multidimensional, and it’s here to stay, so now it’s time to react, think, learn, experiment, and innovate. I would also recommend downloading the Game Plan found in our paper and fill it out. This game plan covers the 4 dimensions of brands, and it is designed to help you win and maximize your brand value. The Game Plan builds on our knowledge, insights, and expertise in a very simple format, and help you define your differentiation strategy.
