As COVID-19 continues to make its global impact, businesses are busy enacting their crisis management plans. An integral part of any crisis plan is how you communicate with your customers. They need to know you are there and that you can help. While you cannot control many aspects of the crisis, you can control how you respond to it and how you treat others. Here are five tips from Salesforce to help you communicate with customers through a crisis:
1. Show you care
How your brand responds will speak volumes about your company. Reach out to customers to let them know you are aware of the issue, but that you are there to help them. Offer helpful resources though email, social media and any other accessible mediums.
2. Be proactive
Step up and inform your customers about any changes to your business. Do not make them go out of their way to find out what is going on. If you do not, your staff will be left fielding a ton of the same questions repeatedly. Make everyone’s lives easier by delivering clear and concise information.
3. Show your humanity
This is an uncertain time. Many people are facing unemployment on top of the stress of the pandemic. While you should be proactive, your business and message also must be compassionate. If possible, offer discounts or free delivery.
4. Inspire
Step up and do all you can to help. Be a beacon of inspiration during the crisis. Hope begets hope, and inspiring others to pitch in will ultimately help everyone. When the crisis wanes, customers will remember who led the way out.
5. Review your content
Now, more than ever, your content must be timely and sensitive. Make sure you are not sending out incorrect, insensitive or thoughtless information. Doing so could be damaging for your business. Your content should be focused on the customers’ needs, but not capitalizing on the crisis.
