What should your business be communicating to your customers during a crisis?
Information for your customers and what they can expect from your products/services during this time? Are you open or closed? Will your service continue? When are you open? How can they get in touch with you? Things like that.
Insights relevant to your expertise: if you are an insurance broker, what should your customers know ABOUT INSURANCE right now? Check out Ryan Hanley from Rogue Risk as a great example of this.
Marketing agency? What should they know about their MARKETING?
Plumber? Plumbing. etc etc.
What NOT to communicate:
Unless you are a news organization, don’t try or feel obligated to share news that isn’t relevant to your expertise. There is plenty of information about the crisis from credible news sources and people know where to get it (and are being bombarded with it everywhere already)…
Which leads me to WHERE to communicate…
Right now, push communication is all white noise and your messages will most likely be missed, overlooked, or ignored on first attempt.
Yes, it’s important to send out an email about your business status and post about it on social media. But make sure you have a clear message across your website.
Don’t just add to the white noise of constant emails about a crisis
The most important thing for you is that when customers seek out your status they can easily find it. I recommend a full width notification bar across the top of your website with a headline and button to a page with information.
How Should You Communicate In A Crisis?
Be a leader and a source of positivity.
There is enough chaos and unease right now that people want and need a strong voice shining light that pushes out the darkness.
There’s enough news content and info that scares people right now, let us be the voices that help bring joy and leadership.
Communicate from a perspective of optimism and gratitude.
Like the MLK quote that only light can drive out darkness.
Let’s be that source of light.