Shama Hyder:
And I think this is such a great time to step back and say, what is it that we’ve always done and why? You’re revisiting your brand, who your customers are? What are they hungry for today? What are they really going to be hungry for tomorrow? And I think catering to that is going to make a huge difference. It’s going to be the difference between the companies that use this moment wisely and the companies that lose when all of this is over.
Shama Hyder:
Hey everyone, this is Shama Hyder here. And I wanted to talk about a topic that I’ve been getting a lot of questions around, which is what does post-COVID world look like? You know, in terms of marketing to our customers, this business world, what are we going into? And I think this is such a fabulous question. In fact, I just spoke last week to a reporter from the American Marketing Association and they were doing a whole piece on, what happens to companies whose conferences have been canceled and trade shows have been canceled? You know, how do these people still continue to get these meetings that they had set up? And, it really dawned on me that I think what everyone is trying to do or so many companies are trying to do is they’re still trying to force a round peg into a square hole or vice versa.
Shama Hyder:
You know, they’re really trying to make something work that worked for the world before, but doesn’t make sense now. And what I mean by that is, it’s a really good time to step back and say, we’ve been doing these things because of and fill in the blank. And so many times when I asked this question about, “Oh, why are you going to this trade show to this company?”, for example, they’ll respond with, “Oh, well, that’s what we’ve always done.” And I think this is such a great time to step back and say, what is it that we’ve always done and why? And, asking that question about why and revisiting your brand, who your customers are, what are they hungry for today? What are they really going to be hungry for tomorrow? And I think catering to that is going to make a huge difference.
Shama Hyder:
It’s going to be the difference between the companies that use this moment wisely and the companies that lose when all of this is over because they haven’t really focused. They haven’t sat back and said, “Okay, great time to reevaluate where we are, where we want to be.”
Shama Hyder:
So, I was thinking about what does the framework look like for this new age. And I wanted to give you some parameters, some things to help you really think about what this post-COVID world is going to look like at least for the near term future. Eventually things may go back to a different kind of normal. I don’t want to say, what we’ve always been, but I think these guideposts will really help you as you think about where you want your career, your brand to move into the future.
Shama Hyder:
So I’ve got three R’s for you and then three C’s, because I just find that it really helps to remember information like that, right? So, here’s the three R’s you need to keep in mind. The first is repetitive. This is going to be absolutely key. And did I say this is going to be absolutely key? See what I did there? A little repetition for you, because the noise is just so mind boggling right now. And it’s not just the extra noise of the media. It’s all our internal chatter too. People need repetition more than ever before. So if you ever thought, “Man, we’re out there a little too much”, first of all, there’s no such thing as that. Be rest assured that repetition is going to be your best friend. Sometimes I get the question where people say, “Well, if he posts too much on social media, isn’t that a bad thing?” My answer to that always is no. It’s never a bad thing because the way algorithms are set up and everything, even if you put your message out there a hundred times a day, chances are that you aren’t reaching your entire target market. It’s just not possible. And so, as long as of course it’s quality content, then repetition is going to be really important.
Shama Hyder:
If you email your list once a month, email them weekly. And again, I don’t mean repetition for the sake of repetition, but really making sure that your message is out there consistently, right? That consistent visibility is going to be so much more important than it ever was just because you’re going to have to work harder to cut through that noise.
Shama Hyder:
The second R I have for you is real. I think one of the cool things that’s happened during this COVID crisis is that we all just had the ability and perhaps the excuse to be more real. And what I mean by that is, we’ve done work calls in jeans and tee shirts. We’ve cut away. We’ve done away with frivolous meetings that perhaps you were like, one of those, why did we keep doing this meeting for? And I think it’s interesting because I think we’ve been able to see our colleagues and our clients and our vendors in a more three dimensional light. I think so many times when you’re working with someone, it’s easy to just see them as the work person and not for the fullness, the richness I think that life has to offer.
Shama Hyder:
The other day I had my nine month old son and I apologized on the call and I said, “I’m sorry. I have my nine month old son here in case you hear him babbling in the background.” And my client immediately said, “Well, don’t worry about it. I’ve got my two year old year here and there’s only so long I can keep them distracted.” So it’s been really nice to bond with people I think beyond just the work me or the personal me. And I think we’ll see more of this blend. So in terms of your marketing, the more real you can make it, the more authentic it is, I think the more it will resonate with people. And this is your moment. I just think there’s some brands out there right now that are doing this extremely well. They are leveraging the fact that things are more real than ever. And these are the brands that I think are making some, some awesome, awesome decisions and are moving forward in a way that their customers feel like they’re connecting with them, right?
Shama Hyder:
So here’s a great example. I saw this video that Carter’s did. So if you’re a parent, you’re familiar with Carter’s. They do a children’s clothing. And this was such a great video because they filmed all the kids of their employees in their homes. And they had this fun little song that they put together about how mommy and daddy were home or piggyback rides. It was just so touching and beautiful, but it was real. It wasn’t overly scripted. It wasn’t something that … It wasn’t a commercial, right? It would have been a great commercial, but I think it really spoke to the realness that we’re all facing right now. And you think about The Good News Show with John Krasinski, which has been cool. I mean, this guy’s doing this show from home and he’s got celebs coming on board too, and of course it’s just fun because you get to see the real. And he’s showcasing good news from all over the world, interesting things that are happening.
Shama Hyder:
So I think that hunger for real, wholesome, pure is very much still there and will continue to be.
Shama Hyder:
So the third R is going to be relevant. This goes to my first message as well. You can be repetitive, but you want to make sure it’s relevant because let’s say that you do get someone’s attention. Boy, you better make sure that if you’ve gotten their attention, they feel like, wow, this was worth giving my attention to, right? So I think this idea of just doing something for the sake of grabbing someone’s attention just doesn’t work anymore. I think you really have to think about how is this relevant to my audience at this very minute?
Shama Hyder:
And so the three R’s being repetitive, being real and staying relevant. These three R’s are going to be I think the foundation, this new framework of how we move forward. And you know, my buddy, Chris Brogan used a great analogy. He said, “It’s like we’re building on the sand.” And I think that’s so true, which is your things are very fluid right now, but within that fluidity, without that sense of control and static we’re able to create something really beautiful. And I think there’s something really powerful about that.
Shama Hyder:
All right. So I gave you the three R’s. Here’s now the three C’s, which I think are also going to help. Again, think of these as guideposts, the framework for our new world. So the first is compact, right? Very simply the shorter something can be the better. And I know there’s all this stuff about, well, if something’s longer, people will still enjoy it. And yes, that’s true. But I think more than ever before, people want to know what’s the bottom line? Is this tweetable, right? Can I get something in a quicker, faster format? And so I think the more you can compact … Think about how you can get your messaging to be sharper, snappier. It’ll make a big difference. We at Zen, for example, we say, “If you have a moment. We provide the momentum.” As simple as that. So think about how you can make your messaging, everything that you’re doing as compact as possible without of course losing the value. There is such a thing.
Shama Hyder:
And then of course the second C is contactless. I think it’s going to be a long time before we’re comfortable hugging strangers, handshakes with people. Keeping that distance for good reason. And so we think contactless is definitely going to be the norm. Think about restaurants when you go in, right? You’re not going to be wanting a menu that’s been touched by how many people. You’re going to ideally be able to pull the menu up on your own phone. One Dine, which is a leader in restaurant technologies is doing an amazing job. They’re leading I think right now, the contactless revolution in the restaurant field. Which by the way, if you’re a restaurant, definitely check them out. Onedine.com. They’re making their technology free, absolutely free right now for restaurants while everything is happening. So, make sure you’re ready for when you do reopen. This is true for retailers out there too. Contactless, touchless. That’s really going to be the norm, at least for the near future.
Shama Hyder:
So even if you have a retail location, think about your lobby. Think about how you’re set up in your location to create more contactless interactions that require less touch.
Shama Hyder:
And the third C I think is really going to be collaborative, which I’m excited about. I think we’re going to see a lot more creation and collaboration where before it just wasn’t considered a done thing. And speaking of brands who are leveraging this moment, I think Pepsi really did great while they were in the news for cutting their marketing. What they’re really doing is just again, using these principles to say, where do we focus best? And they’re being collaborative. They’ve sponsored John Krasinski’s Good News Show that I was talking about earlier. So we think we’re going to see a lot more collaborations, a lot more people teaming up with influencers, both in B2B and B2C.
Shama Hyder:
So these are my guideposts for you for I think what’s going to happen as business reopens and where your marketing really needs to be. So let me rephrase that for you. Three R’s and three C’s. So the first is repetitive. If you feel like you’ve said it too many times, I promise you, you haven’t. Your marketing needs to cut through all this bull jive right now. It needs to be repetitive. Two, it needs to be real. I think it’s nice we’re starting to see people and organizations become less one dimensional. And I think that’s a wonderful thing. And your customers are going to expect more of this. Three relevant. Make sure that your message, your brand, the things that you are putting out there are relevant to your customers. No more of this getting attention for the sake of getting attention.
Shama Hyder:
And then my three C’s, right? Compact. Make sure that whatever it is can be understood quickly. It’s snappy. It’s clear. It’s concise. And then contactless. I think for the near future we’re going to need to be less contact. And I am a Texas girl. I love handshakes and hugs. And so this is going to be hard, but we’re going to get through it together. So if you have a restaurant. If you have any kind of actual physical location, think how you can encourage more contactless, because it will make your customers feel safer. And then collaborative. I think we’re going to see a great Renaissance of brands collaborating with influencers, with creators, with more creativity that I think we’ve seen in a minute, just as you know, whenever things slowed down in this way, creativity flourishes.
Shama Hyder:
So, these are my, I think hallmarks for your guidepost and the framework for where I believe that marketing and business is really headed. So get your ducks in order. This is your time. This is your moment. Absolutely own it.
Shama Hyder:
Hi there. This is Shama Hyder again. Thank you so much for watching my videos. I super appreciate it. Please share it. If you find this information valuable, do comment. I love hearing from you and be sure to subscribe. That way you don’t miss a single thing.
