Best Practices For Social Posting During The COVID-19 Crisis

Update: This post is part of our COVID-19 Resource Guide. We are publishing articles and Channel Mastery podcasts during the pandemic with tips, guides, and resources with the goal of helping your brand and business navigate the crisis. Visit our RESOURCE GUIDE>

Thoughts, Ideas, and example: What to consider when posting during the COVID crisis

On every media outlet, radio station, podcast, website, etc., all we read and hear about is the coronavirus / COVID19 crisis. We are inundated with new information, new tweets and updated numbers by the hour. So how do we, as specialty brands and businesses try to offer some sense of calm during the chaos and bring a welcome distraction?

Our team here at Verde, with the help of industry experts like Molly Hawkins at We Are Unicorns, outline some of the best practices for you and your brand as we start thinking through what our new normal is and how we work through this challenging time in a tasteful way.

We have included a checklist at the end of the post.

**First and foremost - Communication is still key.**

As founder and CEO of Verde Brand Communications, Kristin Carpenter, mentioned in the recent episodes of the Channel Mastery podcast, communication isn’t an option right now, but an absolute necessity. We have to be communicating with our people - from employees, to customers, to internal and external stakeholders, etc. If you haven’t listened to the Channel Mastery episodes around communicating through crisis for businesses, both can be found here and additional resources are also available on our blog.

Authenticity. Deliver the message that is most authentic for you.

We don’t know what the next week, two weeks, month, etc. look like at this point. That’s the truth, but what we can do now is continue communicating to our communities and followers in an authentic way.

Patagonia posted a photo to Instagram that began with, “Dear Patagonia Community” and comes directly from the CEO and President, Rose Marcario. While opening with that simple phrase may not feel like much, they immediately make you remember that we are a community and we {businesses and brands} are talking to you - our fellow community members.

The post continues with news that they will be temporarily closing stores, offices and operations and report that all Patagonia employees will receive their regular pay during the closure.

The post ends with, “Over the years, as our Patagonia community has been faced with challenges, I have always been inspired by how we emerge stronger and with an even deeper sense of purpose. We will persevere through this challenge, too. Thank you for our business, loyalty and patience.”

The post is open, honest and authentic. We won’t know what’s next to come or in this case, when things will be back operationally for Patagonia, but their note bleeds authenticity.

And remember, if you have to ask whether or not it is authentic...it probably isn’t.

Share what you know - Be hyper-relevant

There is a reason you’re an expert in your space. That’s what got all of us to where we are and we want to encourage you, as that expert, to lean on what you know. Be cautious of trying to dive into topics outside of your area of expertise.

One of the experts we’re keeping an eye on during the coronavirus crisis is Uncharted Supply Co., a Verde client. They are a survival gear company with a varied product line, but on Monday, they released a YouTube video with CEO, Christian Schauf. Let’s be honest, not many of us know much about air masks so in this case, it’s good to trust the experts.

In the 7-minute video, Schauf walks us through why surgical masks won’t help much during this epidemic and how the model that comes standard in their Survival System, the SEVENTY2 has an air mask that will help you in a survival situation.

This is an example of using your voice as a brand to share your expertise. You have a knowledge in your space that is unlike anyone else. How can you be helpful now to your community with the knowledge that only YOU have?

Not sure what to post? Educate your audience, dispel myths.

Utilizing your knowledge and channels to dispel common myths and out-of-date information is a useful way to update customers. As you know, the airline industry has been hit hard. Alaska Airlines uses Instagram Stories, blog and email to inform the public about the air on its airplanes. If you are like us, you think the air is stagnant and less than fresh in a plane. Turns out, HEPA filters clean 99.5% of the airborne virus and clean, fresh air is cycled through the cabin every 2-3 minutes.

Not only does this content educate, but it will be valuable to know once we start to travel again and can live on as evergreen content.

The outdoors and active lifestyle can unite us - even in isolation.

Some of you out there may be hunkering down at home in full isolation mode, while others have a quarantine comrade. In either case, all of us in the outdoor industry can remember to remind others to get outside or just stay active - separately...but together.

Under Armour, another Verde client, has also closed their physical doors like Patagonia and many other retailers, but they’ve put out a message via Instagram, inviting us to visit their virtual doors for purchases, and a encouraging everyone to stay on top of our health by accessing the workout routine and healthy eating tips available in their apps, MyFitnessPal and MapMyRun.

“As an outdoor steward there are a lot of ways that you continue to engage and connect with your audience in times of crisis. Mental health is especially important to address in times of crisis and outdoor therapy can be a good tool to draw on. COVID-19 is a unique crisis that certainly calls for specific measures, so just be aware and considerate of the situation, and review your tactical plan.”
- Molly Hawkins, We Are Unicorns

If you want to keep your channels active to inspire and keep folks connected to the world:

Make sure that your imagery reflects recommendations and best practices from the CDC social distancing.
Staying active on social doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to totally rewrite all of your scheduled posts, but if you have posts already mapped out and scheduled, consider at least reviewing the copy to ensure that it is sensitive to the current situation and be prepared to perhaps tailor it ever so slightly.
Should you decide that it would be an on brand move to completely pivot your posts and more actively address the COVID-19 crisis on an ongoing basis, try to remember to do so through your brand lens, pillars and best practices.
Consider all CTA’s, sales and promotions and how to approach the messaging. The impact of the COVID-19 crisis will take its toll on financial sectors, production, imports, and distribution and pushing sales could burden our systems when critical goods and services need to make their way to people in need.
Prepare for an influx of Customer Service Inquiries through social, including on channel and via DM’s. Though it may vary from business to business, you can start by considering discussing the following with your social team:
- Changes of Hours of Operation
- Shipping Timelines / Changes
- Change in Stock Levels
- Warranty/Return Workflow Changes

Keep it as light as we can right now and stay positive

Machines for Freedom (@machinesforfreedom) is doing just that through their Instagram over the past few days. On a post from Tuesday morning, they offer three ideas during this period of social distancing. The first is utilizing the Zwift app free for 30-days with no purchase necessary, next is sharing their hit playlist for a solo ride, workout or at home dance party and they stay positive by ending it with a suggestion to spread good vibes online and ask their community to post comment with recipes or just positive words and resources.

Check List:

Proactive communication: Support your community. They want to hear from you
Be authentic: If you have to ask yourself if what you are posting is authentic, it probably isn’t
Share what you know: You are the expert. How can you educate your customers?
Creative ways to connect: What are ways your company can use technology to connect people and support your fans and customers?
Voice & tone: Stay positive, be human, don’t be tone-deaf, be on-brand
Images & video content: Follow social distancing guidelines. Avoid using images and videos with large groups of people
Social Ads: Review your social ads and copy through this lens

That’s a wrap.

The benefit for all of us in the outdoor industry is that the outdoors have been calling us for generations well before COVID-19 and they’ll continue to do so when things settle and we beat this together. While we don’t know what tomorrow will bring, we do know that we have to keep moving forward together and continue communicating to our followers.

Here at Verde, we are working around the clock to ensure our clients are being well taken care of and we are continually providing the best service possible to our communities.

Tell us how you and your brand are connecting with your community.

best practices for social posting during the COVID crisis