Six brands that got COVID-19 messaging right

Last week, I had the good fortune of co-presenting a webinar with Kathleen Rennie, Ph.D., called, “Engaging Audiences in the COVID-19 Era.” It was part of the Jersey Arts Marketers series put on by ArtPride New Jersey and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. Dr. Rennie is a strategic communications professor at New Jersey City University and we met several weeks ago when I presented to her students via Zoom.

Dr. Rennie presented the Essentials of Strategic Communications and asked me to provide examples of campaigns that reflected the best practices in her model.

The topic obviously struck a nerve, as we had more than 250 participants join us live! They represent myriad arts organizations across the Garden State, all of whom are grappling with how and when to re-open.

If you have an hour to spare (and who doesn’t these days?), you can watch the full presentation. If you don’t, here’s my breakdown of the six campaigns that got it right during COVID-19 so far.

1. Dove: Dove actually prepared for a moment like this for years by staying true to its brand values, even though the Courage is Beautiful campaign took just four days to develop.
2. The Getty Museum: The Getty Museum met an immediate need by curing our boredom and putting a smile on our faces with the expertly executed Getty Challenge campaign.
3. National Cowboy Museum: The social media takeover by the head of security was a perfect example of effectively engaging your public with authentic content.
4. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Gardens: The Home Safari events filled a massive content void when schools across the country shut down and it also reflected the zoo’s core values.
5. Airbnb: Oozing with humanity and empathy, the CEO’s letter about company layoffs took what could have been a reason to doubt the company and instead built brand loyalty.
6. Procter & Gamble: There’s no denying TikTok is exploding during the pandemic and Procter & Gamble jumped into the #quarantinelife trend with #DistanceDance.

In the presentation, I share the bottom-line results of each of these initiatives. Most companies don’t have budgets the size of Dove’s or P&G’s, but these efforts and the lessons they teach are examples for all marketers.

What are your favorite (or least favorite) campaigns to come out during the COVID-19 outbreak?