Coming back to work soon?
Here’s how to prioritize good communication in an unsettled time
COVID-19 has turned business upside down, including us at 20/20 Visual Media. There isn’t a single one of us who hasn’t been impacted in some way, but now that we’re all nearly ready to open our doors back up, there are several things we all need to do to put at ease the minds of the people we care about the most – our teams and our clients/customers. We spoke with CEOs from Philadelphia-area marketing and communications firms who shared what it means for them to get back to business and how they are helping their clients during this time.
Honest Communication is Key
“When you have open communication your team feels a part of it and takes pride in being a part of it. ”
— BRANDON ROST (CEO & President, beMarketing)
We’re all facing similar challenges: reduced revenue, a mad dash to reschedule all of the projects the coronavirus made us put off, and all-new social guidelines that we all need to follow long after we welcome our teams back to the office.
Does everyone on your team know how life at the office may change moving forward? If not, take the time to outline your response to the crisis. Put your leadership team out in front of the staff with occasional video updates, and make sure you follow those up with an “open-door” policy to answer questions either through email, phone calls, or in-person.
BRANDON ROST (CEO & President, beMarketing)
Honest communication is so crucial to the culture of the business. When you have open communication your team feels a part of it and takes pride in being a part of it. It also helps to ensure they know you have their back and are being completely transparent in what's going on. It is known to gain respect and confidence in leaders as well. I have always led by the way of open communication so that the team at beMarketing knows we're all in this together.
ELYSE LUPIN (President, Elysium Marketing Group)
One of the most important brand attributes is authenticity. Right now most people are scared and unsure, so companies need to pivot and communicate to them keeping this in mind If companies stay the course and communicate the same way they were before the pandemic, consumers are going to see right through it. Brands should be speaking about how they can help and/or shifting their messages to be relevant to the world right now.
BEN LeDONNI (Founder & CEO, Creative MMS)
Uncertainty has us scared, and isolation has us lonely. "Scared and lonely" is not a place of comfort for anyone. Employers have a responsibility to leverage the tools they have to embrace their current teams and employees, make them feel less isolated and give them hope to balance out the fear… We've started virtual happy hours, and we created an "innovation" slack channel so everyone can let their creativity run wild. With clients, we've been telling people that marketing includes communication and your current clients need to know that you are alive and kicking, how you've adapted to continue to get work done and that you are there to HELP, not SELL them.
Rebuilding Morale
“Communication helps with isolation.”
— Ben LeDonni, Creative MMS
We’re so lucky to have technology. Like you, we’ve all made use of Zoom, FaceTime, and any other reasonable means of keeping a sense of togetherness. But nothing builds team spirit quite like being with other people. The reality is, when your teams and customers get back to a normal schedule, morale may not be where it left off.
If you’ve experienced a cut in your workforce or a significant reduction in business operations, the uncertainty in the workplace will undoubtedly contribute to lower morale. This is the time to reinforce your commitment to your employees and tell them about your strategy for growth, so that if perhaps they’ve lost some friends to layoffs, they can take comfort in not only their positions, but in the fact that they will be a major player in the resurgence of your workforce. Not only internally, but externally-facing marketing is important in rebuilding morale with your customers who are likely experiencing the same discouragement your team is.
BEN LeDONNI (Founder & CEO, Creative MMS)
Our morale has been great, but we are lucky that we had a virtual component (having worked remote Monday and Friday already). The isolation is getting to us all, but we are finding ways to vent to each other as a group, and individually, as an outlet from those we are isolated with. Communication helps with isolation. That said, the human, face to face element is hard to replace. One thing we did is ask everyone to have cameras on, and have fun with Zoom backgrounds to try to expand the tools we use daily, have fun, but also see each other. There's no doubt that we'll be planning some happy hours as a team once we can all get back to our office in Philadelphia to build back the true human element. I honestly think we've banded together very well and seen a lot of leaning on each other, positivity to balance the negativity and understanding that we are ALL going through this our own way. It's been humbling that my team is this solid, and a testament to the culture we already had.
ELYSE LUPIN (President, Elysium Marketing Group)
Morale has shifted a little because zooming just isn't the same as being in person, but we do the best we can and try to make our zooms productive, yet fun. We're still celebrating birthdays and anniversaries, just mailing gifts instead of handing them over and singing through zoom instead of at a restaurant. We know this is temporary, so we're taking it day by day and getting excited for when we can see each other and our clients!
BRANDON ROST (CEO & President, beMarketing)
At beMarketing the morale has been unique and quite honestly tremendous. We have a fantastic team and I'm so proud of the ways they have stepped up during this pandemic. From the smooth transition of working from home, to our unique and witty social media posts showcasing our situation, the team is embracing the challenge and showing the world through social media and content, why we have a great organization. They've even put together fun tunes in a Spotify Quanrantunes playlist! Some additional ways we are keeping up morale is with a daily all team huddle at 1p to check in, take a break from work and share something they have going on that day. Coming out of this we will look to continue building up morale and pushing forward with fun team builders, culture driven activities in the office and our unique content creation!
For medium to large organizations, a well thought out video address that outlines the path forward can create a sense of calm and confidence in this new world. For smaller teams or specific departments, team building exercises like a trip to an escape room, Top Golf, or supporting a local restaurant by ordering lunch for the team are all great ways to remind everyone that we’re all in this together.
Training and Education
“try to find the silver lining in this whole pandemic”
— Elyse Lupin, Elysium Marketing Group
Are you putting new policies in place to encourage some form of social distancing? What about new directives for office cleanliness? This is the perfect time to work with your leadership and/or HR teams to develop and communicate new efforts to keep your team and customers safe and healthy. A short, voiceover driven, animated explainer video could go a long way towards keeping your team compliant.
ELYSE LUPIN (President, Elysium Marketing Group)
First off, we'll follow the direction we're given by the state, so if we have to wear masks or sit a certain distance apart, we will follow suit. I'm pretty sure we'll all wash our hands WAY more than we used to. My only other thought is to try to find the silver lining in this whole pandemic. As much as I want to be back at work with my team marketing all of my clients, I am enjoying the extra bonding time with my kids. And I know I'll miss this extra time with them at some point.
BRANDON ROST (CEO & President, beMarketing)
The new normal is something that we are all going to be adjusting to. I have been reading ways agencies in China are embracing the new normal and we’ll probably look to adapt some of those ideas. A shorter workday in office for a limited time as we transition back to the normal office hours along with reconsidering the work from home policy as the team has shown they can perform well in doing so. :) We probably will look to increase sq ft per employee as we plan on adjusting our office size and be more conscientious of cleanliness around the office for sure!
BEN LeDONNI (Founder & CEO, Creative MMS)
I honestly have not given this much thought yet. We had already shifted earlier this winter with A LOT of sickness rampant in the workplace, to make sure workspaces were clean and sicknesses were kept at bay. However, the world is about to change as it pertains to the way we treat sickness. I actually look forward to a further acceptance when someone says "I'm sick, and I have to stay home" as an "OK" response to being sick. And, I believe we'll all be less discriminatory against those that were considered germaphobes, since especially now, they have good reason. One thing I think many businesses will learn is that they can still be effective without being in person. That may make work opportunities open up across state and country lines, which is great news for creative agencies like us to provide services beyond Philadelphia without any sacrifice to the level of service. We still LOVE to get together in a room and whiteboard, and will not stop doing that once we can get together. But, we've innovated a lot already, and now know we can do even more things remotely just as effectively.
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We hope we got you thinking of different ways of keeping the lines of communication open between your leadership and your workforce, customers, and clients. Dealing with crises like the Coronavirus are difficult, but it does present us with an opportunity to improve processes and come out on the other side with stronger operations and businesses.
Schedule a 15-minute discovery call with 20/20 Visual Media to learn how we can play a key role in helping you communicate with your teams, clients, customers, and partners during this time. Stay safe.
-The 20/20 Team