This is not an article about what you should or shouldn’t be selling or marketing during this difficult time. There is plenty of that out there already. Just do a search for #tonedeaf on LinkedIn or Twitter and you will find plenty of examples of what not to do.

I do, however, want to provide my view-point on what I observe to be unnecessary badmouthing around any company that is marketing and selling during this time. 

Now don’t get me wrong: I believe all marketers need to take a close look at their messaging, offers and placements, and sales teams need to review their practices as well during this time. But at the end of the day, people still need to work and businesses still need to run. Sure, some large businesses will likely get bailed out when this whole thing is said and done, but the small businesses out there will likely be left to fend for themselves. 

Roughly 50% of people in the US are employed by small businesses.

I am not advising we should all be keeping our heads in the sand and pretending nothing is happening. However, stability is extremely important in times of crisis, and some amount of “business as usual” is a good idea. How business is done can and should change, but business should still keep happening.

Since my company is fully remote, I am sitting on the couch as I type and watching Frozen 2 with my daughter, who is home from school. (Leave it to Disney+ to release Frozen 2 just in the nick of time!). There are a number of very poignant and timely quotes in this movie that we should all heed right now.

As marketers, salespeople and business owners, we need to keep things going the best we can. Business can’t stop because there are people who depend on that continuity.

Nobody knows exactly how this is all going to shake out. We don’t know how long it will last, what the health impacts will be and what the economic impacts will be. However, we all need to do what we believe is the right thing.

Let’s get to the Point:

1. Businesses should re-evaluate their messaging and sales practices to ensure that we are all being understanding and helpful. This may be extending payment terms to existing clients, strategizing new ways to shift funds, resources, etc.
2. Add value when you can and when appropriate. For example, Proofpoint Marketing is a full-remote digital marketing agency. We feel that we can keep adding value by guiding everyone out there through the transition to remote work. We plan to double-down on that. Because we are a marketing agency, we also plan on finding ways to provide marketing advice and support to our community. One of the ways we are trying to do that is by gathering data about how marketing teams are changing activities and budgets during this time. If you can spare 5 minutes to fill out this survey, that would be very helpful.
3. Keep doing what you are doing. Keep marketing and keep selling, but be cognizant of who you are selling to and how you are doing it.
4. Be kind to your clients and your employees. We plan to keep our work schedules flexible and ensure that both our clients and employees find some shred of stability in their work with us.

Thankfully, it seems I’m not the only one that thinks this way:

Be good, stay healthy, and let’s work together to keep things going.