A Memo To Brands:  Stay Visible. Do Good.

For business leaders, the knee-jerk reaction in times like these is often to turn off your marketing—to go dark and wait for the crisis to pass. Please don’t. Redirect it instead.

For better or worse, business has become one of the most powerful forces in our lives. By taking the right action at this frightening time, every business, big and small, has an opportunity to prove it’s for the better.

If you lead a company or a brand, think about your core competency. What are you really better at than anyone else? Then think, how can I mobilize that core competency in service of my employees, communities, and customers? Not in pursuit of market share gain or revenue growth, but in service of humanity. Then redirect your marketing budget to do it.

For example, look at this Coca-Cola ad. Here’s a company redirecting its advertising budget to harness its competency in distribution to provide real help to those who need it most.  They’re doing good and staying visible.

Now’s not the time for brands to go dark. It’s also not the time for marketing as usual. It’s time for business to step up and help. We’ve got the resources and capabilities to do what individuals can’t, and sadly, what government often won’t.

If we do this right, people will get the help they need, businesses reinforce their value in the world, and brands maintain their presence and relevance through this challenging time.

If we do this right, business can help humanity come back faster and stronger.

At Brand Federation, we are committed to supporting our members, community and fellow businesses through this crisis. Learn more about the actions we're taking now.