Communicating Your Reopening
After a tumultuous 2020, our lives are slowly beginning to return to normalcy. 2020 saw many businesses move remote and adapt to the pandemic by working from home, including HMA. Many other businesses unfortunately had to close their doors completely. Marissa recently covered how to smoothly transition into our “new normal” as we inch closer and closer to how our lives were pre-COVID. But how can businesses who are planning to reopen set the tone and communicate a message of safety and resiliency to their audience?
Establish a Communication Plan
The success you have upon reopening all starts with a plan that puts your staff and customers on the same page. Content should be created for all social channels, your website and other channels like email and text message. While your message should be the same throughout your content, it should be tailored to each channel and fit accordingly. This content will be timely, informative and relevant to your business. While it may seem difficult, it is possible to build buzz for your business while prioritizing safety.
Keep Up Your Crisis Plan
Now more than ever, a crisis plan is necessary for any and every business. Different from your recovery plan, a crisis communication plan should be in your back pocket and put in place in the event a crisis occurs. This handles internal and external communication and decides how you will address the public by designating a spokesperson to speak for your business. Efficiency and clarity are of highest importance when creating your crisis plan.
Follow Through
Part of communicating effectively means keeping your promises and staying committed to the message that you relay to your audience. If you post about protocols, actually follow them. It is expected for some audience to be skeptical or uncertain of the measures you are taking so questions should be anticipated and your answers should be at the ready.
Another part to following through is to illustrate it in your content. You should continue to be transparent in what you put out to your customers and dedicate your content to showcasing your business while still maintaining the messaging you have about putting safety first.
When it comes to your business, it is not how you fall but how you get up. With a resilient communication plan, you can help build the groundwork for great success.
