Learnings from lockdown, for us and our clients

Like many agencies and businesses, this year has proven to be a roller coaster here at Search Seven. With numerous clients pausing activity overnight, we were propelled into making quick decisions as a business, but most importantly, as a team.

Our approach

We knew we couldn’t control everything. Some clients were unable to stay open as a business, some clients were facing a lack of demand for their products or services, and some clients were fortunate enough to be able to continue operating. As a result, we made a conscious decision to be flexible, empathetic and continue to stick to our core values; giving the best possible service and work closely with our clients to understand each and every unique situation.In doing so, every client, partner and prospect received tailored support, irrespective of whether they were live or paused. From regular industry trends and insights, to completely reworking their digital strategy and communications messaging, our team worked tirelessly to add value to our clients and partners.Our fundamental beliefs in making a positive impact for our clients, charities, nonprofits and in the community, meant we utilised our time to conduct free health checks for businesses and charities of any size. This in turn helped give the tools and best practices to operate successfully over this difficult period. Not to mention persisting with our #Share77 fundraising campaign, raising over £1300 via two online events. Digital marketing with meaning is our slogan after all and has never been as important to us than now.

Results and trends

As we near the light at the end of the tunnel (touch wood!), there have been some clear trends emerging from our clients results. Those that were forced to adapt their messaging and approach to meet the requirements of their customer base and take a genuine humanistic approach to the situation are proving successful. Further, from a data viewpoint, through shifting a focus to softer KPIs, they were able to acquire an audience that were relevant, but not quite ready to convert. We’ve seen as consumer confidence increases throughout July and August, these brands that persevered to advertise effectively are now reaping the rewards. This includes some sectors that have been hit particularly hard, such as travel and hospitality.Notably, brands that have recently opened their doors have a significantly reduced data pool to make informed decisions from. The lack of learnings and rigorous testing to understand their audiences throughout this period means there are plenty of advertisers looking to move quickly from a standing start. This will have inherent challenges, so it is important you have the right strategy, messaging and approach for the foreseeable future.

What next for advertisers?

We’ve seen that, if feasible for the business, continuing to market and advertise throughout challenging periods effectively can be the difference between surviving and thriving. Your goals may change, the objective of advertising may change and the way your audience interacts with your business will almost certainly have changed. It is pivotal to blend a data-driven approach with an authentic empathetic outlook towards your customers and prospects. To clarify, this does not mean a vague email from the CEO of a company you didn’t know had your email address telling you “we are here for you in these unprecedented times..here is 10% off our product”.If you’re looking for some guidance on strategy to accelerate your growth, evaluate your channel mix to enhance performance or simply looking to have an initial conversation about how we may be able to work together, please reach out to team@searchseven.co.uk.