Phase 1: immediate response

• Time of significant change, uncertainty and in some cases, fear
• People are ‘grieving’ for the ‘life’ they’ve just lost
• Looking for ‘trusted’ information sources
• What’s needed:
  • Monitor situation
  • Provide support and reassurance
  • Keep people informed via timely & straightforward
  • “This is not a time to sell; it’s a time for community support”
• Response is largely reactionary to the changing landscape

Phase 2: pivot and adopt

• The pace of change has slowed
• People are starting to adapt to their changed circumstances
• What’s needed:
  • Help people to find the new ‘norm’ by providing resources and information
  • Foster community unity and positivity
  • Continue to provide timely updates on the situation
• Response can be more planned, but we’ll still need to adapt as required
• Ongoing assessment to identify right time for recovery campaigns

Phase 3: market revival

• The new ‘norm’ has been established
• There’s greater capacity to engage with things beyond ‘immediate survival’
• People are cautiously optimistic
• What’s needed:
  • Establish “new normal” communications
  • Engage and inspire through CTA campaigns (e.g. webinars, reviewing existing client books, marketing campaign tactics)
• As with phase two, response can be more planned

1. “We have you covered”

A campaign to clients with insurance in place to let them know they’re covered over this period and to highlight if they can claim for COVID-19

2. “Is your insurance up to date?”

A campaign for clients who have cover but for whom a quick review may be worthwhile. The objective is to make sure their cover is up to date and right for their current circumstances

3. “Why life insurance is more important than ever”

A campaign for potential clients who do not have any insurance in place (this could also be a good email for referral partners to send to clients)

If you have any questions or need any help building out your campaign assets, speak to your NEOS BDM.

In addition to the above campaign ideas, we recently read an article by Jenny Pearse in RiskInfo which provided some great suggestions about how you should be approaching your marketing effort right now. We’ve provided these tips below or you can read the full article.

1. Consider who you are talking to

Financial advisers often use a broadcast approach in their digital marketing to speak to the masses. Remember, when you broadcast you aren’t always speaking with the people who you actually do business with. Be targeted in your approach and speak with the people that are part of your community.

2. Apply active listening

Apply active listening and be engaging, whether it is through your social media activity, via email or over the phone. Listen to the pain points of the people you are engaging. These are indicators for what your content should be addressing.

3. Content is still king!

Don’t sensationalise, but inform and educate. You are part of your client’s circle of trust. Be the calm voice that they may not be hearing from anywhere else.

4. Curate content

Don’t have time to whip together an article or video? Share content from a valued and trusted source and add your commentary to it.

5. Use pictures

Images tell a story and we use them as a key element in all forms of marketing. The key to this is to use the power of your images to set the tone for the message you want to convey.

6. Use email

Get your message across in more than one way. Email allows you to provide a personal message and get to the heart of things.

7. Don’t be generic

People like to receive communications that address them and their situation. It elevates you and your client and provides a sense of intimacy.

8. Know the role you play

When it comes to predications, just don’t! You are not a medical or environmental expert so whilst it is important to be a conduit for information, you are not the expert on what’s next in this crisis.

9. Be honest

Be honest, be transparent and be consistent. If you don’t know something, that’s okay. Your clients will respect you more if you communicate it. Communicate often!

10. Take action

If you are taking action on behalf of your client, use the above steps to take them through what that action looks like. When you set out your intentions, your clients know what to expect. Use your communication channels to keep them informed.

No one can predict the future, but we can prepare for it.

Have a plan – not only for your financial advice – but for your marketing. Invest the time to prepare a communication strategy that allows you to move swiftly when dealing with a crisis. Make sure you are aware of the technology you have at your fingertips that can help get your message out and make changes quickly. Finally, be prepared to think outside the box if you need to. It’s in times of crises that we must innovate in the way we communicate.

• Use FaceTime instead of a regular call: it’s amazing the difference seeing a friendly face can make.
• Save your inboxes: where you can, use chat instead. Your colleagues will thank you!
• Monitor the team vibe regularly using a collaboration space: we use Heelix, and our leaders regularly review the reports available on how the team is feeling.
• Introduce regular all-in Zoom meetings: it’s important that your team remain connected. We suggest adding a twist to team meetings to make them more interesting. Fancy dress is always a hit!
• Be mindful of your emails: while emails are great, they lack the behavioral cues that indicate the feeling or emotion behind what we say. As a result, the tone of our messages can be misinterpreted. Now that we’re relying on email more than ever, it’s important that we carefully consider how our words are interpreted.
• Find new social forums: while Friday night drinks might be off the table, consider having your team join a virtual yoga class or perhaps a masterclass in cooking. There’s a million ways your team can still engage in social activity together, but virtually.
• Acknowledge their effort: working from home can present challenges for many people. The distraction of kids and lack of a dedicated workspace can make work that much harder. Keep your team motivated by reminding them of the great work they’re doing and how appreciative you are. And show that appreciation with simple rewards. We recently had a NEOS pizza night where we arranged for pizzas to be delivered to the home of each employee and their families.
• Help with the home office set up: support your team to get what they need to make their home offices comfortable – whether it’s a monitor to connect their laptops to or a proper office chair, these things can go a long way.
• Consider security: while this isn’t a tip to keep your team culture alive, it’s an important one if your staff are dealing with sensitive client information. Firstly, make sure your team have all secured their home Wi-Fi by resetting their default router passwords. They can also hide or change they’re SSID or Wi-Fi network name to something less obvious – it’s easy to google default passwords. And finally, remind them to use a shredder if they’re printing sensitive documents. And if they don’t have, buy one!

With no clear end date in sight, it goes without saying how important it is to find virtual ways to bring your team together. As always, chat with your BDM with feedback or if there’s anything we can help you with.