The media lessons coronavirus is teaching us

The standard start playbook for capturing and creating demand has been thrown out

At Google, we’re pretty accustomed to consumer-1st thinking. In point, “Know the consumer. Know the magic. Hook up the two,” is a mantra that operates deep amid our marketing teams. But in this instant, when prepared campaigns have been shelved, we’re getting a renewed appreciation for subsequent our users’ guide.

Like most large marketing corporations, we normally target on multimedia campaigns built all around critical moments that outline our calendar year. We prepare campaigns in assist of all those moments with a commencing, a middle, and an close in thoughts. The sequence around seems to be like this: You have a prelaunch period of time, led by PR you manufacture an “epic” kickoff, sustained by ongoing (often pricey) high-impression media across paid out and owned channels and you deploy scaled direct-response media to seize demand all over. But that is how matters utilised to be, pre-COVID-19.

The latest reality has forced all of us entrepreneurs to be much extra driven by what folks need rather than broadcasting to them in a predefined instant we decide on. Throwing out the playbook has forced us to and demanded that we be extra fluid, dynamic, and grounded in information to tap into genuine-time consumer intent. And that is a good detail for the extensive operate.

Here’s how I have been thinking about what this indicates for us at Google.

We’re tapping into consumer tendencies — and Google information — extra than ever

We’re searching at Search and YouTube tendencies every working day to recognize what folks are leaning into in this unprecedented instant. For case in point, you’ve possibly seen your social feeds are entire of bread baking. Though we really don’t sell bread makers or baking devices, we do sell merchandise that can support with the system, like Google Nest Hub screens. When we noticed the craze soaring (pun intended), we worked with our creative partners to update ad creative and even look for ad copy to be extra appropriate in this one of a kind instant primarily based on what genuine folks are in fact doing.

Another case in point of how we’re tapping into appropriate tendencies: When people’s fascination with tigers exploded globally (thanks to Netflix’s Tiger King), we experienced an prospect to area existing augmented reality (AR) engineering in Google Search that would make it possible for end users to superimpose a tiger (or a lion or a horse or a duck … ) into their residing rooms. As curiosity in tigers picked up, we speedily built natural and organic social posts to gas the entertaining and increased our PR outreach. The final result? A large boost in folks attempting our AR engineering, led by a craze in tigers.