Post-COVID, American business and industry is a mess. Layoffs are widespread, M&As make headlines daily, workplace morale is down and so are earnings forecasts for more than a few Fortune 500s.
In the last six months just in the media industry alone, Buzzfeed News, MTV News and The Washington Post's Sunday magazine have shuttered. Disney is in the process of laying off 7,000+ staff, and networks from Paramount to CNN have announced deep workforce cuts. We're not sure if this is the start of a recession, but what we do know is that it sucks.
For all of our especially overburdened MarComm friends, here's some timely advice: When teams shrink or big change is afoot, it's time to get back to the 1-2-3 basics of brand planning (and get the C Suite on board while you're at it).
1 - Even during seasons of chaos, make time to plan and ideate together
Integrating marketing, communications and creative is a good start. Planning the short- and long-term together is even better. If major internal change is on the horizon, HR may be in this conversation, too.
2 - Then carve out moments to regroup regularly – with a heavy dose of bravery and intention
Because inking a plan and distributing a playbook doesn't mean you're done! (Sorry, but it's true.) Regular assessment sessions can help keep teams on track and focused on short- and long-term goals. These working meetings – if positioned as times for radical transparency and problem solving – can also improve efficiency for teams with little bandwidth by uncovering, and addressing head-0n, any issues that are bogging down processes.
3 - Check in and (re)train throughout the year
The savviest brand managers build a solid framework, update it regularly based on reality and communicate with their teams – and other departments – to ask for feedback and offer training along the way. This ensures that everyone feels empowered to contribute and knows how to use the tools and guidance with confidence.
In short, training and teamwork FTW.
Need help getting out of your own way with content creation, communications planning and brand marketing? Let's talk.
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