Tips for how to get your message across while employees, customers and partners work through the COVID-19 pandemic

Against the background of the global COVID-19 pandemic, all communicators understand the need for clear, concise, consistent communications. This is critical with all audiences, be it employees, customers, partners or third parties. There is a need to keep people informed, to reassure, to mitigate and to ensure audiences understand the plan and can keep a level head.

But getting the message across in the traditional way is being disrupted as much as our everyday lives. Many companies are already encouraging workers to stay home, significantly impacting team collaboration and communication. Restrictions on travel are stopping team meetings from taking place. And fears of contagion have seen the cancellation, postponement or virtualisation of annual events and conferences.

In this environment, many companies are turning to virtual solutions to communicate with their audiences.

But producing a perfect virtual event or meeting – and ensuring that your audience receives and understands the intended message – is quite simply not the same as producing a perfect face-to-face session.

Here is some practical advice to help deliver the most polished and engaging experience when it comes to presenting virtually, so that you can be sure your message gets through.

The Right Message and Tone

Your staff, customers and partners are all currently worried, concerned and confused. Getting the tone of your message right is incredibly important. Virtual meetings are not the same as in-person meetings: attention spans are shorter, distractions abound and people simply don’t stay on virtual platforms for hours at a time. It’s therefore more critical than ever for your messaging to be succinct, easily digestible, audience-centric, engaging and presented in a compelling, compassionate and considerate manner.

Think about the message and the tone

Develop your speaking notes and messaging in the context of the current COVID-19 outbreak and how people are feeling emotionally. Check for appropriate language and sensitivity to global teams and colleagues.

Reduce the narrative to only the most essential information so that the core message gets across. Communicate the most important points within the first 5-10 minutes, before you lose peoples’ attention spans. Then make sure your conclusion repeats the most important message you wanted to convey.

Timing is everything

People don’t sit in virtual meetings for hours. Try to plan your session for no more than 30-45 minutes maximum. Do not include ‘surround-sound’ content and narratives. Get to the point quickly, and only include the most important elements.

If possible, presenters physically present

If you have numerous presenters, trying to ‘dial’ in speakers separately will result in a disjointed and unconvincing presentation. Getting at least a couple of presenters in the room together will greatly ease the natural flow of conversation and ensure a more authentic and digestible experience for the audience.

That said, given the COVID-19 environment, this will likely not be possible. In this instance, limit the number of presenters to 2-3 speakers. One person should clearly facilitate and host to make the message as easy to understand as possible.

Learn from the evening news

Think about the dynamics of the presentation and narrative. Having a call host or moderator will keep the content compelling and fresh. A good tip is to think of a virtual meeting as a live TV news broadcast. Different voices and perspectives can boost the content and get the message across more effectively, as long as you’re not jumping around too much. Think 3-4 minutes per person as a winning formula.

In contrast to the evening news, however, avoid video content as a presentation support, given its propensity to lag in virtual formats.

In communications, repetition is key

During the virtual meeting, underscore the most important messages with very clear visual cues, and repeat them for clarity at the end.

But that’s not the only place to get the message across. When inviting people to attend, be clear on the topic and what is going to be communicated. Then follow up with a short recap that highlights the main takeaway.

Please refer to our PDF for more practical advice to help deliver the most polished and engaging experience when it comes to presenting virtually, so that you can be sure your message gets through. The Effective Communications in a Virtual Environment document includes recommendations on presentation techniques in a virtual environment; how to rehearse to get the best out of the meeting; tips on using the tech to best advantage; making sure the presenter’s environment and back- and fore-ground are conducive to getting the message across; and making the associated content as compelling as possible. 

As the COVID-19 pandemic sends shockwave after shockwave through the business world, leaders are scrambling to communicate how their organization is staying in front of the crisis to maintain the health and safety of employees and customers.

But that is only half of the job before us. When confidence is shaken by so many unknowns and our employees and the public are fixated on the rapidly escalating events, effective corporate leaders must provide more than policy guidance on how to maintain the health and safety of their employees and customers.

Plenty of research shows that CEOs have tremendous social influence (and in some cases are more trusted than government leaders), particularly when CEOs speak out on issues that impact their customers and employees. This matters more than ever right now as public health experts struggle to influence the behaviors of so many individuals to achieve the collective goal of mitigating the spread of the Coronavirus.

So what does exceptional CEO communication look like when thinking beyond policies and practices? Here are five things to keep in mind and some practical examples you can use with your own teams and executives.

1. Remember the human element: You have clearly communicated policies, sending numerous emails that answer a voluminous number of questions. Your work is not done. No one has ever changed someone’s behavior or rallied a team together simply by sending a memo. Even though it may be more complex to produce, a quick video or even short podcast can be more powerful and more calming than anything else you do.

A situation like also this brings out the very best and the very worst of us as human beings, making this an important moment to be mindful of diversity and inclusion. This virus is borderless and blind to race, sex and religion. CEOs need to ensure inclusive behaviors are modeled and help extend these behaviors into the wider community.

2. This is a whole life experience: While the pandemic threatens business continuity, quarterly profits and even a global recession, for your employees it is more personal. The effective leader gives employees space and time to be caregivers first. The pandemic is creating vulnerabilities in our entire social and family support systems. It is unsettling. It is distracting. And that was before we needed to provide extra support for grandparents and an elderly neighbor or to help a child navigate an untested e-learning regimen. The traditional cycle of work during the day and home responsibilities in the evening has been thrown out the window. Employees can’t even hear the bigger tasks you are asking of them if other concerns they see as more pressing aren’t being addressed. (What happens if I have IT problems at home? What if I need to take care of my family?) Effective executives acknowledge these stresses and realities in their communication. This is a time to build cultural resilience and draw on the collective strengths of the organization. A fighting spirit will be important given the likely duration and global impact of the virus.

3. Leading is a conversation: In a time when we are faced with more questions than answers, this must be a two-way exchange. You trust your employees to execute your business. Listening to them during a crisis is just smart management. Responding to concerns from employees shows you are listening and adapting to an ever-changing situation and likely provides some of the answers you are looking for. Executives should balance basic policy guidance sent by email or posted on company intranet sites with additional forums that allow employees to ask questions and get answers. It can be hard for a single person to take on a forum like a virtual town hall when they know they don’t have all the answers. Consider bringing together an executive team of three or four leaders in a panel. It projects an even greater sense of confidence and allows the leaders to share the burden of fielding questions. Be honest. Admit when you don’t know something. Talk about what you do know.

4. Think about the larger social impact: Last year hundreds of CEO members of the Business Roundtable said their business was about more than delivering value to shareholders. Now’s the time to see that promise in action. Business can’t afford to be bystanders. They need to work together with government and industry stakeholders to develop non-partisan solutions. This is a fine line companies will tentatively explore in the coming weeks as no one wants to seem opportunistic or exploitive. Employees and customers will remember how a company acts like a civic partner in a crisis, thinking beyond the walls of its own operations to how it can help solve the larger challenges we face today and more that will come in the weeks and months ahead.

A few companies are stepping up to help customers with the things that they need the most. Hopefully businesses will lean in to address the increasing isolation of the elderly or help families struggling to meet basic household needs. Companies may take up endeavors that ensure basic household supplies are getting to those who must stay home and help reduce panic buying that limits available supplies. Others might find innovative ways to support particularly vulnerable industries, such as arts, music and theater, while also helping get their uplifting message to groups and communities that are feeling isolated. There is much to be learned from many brands who have already show tremendous creativity in supporting communities in APAC.

5. Look to the horizon: We will get through this pandemic, but the fears of many are about what will happen next – to the global economy, to the health of their own company. Every good crisis response has a Now Team and a Next Team. The Next Team is a group of leaders who are not consumed with the day-to-day emergencies of running the business. They are thinking about what comes next and how to prepare the business to not only return to operations, but also prepare it for improved success. After 9/11 the world’s global airlines had teams thinking about what pilots would say to passengers on those first airplanes that took back to the air. They were thinking about how to manage the business and protect their employees and customers through what would be many months of difficult economic pressures. If you don’t have such a team running right now, you should. Possibly most important, you should communicate to employees some of the things those teams are thinking about and working on, even when you don’t yet have all the answers. Planning for recovery and rebuilding during the crisis signals a confidence that employees will appreciate.

It is never easy to communicate when we don’t have all the answers. Those who look beyond the immediate policies and practices will better ensure their organizations emerge ready to recover in the weeks and months ahead.

The biggest global story of the moment is undoubtedly novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and as more cases are confirmed globally, concerns are increasing that efforts to contain the virus may not be enough to prevent a worldwide pandemic.

Against this background, we have seen the disruption of international travel and normal business operations around the world. The tech industry has been particularly affected and many companies with direct ties to China have already felt its effects. Both Mike Isaac at the New York Times and Natt Garun at The Verge do an excellent job of outlining some of the more immediate ways the tech sector is feeling the impact.

Many of the big tech companies are already encouraging workers to stay home with some speculating that the long-term effects could create a permanent shift in attitudes towards a distributed workforce and a work-from-home culture. Based on what we are seeing from our clients, including some of the biggest and most-global names in the sector, these arrangements are working pretty well so far.

The restrictions on travel and fears of contagion have perhaps had the biggest impact on the tech industry’s mammoth calendar of annual events and conferences. Many, such as GSMA Mobile World Congress in Barcelona and SXSW, to name just two, have already been canceled. Other events such as RSA’s 2020 Cybersecurity conference are going ahead (at least at the time of writing), but without the presence of many of the major brands and/or with significantly scaled-down numbers of participants. Others, such as Collision have made the decision to cancel the live event and make them online-only this year.

As communicators and strategic advisors, there is already an enormous responsibility to provide proactive and clear communication to help stakeholders understand how organizations are planning to deal with the coronavirus outbreak – whether or not they are currently impacted.

For most, this means now deciding how to move forward with internal, owned and industry events. Accurately calculating the risk, as well as the impact of canceling, is among their top priorities, especially if they are scheduled to happen in the first or second quarter of 2020.

Key factors in informing this decision making should include the following considerations:

• Keep It Centered on the Stakeholders – it’s critical to understand the diverse, sometimes conflicting, needs and concerns of your key stakeholders.
• Rely on the Experts – the World Health Organization, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and other local health authorities can be relied on for the most accurate and up-to-date guidance on how companies and individuals can prevent infections.
• Align with Your Values – values are a critical element of decision making, particularly in a crisis or issue situation. Operate with purpose and demonstrate both empathy and accountability as a way to acknowledge the impact of your decisions on health and economic outcomes.
• Recognize the Potential for Complications – Opponents, competitors or special interest groups may seek to take advantage of the situation to negatively impact your business or your reputation.

The tech industry is uniquely suited to respond to the current circumstances. With the prospect of a potentially event-less 2020, the industry that coined the term “digital transformation” has a real opportunity to put its money where its mouth is. In 2015, a tech industry leader said, “At least 40% of all businesses will die in the next 10 years… if they don’t figure out how to change their entire company to accommodate new technologies.”

Digital Transformation is literally defined as “the use of new, fast and frequently changing digital technology to solve problems” and COVID-19 appears poised to put this promise to the test. The industry that has given us HD video conferencing, virtual and augmented reality, artificial intelligence and machine learning, 5G networking and the Internet-of-Things is now poised to help us truly re-imagine the way we do business. We are about to see if and how technology can provide a rich, engaging and productive workplace or event experience, now that we momentarily operate without the ability to get on a plane to Las Vegas, Beijing or Barcelona to shake someone’s hand in person. Nothing will ever be able to take away from the rich experiences of human interaction – and nor do any of us want that – but in the interim, and as the world’s medical challenges continue apace, it is reassuring to know that technology is on our side to help keep business moving.