6 Lessons Marketers Learned in 2020

By Chuck Leddy

In the first two months of 2020, we all followed news about the devastating outbreaks of COVID-19 in China and Italy. In March, the pandemic hit the U.S. with full impact, forcing the closure of businesses, the cancellation of events, and making nearly everyone work (and do almost everything else) from home via digital channels.

The “new normal” of 2020 meant staying home, Zoom meetings, widespread social justice movements in the streets of every major city, as well as fervor for political changes at every level of government. Brands were also pulled into these social tumults, being forced to take sides and define their values. As we look back, what were the key lessons and trends 2020 brought for marketing? 

1. Digital transformation accelerated.

As both organizations and individuals shifted to doing everything from home via digital tools, organizations that had invested in digital transformation pre-pandemic outperform their more flat-footed rivals. Scaling up digital ways of working became urgent for marketing teams, as did scaling up digital customer engagement, as live events and bricks-and-mortar were closed down.

2. Brand strategy and messaging must be “change-ready.”

The month of March 2020 felt like a year, largely because organizations and individuals were suddenly forced to pivot to new ways of working, living, learning, and doing everything. Brand strategies and content plans that were fine in February became completely inappropriate in March (the phrase used to describe flat-footed brands in March was “tone-deaf”). Many savvy brands simply pressed the “pause” button and adapted their marketing strategy for the “new normal” of March and beyond. 

3. Adapting to remote work takes both new technological capabilities and new skill sets

What 2020 highlighted most of all was the need for “change-readiness” or agility at both the organizational and individual level. Marketers had to learn how to work well and collaborate remotely, from home, while marketing leaders had to learn new ways of leading and motivating teams in a context where “face-to-face check-ins” were no longer feasible. 

4. Virtual events will remain, but won’t replace live events.

The year 2020 has shown that virtual engagement such as Zoom meetings and online events are great, but can’t replicate the emotional resonance and connective power of in-person communication. While virtual events are cheaper, save travel expense, and promote convenience, the power of face-to-face human interaction has been hard-wired into our human brains for millenia. We’ll continue to use virtual technologies, but 2020 has taught us the unreplaceable power of face-to-face communication. 

5. Wellness is imperative to support productivity.

Stress and mental health concerns have been a constant part of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on all of us. During 2020, organizations have increasingly prioritized employee wellness as a foundation for productivity. Companies have been more flexible with work schedules, have offered virtual wellness events so employees can socialize and unwind.

6 Agility and flexibility remain paramount

Constant change was the watchword for 2020. Marketers must be adaptable, whether to new ways of working, new marketing technologies like AI, or to shifting customer behaviors. Change-readiness is a muscle that we all need to flex, and it needs to be baked into our mindsets, our tech stacks, and our marketing strategies from here on. 

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Check out Boston Content’s 2021 Content Marketing Playbook for more insights on where content marketing is going in 2021.

About the Author:

Chuck Leddy

B2B Brand Storyteller