By now, we’ve either seen bare grocery store shelves in-person, during the initial coronavirus panic, or trending online. But what shocked most Americans wasn’t the mad dash, it was the products that were flying off the shelves. Toilet paper, face masks, hand sanitizer, wipes, bottled water, and bread to name a few.

Yet, there are some items that stores just can’t seem to get rid of. Corona, anyone?

The point is that, even in a time of crisis, there are still products that consumers do not want – and those are the things that you should not worry about marketing.

So, as marketers, what can we learn from the empty shelves?

Impacting brands even more? The global move to a virtual economy. As state governments issued shutdowns and lockdowns (to demand social distancing, prevent the rapid spread of Covid-19, flatten the curve, and keep the number of cases at a manageable level for our healthcare providers), citizens turned digital for work, supplies, and socializing.

We are now dealing with the realities of a recession due to the coronavirus and our quarantines.

The rapid onset and severity of this year’s recession will create clear changes in consumers’ psyche. With unemployment at all-time highs and spending at all-time lows, marketers and business strategists will need to consider how this recession will alter the consumer landscape in 2020 and beyond. A few marketers have already begun carving out bigger slices for their brands. (For example, automakers and distillers turning to PPE and hand sanitizer production, respectively.)

So, as marketers, what can we learn from the empty shelves?

You should be marketing the products that are moving in this pandemic.

For our legal professionals, a review of a few hot topics should help you determine the services to market. Some of the big hitters are manufacturing, risk management and business continuity, telehealth, elder care, critical infrastructure like transportation and energy, unemployment, education, and government relations.

Covid-19 has affected every single market and has created an adapt-or-fail environment for businesses. So, this requires that firms evaluate what they sell, figure out what clients are buying, and redirect marketing resources there.

After determining what your firm’s essential services are during the Covid-19 crisis, then consider how to effectively market them in our newfound #teleprofessional world.

Are there some virtual channels that you may not have embraced before? A firm-wide live-streaming happy hour, webinars as an alternative to in-person speaking opportunities, client meetings through FaceTime, conference calls on Zoom or Skype, blogs, and podcasts.

In the same spirit as my other post, on how the legal community first responded to the coronavirus outbreak, check out how Morrison Foerster embraced digital early on with its handful of webinars.

I would also be remiss not to mention how now is the time to ensure the lawyers providing these services have sufficient online profiles. If they are not on social media, get them there fast. And make certain their personalities are present. Since face-to-face networking is limited, it’s these online bios that will sell.

If you need assistance with figuring out what products can fly off your shelves or getting your firm up to speed on virtual marketing tactics, contact us.