Brand Responses to Lockdown That Caught Our Attention

Brand Responses to Lockdown That Caught Our Attention

By Olivia Thwaites - PR Executive @ Goho

After two months of lockdown and UK restrictions only just beginning to ease, companies all over the world have been faced with a challenge that very few could have ever anticipated. With the high streets closed, hospitality and travel at a stand still and a serious demand for online shopping, brands have had to act quickly to stay afloat and generate positive news coverage. 

Consumers have looked to their most loved brands and chains for reassurance and hope over the last two months, as the uncertainty of returning to ‘normal’ has not yet ceased. For several brands, the lack of compassion for the physical and mental wellbeing of their staff generated much criticism, whilst others got creative. 

By the beginning of April this year, multinational brewery and pub chain, Brewdog, had already made and shipped over 100,000 units of hand sanitiser for free. Brewdog commented, “in the last 14 days we went from not knowing anything about Hand Sanitiser to becoming a fully approved supplier to the NHS.” 

Similarly, Zara has achieved plenty of news coverage after converting its factories to produce cotton face masks and other protective equipment, to ease the global shortage that hospitals have faced. Since then, Zara have been praised for another ‘genius’ idea, as the models in their new campaign are shot entirely from the comfort of their own homes. 

One example that impressed us was Time Out’s swift logo change to ‘Time In’, a simple but very effective move.

The magazine said, “with many city-dwellers currently working from home and fewer commuters in the city, Time Out magazine will temporarily have a Time In too - like so many people - and go digital-only for now. Once the city bounces back, the magazine will return.”

Amazon audible recently made its audiobooks completely free to the public, to help parents who are looking to entertain their children during the closure of schools and nurseries. This will be free for children and students of all ages, whilst the schools remain closed. 

The creators of the much-loved Gruffalo books also acted quickly, whilst looking to keep children and parents entertained at home. The new series of illustrations and rhymes, 'Gruffalo stayed in the cave', depicts well known Gruffalo creatures existing during a forest lockdown.

Comparably, other brands have received lots of criticism for the treatment of their staff. Wetherspoons chief executive, Tim Martin, issued a message to 43,000 employees to inform them that they would not be paid until the government first reimbursed the company for the furlough scheme, regardless of their £1.8bn annual turnover. Martin suggested they find a job in Tesco instead.

Similarly, Virgin Atlantic found themselves under a harsh spotlight at the beginning of lockdown, as Richard Branson asked over 8,000 of his staff to take unpaid leave. Branson then appealed to the UK government for a loan to keep it afloat, possibly ignoring his estimated worth of $4bn. He has since offered to put his private island up for sale, in a bid to sway public opinion.

While the issue of staff well-being is seemingly last on the priority list for several employers, many charities are currently looking to support their staff and fund the significant work that they do. The UK Charity, Marie Curie, created a new campaign during lockdown to support their emergency appeal. The campaign, ‘On Hold’, was created entirely by people working from home and for free, as Saatchi created the ad free of charge. 

The campaign has been able to air purely from donated media space and has been integrated onto a variety of social media and broadcast channels. With support from ambassadors such as Alison Steadman, the charity have also been able to run weekly quizzes to help raise money for Marie Curie nurses. 

Earl of East Candles are a great example of how brands should get creative during lockdown, after releasing a new line of candles called, ‘Scents of Normality’. The collection smells of the places that the public are missing the most during lockdown, by using three scents that reflect some of the nation’s favourite hangouts: The Local, The Cinema and The Festival.

One lockdown campaign has been described as ‘taking a creative approach to misfortune’, as Emily Crisps was noticed after pushing a series of lockdown faced ads. 

Like many cultural institutions, the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles is closed during lockdown. However, the Getty Museum has found a way to keep people engaged with their art by challenging the public to recreate works of art with objects found at home. As a Frida Kahlo fan, this was one of my favourites…

Each of these campaigns are examples of how brands can use this time as an opportunity to ‘shine’, as lockdown has taken a real toll on consumer confidence. The brands that have made an effort to be compassionate and creative during lockdown will undoubtedly be remembered. The nation is adapting the mindset that we’re all in this together and it is no doubt inspiring when our favourite brands do the same.