The pandemic upended the lives of people across the country. A lot of people lost their jobs as many businesses closed due to the lack of revenue. A lot of people also had to stay home since their health conditions made them susceptible to a severe case of the disease.
While the situation improved over a year after the health crisis started, the emergence of new variants of the virus fueled a surge in the number of cases. Due to this, some companies implemented measures to make the lives of the customers easier.
These companies incorporated empathy into their operations and demonstrated their corporate social responsibility through the things they did for their market. Here are some ways companies have shown empathy to their customers in the middle of the pandemic:
Understanding the Customer’s Situation
When companies empathize with their customers, they consider their problems as their own. With this, some companies have shown how their employees are also coping with the situation. For instance, IKEA released a video created by their employees showing how they were dealing with the lockdown.
While the videos showed some products of the company in some scenes, they highlighted the experience of the employees while staying home. It also showed how the products can help them cope with the shelter in place orders, which provides customers with a solution to some issues they are facing.
Even as advertisements highlight the products of the company, they also show the benefits that customers can get when they have the products at home.
Designing Packaging for People Staying at Home
The medical condition of many people compelled them to stay home so they can avoid getting infected by the virus. But some of them struggle with opening packages and would need help from other people with this simple task. When the pandemic started, some of them lived alone and couldn’t entertain visitors to reduce the risk of infection.
Companies can consider the situation of these individuals by providing packaging that is easy for them to open. Since they cannot order customized packaging from major manufacturers. Companies can design produce the packaging themselves. They can buy printing and packaging machinery from trusted suppliers such as SBL Machinery. Such tools allow companies to save on their investment when buying a packaging machine.
Educating to Highlight Safety
The pandemic compelled businesses to allow their employees to work from home to avoid spreading the virus. Even as some businesses already had guidelines in place to deal with remote workers, others were new to the arrangement. This resulted in an increased risk of data breaches.
In this situation, information technology and software companies can educate their customers about increasing their cybersecurity measures to protect sensitive information from hackers. They can show their customers how hackers may work to breach the security of their database.
They can show the different stages that happen in a data breach so their customers will know how to avoid it. These companies are showing empathy by putting themselves in the shoes of their customers so they will know how to avoid data breaches in their systems.
Focusing on the Safety of the Customers
Some big companies can also focus on keeping their customers safe even though they may experience losses due to the pandemic. For instance, major hotel chains can encourage people to stay home instead of going out during a health crisis.
While the advice will have a significant effect on their bottom line, these companies will show that they value the safety and health of their customer more than their revenue. It also shows that these companies are not only interested in making money.
Due to this, these hotel chains can expect their customers to patronize their services when the pandemic is over. Their customers will recognize the sincerity of these hotels in ensuring they are safe during the pandemic.
Teaching with Minimal Branding
The pandemic saw many homeowners working on improving their homes to make them conducive for their work-from-home arrangements. While some of these homeowners are experienced in working on their own, many do not have the skills and equipment to work on their homes.
With this, home improvement companies can provide educational videos that help do-it-yourself enthusiasts with their home improvement projects. To show their sincerity in helping other people, they can minimize the branding on these videos and focus on the things that homeowners should do.
The pandemic affected the lives of people across the country. But companies can help these people by incorporating empathy into their operations and focus on assisting their customers.
