As Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine continues to wreck losses to lives and property of innocent civilians, the global economy and financial markets are facing the crude awakening that the deadly war in the heart of Eastern Europe is imbued with dire consequences for the entire world.
As of today, virtually all countries around the world are battling with hyperinflation – which simply put is a rapid, excessive, and out-of-control general price increase in an economy. Apart from the global supply chain crisis created by an unprecedented market dislocation created by the pandemic, the war in Ukraine is an unusual fuel to a festering inferno. From the average man on the street of New York to blue-collar workers on the corners of Lagos Nigeria, prices of fuel, staple foods and commodities are going through the roof with no respite on what could be done to arrest the situation.
On the marketing side of things, inflation is more disastrous to a brand’s equity, pricing power and customer relations strategy. On the short-term end of things, it not only erodes organic and measurable demand but also incapacitates a brand’s leverage to build a symbiotic relationship with customers as businesses by default respond by hiking prices to remain in business causing direct pain to existing and potential customers.
So what should you do to protect your brand in a hyperinflation crisis such as this? Firstly, communicate and continue to communicate. This is because customers understand you are in a fix but an ‘autocratic’ reset in your pricing and value offering will not only alienate customers but erodes the human face and empathy customers subconsciously demand from brands. Another major approach is to ensure your products and services solve problems in challenging times like this. This is not the time to employ a ‘one-size-fits-all approach to your marketing strategy. It is an opportunity to further prove that your products and services actually fill an important void in the lives of your customers.
With no end in sight to the war in Ukraine, every brand custodian needs to realise that we are in a crisis and your brand must re-evaluate and reinvent itself to continue leading the pack.
Talk to us via email on how we can navigate this period of uncertainty. Talk to us via email: info@sbimedia.com.ng