This document analyzes social storytelling strategies used by brands during the COVID-19 pandemic. It identifies three options for brands: being still available, limited, or unavailable. It provides many examples of effective social media posts and discusses why they work. The document aims to serve as a guide for how brands can engage audiences and stay relevant during the pandemic by adjusting their messaging to their current circumstances.

1. Social Storytelling in the Age of COVID-19
Charlie Kondek . April, 2020
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2. This is a work in progress.
It may become a playbook at some point. For
now, what I’ve done is assembled advertising
I’ve observed in social media and given some
thought to why I think it’s good storytelling
during the pandemic.
Illustration by Ryan McMenamy
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3. I think brands have three options.
Consumers are quarantined at home and limited in where they can go,
what they can do, and how they spend their money. Brands are:
❑ Still available, in which case they need to remind people or
explain why they still deserve attention
❑ Limited, in which case they need to change what they offer and
market that to consumers
❑ Unavailable, in which case they need to stay top of mind so
consumers will return to them when the pandemic lifts (in
whatever stages)
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4. Let’s remember that our audience is
❑ Spending a lot more time on
social media. Now is a good time
to engage them
❑ Inundated with a lot of
messages, many of them the
same (even more so than usual)
❑ Frustrated and scared
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William Eggleston

5. Still available.
Social stories that explain why they still
deserve consumer attention
Jon Koko
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6. UPS and FedEx
Obviously relevant to consumers at this time,
these brands do a great job of showing their
delivery personnel as heroes and leveraging
consumer testimonials, often powerfully so.
This example is emotional and authentic.
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7. 7
Lenny Vitello’s silent streets
I particularly like this long-form example from
FedEx. It’s a preference in my own client work
and the type of thing I would do, down to
“traversed the streets and alleys of lower
Manhattan” and “blackouts, snowstorms,
parades and protests.”

8. 8
Stay home (and watch movies)
In-home entertainment is extremely relevant.
This tactic by Netflix leverages and combines
two powerful cultural forces: how we
encourage others to #stayathome (most of us,
anyway), and our desire to enforce protection
of #spoilers.

9. Limited
Changing what they offer and marketing
that to consumers
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Unknown

10. 10
“Still open for carry out.”
Restaurants provide one of the clearest
examples of businesses that have had to
adjust what they offer. Restaurants have never
sold just food; they also sell an experience.
The experience now is take-out or delivery. I’d
be remiss if I didn’t mention my own client
work with agency Combustion. See
https://papal.is/card for details.

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You can always keep it light.
Here’s a restaurant trying to drive carry out
business with humor instead of seriousness. I
shared this one myself and it got a lot of haha
reacs.

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Preposterous? Maybe not.
I think the oil change place shown here
should have offered more than one roll, but
what I also like about this execution is the use
of the owner’s own words. The typos even
make it seem more genuine.

13. Unavailable
Staying top of mind so consumers will
return to them when the pandemic lifts
Ian Winter
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Everyone’s gone to the movies.
We won’t be going to the theater any time
soon, but independent movie houses in my
area have been doing a great job of staying top
of mind with images, quotes, watch parties
and things like that.

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Well shucks.
If you didn’t catch it, the National Cowboy
Museum in Oklahoma put their security
officer, Tim Send, in charge of the museum’s
Twitter during the pandemic. Tim’s honest
and hilarious fumblings on Twitter more than
convey the experience of the museum. Other
museums have done great social, too.

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The happiest place on earth.
It’s shameless the way I am using Scott Monty
here but shows concisely how Disneyland can
give a little bit of itself to those that can’t come
to it. (Sorry, Scott – but btw can I be on your
podcast?)

17. Other Examples
R.E. Higgins
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18. 18
Yes, you can still buy a car but…
I’m from Detroit so can’t omit the auto industry. I think autos are somewhere between Limited and
Unavailable and think the best stories they are telling, now, are about how they are helping make
masks and other equipment, creating flexible payment plans, and still servicing vehicles. These
companies have a genuine right to these stories because they are genuinely doing a lot in the fight.
(Can’t not praise the Motor City.)

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Likewise, you can still buy beer but…
The booze industry makes its money not just from consumption at home, but at restaurants and bars.
That makes a booze brand Limited, since its marketplace has shrunk. I think when these brands do
things to help bartenders or other causes, it’s a good brand act and good storytelling. Like my mentor
Marcus Collins always says, consumers want to see you walk the talk in ways that align to your Why,
and this is a critical opportunity. (Marcus, can I be on your podcast…)

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Other good cause-related storytelling
Almost needs no comment. Hotels donating rooms to essential workers is great. Tide doing their
laundry? Brilliant, IMO – love the localized aspect of it, too. One thing I will add is that many brands
are rushing to help healthcare workers, but other essential workers need it, too – truckers, grocery
clerks, etc. It’s an opportunity to do good and differentiate.

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Close to home and close to my heart
Marvin’s Marvelous Mechanical Museum in metro Detroit is an arcade and funporium specializing in
vintage games and nickelodeon entertainments, many of which pre-date the electronic era, born out of
the personal collecting of its founder, Marvin Yagoda. Me and my kids are there every few weeks but
naturally they have been closed during the pandemic. Marvin’s family is still running the place and, in
my mind, they are sitting on a wealth of interesting stories they can (and do) share in social.

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More clever storytelling with food
I especially love the matzah one, which simply embraces the fact that Passover is coming
and reminds people they can get their matzah by mail.

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The museums have been killing it
I worked on the Detroit Zoo and know well the power of nature and animals to connect to the human
soul (see studies on nature deprivation). Shedd Aquarium’s daily penguin walks have given life to
viewers. The Getty Museum Challenge, in which people recreate works of art by posing, is wonderful.

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Sharing this just because I think it’s fascinating
I love promotions, contests and sweeps. I
love experiments in digital experiences. I
love that this opens up a lot of story
possibilities – could people start (or
continue) dating in a pandemic? Could
they get engaged remotely? Plus, it sets up
a great execution for when the pandemic
lifts.

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“Hey, marketers!” A note on B2B and healthcare
I haven’t really touched on it in this deck but
I believe strongly in social for B2B and have
a lot of experience. B2B continues during
the pandemic, with the same considerations
as other brands – Available, Limited, or
Unavailable.
Healthcare is going to face some stiff
challenges. I have healthcare clients that are
well poised to flourish during the pandemic,
especially if they have remote healthcare
offerings. Others are late to adopt this. Also,
patients are forgoing treatment for some
things until after the pandemic. I don’t have
the answer here but am giving it thought.

26. That’s it for now.
I’m Charlie Kondek, a story miner. As a
marketing and communications consultant, I
find stories hiding in plain sight, extract them,
and give them life in ways that are impactful.
If you take one thing from this, it’s that you
can, and should, keep telling stories during
the pandemic. You just have to adjust.
LinkedIn.com/charliekondek
charliekondek@gmail.com
(734) 576-6754
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