COVID-19 brought the film and TV industry to a halt, more or less overnight on 17 March 2020. The next day, I jumped on a call with the two owners of Power Gems, and we came up with a way to harness the six years spent working together to build a global brand. The Manchester-based business designs and manufactures a specialist lighting product for film and TV production, with the majority of sales overseas.
My approach
I created a one-month campaign to strengthen their online marketing efforts (since all trade shows have been cancelled) to maintain normality, minimise risk and give their position a boost for when we come out the other side.
With no news because both facilities in Manchester and Hollywood closed and staff were furloughed, I came up with creative ways to capture attention on the website and LinkedIn. Aiming for 2-3 updates a week, I crafted good news stories such as the new hires made before lockdown, interviewed one of their customers for a thought leadership piece, and developed a knack for a good photo story (see below).
![LinkedIn written by B2B writer in Edinburgh for Power Gems during COVID](https://www.wordsareeverywhere.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/LinkedIn-Power-Gems.jpg)
At the end of the month, I turned the news stories into a newsletter, seen by Power Gems owners to be ‘a really good read and the photos are perfect. The bar has been set pretty high for our next output. ’ The click-thru rate has been impressive, whether it’s the focus on the personal – Jeremy holding a fish – or because we got a better response from those who are still working, is hard to say.
![Newsletter written by Gill Booles Edinburgh writer for Power Gems](https://www.wordsareeverywhere.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Newsletter-Power-Gems-27.jpg)
Many home workers may have extra free time. Looking to make the most of this opportunity, I created and built a survey of customers and contacts worldwide, and disseminated the insight through email, LinkedIn and the website.
![](https://www.wordsareeverywhere.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Survey-Power-Gems.jpg)
The result
The main aim throughout has been to keep Power Gems in front of mind. We seem to be winning with new orders and sales leads, during a time when running a straightforward campaign wasn’t going to do it.
What next? I plan to read Chaotics: The Business of Managing and Marketing in the Age of Turbulence by Philip Kotler