The ongoing spread of new coronavirus strain ( 2019nCoV) has been declared a global emergency by WHO and some companies whose products can help to prevent the spread are reaching out to consumers using rapid response marketing.
The outbreak of a new coronavirus from China is making headlines worldwide. Procter & Gambleās Clorox, which makes cleaning products made a landing page discussing 2019-nCoV on its site. The page provides basic information about the disease and links Clorox products which can be used to disinfect the surfaces on which the virus might live, as their products demonstrate effectiveness against similar viruses. Clorox page claims ā per the EPA Emerging Pathogen Policy, these products can be used against 2019-nCoV when used as directed.ā
Similarly, competitor Reckitt Benckiser owned Lysol also has a page on the site giving information about 2019-nCoV and linking its cleaning products used to disinfect the surfaces to prevent the spread of the virus.
Clorox or Lysol, none are linked to these pages from prominent locations on their site homepages or promoting on social media. This shows that clearly the page was designed keeping SEO in mind.Ā
However, it is not possible to estimate the returns Clorox or Lysol will generate from these targeted pages but already are ranking high for searches related to ācoronavirusā or ādisinfect coronavirusā.
Clorox and Lysol practices are worth considering for brands looking to use rapid-response marketing from event-driven opportunities.
Pages on 2019-nCoV are simple and straightforward with minimum efforts. This allowed the companies to publish pages quickly so they could get indexed and start appearing in the SERPS.
Clorox and Lysol published their pages on the primary domain taking advantage of the domain Using existing sites is favorable initially instead of building microsites in rapid-response marketing.
It is worth noting that both companies strategically are including high authority links such as the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Technically, this improves the utility of the page for visitors and makes it easier for them to have access to all important information from a trusted source where chances of misinformation are high.
Rapid Response marketing involves high risks. For example, Clorox and Lysol run a risk of providing inaccurate information or accused of taking advantage of the intense and serious situations to sell their products which might explain why they are not active on social media to address coronavirus.
Recently, the US Food and Drug Administration(FDA) took over the hand Sanitizer company Purell regarding the health claims it made on its site and social media platforms.Ā FDA does not allow hand sanitizer brands to make claims of prevention of disease and believed Purell was doing the same. Therefore, the parent company, GOJO had to take immediate action.
All health companies when selling products runs certain risks but companies using rapid-response marketing need to identify the associated risk beforehand and work them out.
