Pivot to the Positive
Well we certainly didn’t expect 2020 to go like this, did we!? Like so many we have been trying to find ways to keep our lights on, stay relevant to our community, help where we can and seek new ways to be profitable coming out of this so that our small business can stay afloat.
In addition to working hard to keep our client work on track and protect their business interests, JHL has done things like team Zoom happy hours and yoga classes to keep ourselves connected and check in on each other. We started Feed the Fight ATX modeled after an effort started in D.C. where we raise money to buy meals from local restaurants and donate them to hospital and emergency workers. With the generous support of our community, we have provided nearly 1,000 meals to heroes fighting on the front lines.
Week one of the pandemic shutdown, JHL launched a series of webinars. You can access them here. Our goal was to help our community reemerge stronger than before and ready to work together. These webinars have had audiences of anywhere from 50 – 200 people for each one. The topics have covered everything from crisis communication to sponsorship, digital media strategy, advertising and marketing, events and virtual events, production – every topic that we will cover in depth at our annual Art of the Gala event this fall. We have invited anyone interested to access the content for free with the hopes that we all come out of this pandemic stronger and are proud of the diverse audience we have built – everyone from non-profit and corporate executives, higher education event planners, fundraisers, production experts, communications leaders and even a few elected officials. The guests who have joined me on these webinars are the best in the business. Award winning media strategists, published authors, leading researchers and advertising executives who would normally charge $1,000/hour for the expertise they gave our audience gratis.
The emails and notes of gratitude coming to our office from the webinar participants is heartwarming. It’s empowering to hear that so many people are able to put the valuable information to work. I firmly believe it is okay to reimagine goals and pivot when necessary, but it’s not okay to stop.
As businesses reopen and you get back out there – whether it’s to a local restaurant for takeout, to a PR firm, to an event planning company, to a florist or a communications consulting firm, please understand the value of the service they are selling. Let’s emerge from this with a deeper respect for one another and remember, we’re stronger together.