Figure A.– Marketers current activity during the Coronavirus pandemic.

“…now is not the time to sell, it’s the time to show empathy and support through delivery of relevant, informative and encouraging communication.”

CHICAGO (PRWEB)
April 13, 2020

A substantial majority of marketers have either altered or completely suspended their marketing activities in response to the Coronavirus pandemic, according the results of a new survey.

Of 127 digital, public relations and marketing communications professionals who responded to a poll* conducted by Chicagoland B2B marketing agency Element-R Partners, LLC, 74 percent said they changed course or temporarily ceased activities. Twenty six percent stated they have not altered their approach.

Asked to describe their current activity (Figure A), 47 percent said they have changed course and 17 percent have temporarily ceased activities. Fifteen percent are doing less. Almost nine percent are using the opportunity to plan, while seven percent have increased their marketing efforts. Six percent said it is business as usual.

“After seeing news stories about consumer reaction to routine marketing at the onset of shelter in place orders and business closures, the tone-deafness in some of the messages prompted us to take a temperature of how marketers themselves were feeling and reacting,” says Bob Reed, partner and co-founder of Element-R. “We were interested to learn exactly where they are focusing in response.”

When asked about how they felt about marketing calls and emails from companies with business-as-usual messages, 29 percent indicated they were ‘highly annoyed’, while 32 percent said they were “somewhat annoyed” by the outreach. Twenty-seven percent were neutral on the question. Twelve percent said they weren’t bothered.

Activity Shift

Many of the 47 percent who indicated a shift in their approach and activities said they are directly addressing the impact of the Coronavirus in their outreach, as well as using the time to plan both internal and corporate initiatives.

Being “smart, strategic and not tone-deaf” and “working to generate good-will” seem to be the consensus here. Helpful content and a renewed emphasis on social sharing appear to dominate as the best ways to connect and reinforce relationships with customers and important publics, as this sample of verbatims shows:

• 
  Looking to make contacts/partners for future engagements — not trying to sell or close deals.
• Personal emails and calls to clients and pipeline.
• Only tips/help-based, free info of immediate value; rounding up of resources or offers to help. Upbeat social media for WFH.
• We’re shifting more towards adding value, building future relationships and being encouraging to people. It’s more relationship building than traditional marketing.
• Employee communications.
• Generating owned content specified on solving new problems.

According to one respondent, “What is appropriate and relevant is changing hourly, so we are re-evaluating everything on a case by case basis.”

Back to Normal?

So, when do marketers expect to re-engage normal marketing activities? Nearly half, 48 percent, are waiting to see signs of normalcy. Respondents said when “quarantines are lifted,” “settling into a new normal,” “new cases lessening significantly,” and when “the curve is flattened.”

Another 26 percent said they don’t know. For the more optimistic or anticipatory among the respondents, 12 percent said they’ll resume their normal outreach in three to five weeks. Fourteen percent indicated a resumption of normal operation over the next one to two weeks.

“While some marketers have made the decision to keep moving with their existing marketing plans, most others’ reading of customer and prospect receptivity to messages comes down to simply this: now is not the time to sell, it’s the time to show empathy and support through delivery of relevant, informative and encouraging communication,” says Reed.

Full survey results are available at http://www.element-r.com/coronavirussurvey.

*Poll conducted from March 23 – 30, 2020

About Element-R Partners

Element-R Partners, LLC helps small to mid-market B2B companies develop more relevant and meaningful brand positioning and messaging that advances sales receptivity for medical device, professional services, finance, industrial, software, and not-for-profit organizations.

Media Contact:

Bob Reed

bob@rurelevant.com

630-579-1770

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We will be simultaneously implementing three testing platforms that will allow our subjects, employees, and sponsors the peace of mind to know we are conducting our trials in the safest manner possible by methodically monitoring for the Virus throughout the entire trial.

CYPRESS, Calif. (PRWEB)
April 13, 2020

WCCT Global, a full service early phase CRO which operates a clinical pharmacology unit (CPU) in Orange County, CA, announced today it now has the ability to screen for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 (the virus responsible for COVID-19 disease) in clinical trial subjects and staff to enable operations to incrementally re-start following a carefully monitored virus testing strategy.

Kevin Noble, WCCT’s Director of Laboratory Operations, stated “We will be simultaneously implementing three testing platforms that will allow our subjects, employees, and sponsors the peace of mind to know we are conducting our trials in the safest manner possible by methodically monitoring for the Virus throughout the entire trial.”

20/20 BioResponse’s CoronaCheck COVID-19 Rapid Antibody Test Kit will be the platform most widely used; it will be used for rapid screening to detect for potential carriers of the virus that are either symptomatic or asymptomatic. The CoronaCheck will enable WCCT medical staff to quickly screen potential study subjects for the virus before allowing them to participate in a trial. The turnaround time for the test is 15 minutes. Any positive result will be confirmed by molecular testing and will result in the volunteer being sent home for at least two weeks before being retested and cleared for participation. Fellow subjects and staff potentially exposed will be tested as well, ensuring the facility remains safe for all participants.

The Epitope Diagnostics’ Novel Coronavirus COVID-19 IgM ELISA Kit will be the second diagnostic test to be deployed. It enables the semi-quantitative measurement of the COVID-19 IgM antibody in serum, utilizing an enzyme immunoassay technique. The test has a turnaround time of 2 hours. WCCT began using this kit to test all clinical staff at its Phase 1 unit on March 23, 2020 and will use this platform to provide a baseline and ongoing monitoring for the health of its employees and subjects. This test also provides the clinical staff the ability to monitor for the Coronavirus in study participants throughout the duration of the trial, as it can give quantitative measurements of any early immune response to the virus.

The third testing platform is the same methodology that has received full FDA approval and is being utilized by the Center for Disease Control (CDC). In order to bring this testing in-house at its Safety Reference Laboratory, WCCT signed an agreement with Thermo Fisher Scientific to bring in two new instruments: Applied Biosystem 7500 Fast DX and King Fisher. In late March, WCCT performed a live validation of the test using positive samples, in accordance with the FDA’s Standard Operating Procedure for molecular analysis of COVID-19, which is also used to determine approvals for future testing and methodologies. The turnaround time for this test is 4 hours.

When asked how the implementation of the tests would affect safety at WCCT’s facility, the company’s Chief Medical Officer, David Nguyen, MD, stated “Safety is paramount to our operations here at WCCT—safety for our subjects, for our employees, and for their families. We understand the need to conduct critical clinical trials during this pandemic and we are hopeful that these added safety measures will allow us to advance healthcare during this difficult time.”

WCCT’s President and Chief Scientific Officer, Mel Affrime, PharmD went on to say “I applaud the tireless efforts of our reference laboratory leadership and staff. They have managed to launch three different and highly sophisticated testing platforms for COVID-19 within a 3-week timeframe. This accomplishment will enable WCCT to continue to carry on with our Corporate Mission: To Achieve our Sponsors’ Early Phase clinical objectives of advancing global health.”

On April 13, 2020, WCCT resumed its clinical trial operations at its clinical pharmacology unit, using these three new testing procedures for COVID-19 to enable its sponsors to continue advancing their pipelines, especially those companies which are currently developing vaccines and anti-viral therapies targeting COVID-19.

About WCCT Global Inc.

WCCT is a full-service early phase contract research organization (CRO) for the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. We are specialized regulatory and clinical development professionals who offer an innovative, agile and collaborative approach to every program we deliver. Our mission is to achieve our Sponsors’ Early Phase clinical objectives of advancing global health. This is accomplished through the development of a scientifically informed time and budget-sensitive design; and with clinical trial research service execution that delivers high quality data, a superior client experience, and a volunteer-centric approach to care.

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Jonti-Craft® Clean Hands Helper portable sink provides hand-washing access, even in rooms or settings where no plumbing is available.

While we’re known as the leading provider of children’s educational furniture, demand is growing rapidly from hospitals and healthcare facilities for our Clean Hands Helper portable sinks and other products.

WABASSO, Minn. (PRWEB)
April 13, 2020

What can an educational furniture manufacturer do to supply much-needed healthcare equipment during the current COVID-19 crisis? The team at Jonti-Craft has turned on a way to help. Located in the small town of Wabasso, MN, Jonti-Craft has been in business for more than 40 years and during that time the company’s focus has been mainly on schools and daycare facilities. But they produce more than just storage units, desk and lockers for educational environments. They also produce a line of portable sinks called the Clean Hands Helper which are designed to deliver hot, running water without the use of plumbing. And that innovative solution has already started to make an impact during the current national challenge.

Nick Schwarz, Jonti-Craft’s COO explained, “While most in our industry know us as the leading provider of children’s furniture for schools and daycares, we’re seeing rapidly growing demand from the healthcare sector for our Clean Hands Helper portable sinks and other products. We added portable sink solutions to our product line in 2010, in response to a growing demand for hand washing in rooms without plumbing. Running water and sewer lines through existing structures was not always possible, and this product helped many of those schools and daycares meet standards and achieve certification requirements associated with sanitation and hand washing.”

The Centers for Disease Control strongly recommends frequent and thorough handwashing to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. With rapid virus spread, many large buildings have been converted to temporary triage centers. These facilities are grappling with the exact same obstacles noted by Jonti-Craft COO, Nick Schwarz. Convention centers, shuttered prisons, and even Naval ships were never designed to accommodate the plumbing requirements for multiple handwashing stations. That’s where Jonti-Craft’s line of portable sinks can play a significant role.

Jonti-Craft Clean Hands Helper Portable Sinks go wherever frequent hand washing is a priority, and without any plumbing required. They are available in two heights—one for children and one for adults—and in two sink options, a one-piece molded plastic sink or a stainless-steel sink insert. These mobile sinks meet licensing requirements and give users the flexibility of moving them quickly to areas of need. Plus, the on-demand water heater warms water to a safe 40°F above room temperature. More importantly, these sinks arrive needing only the faucets and handles attached and water filled. Then users simply plug them in and flip the switch. That’s an important factor as hospitals and triage centers are opening quickly and need to be ready almost immediately.

Jonti-Craft’s Director of Sales, Matt Hinkle, states, “At the start of March 2020 we anticipated an increase of 2-3 times our average sales of portable sinks. By the end of the month, the demand was 10 times greater. Adding to the urgency, customers are asking for immediate shipment.” Hinkle notes that historically the company has never been asked to provide products related to a disaster or crisis, saying, “We needed to look outside of the box to scale quickly while maintaining manufacturing best-practices. We worked even more closely and collaboratively with customers to evaluate every possible solution. For example, our production team worked with customers to develop a re-configured shipping schedule so that we could build and ship smaller batches of sinks versus waiting until the entire order was ready. This method allowed us to ship partial orders faster so facilities could start using them right away.”

During the week of March 30th, Jonti-Craft shipped over 20 sinks to New York City’s Javits Center to help the state’s critical fight against COVID-19. The Javits Center was initially intended to serve only non-coronavirus patients but was repurposed on April 6th to accept COVID-19 patients due to demand. The 2.1-million-square-foot convention center was converted into a makeshift hospital by the US military in just five days. And while New York has become the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, needs are surging in other areas across the country. In recent days, the company has also supplied portable sinks to cities and towns alike including New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York City, Children’s Minnesota in Minneapolis, McGuire Veterans Hospital in Richmond, VA, Michigan Institute of Neurological Disorders in Kentwood, MI, HOAG Hospital in Newport Beach, CA, VCU Health Systems in Richmond, MN, St. Francis Hospital in Greenville, SC and Pagosa Springs Medical Center in Pagosa Springs, CO. In addition, Jonti-Craft has provided portable sinks to several military bases as well as Illumina Corporation, a biotech company that works with disease control laboratories to support testing and research for COVID-19 and other infectious diseases.

COO Nick Schwarz took note of some positive side effects, saying “Our employees take great pride in meeting this challenge – and it gives us an even greater sense of purpose knowing that our products are helping fight the pandemic. We are redoubling our efforts to make sure that we can provide portable sinks to pop-up hospitals anywhere they are needed.” Jonti-Craft has rearranged production lines and trained new operators to handle increased demand. Instead of creating a handful of sinks a day, they can now produce hundreds per month.

“It is a great feeling knowing that we are helping out during the COVID-19 crisis to produce a high-quality product for the situation,” says Steve Hay, the primary builder of the portable sinks. “Our employees are stepping up and are ready and willing to take on the challenge we face. People from all areas of Jonti-Craft are pitching in during this challenging time.”

Not only is Jonti-Craft working to help areas impacted COVID-19, but the company is taking many precautions to make sure their employees stay healthy and its facilities are kept clean and safe. While Minnesota is currently under a Stay-Home Governor’s Executive Order, Jonti-Craft is an essential business and is continuing to stay in production during this challenging time. The company is following guidelines set by the State of MN and the CDC and has initiated several health and safety operational changes. Some of these changes include having employees who can work from home to do so, holding virtual meetings instead of in-person meetings, staggering break and lunch times to reduce the number people in a shared space, as well as continuing to use healthy hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette. Along with taking these precautions, the company is recognizing the hard work of employees with an extra dose of understanding. Because many of the company’s staff have family members who are unable to work during this difficult time, Jonti-Craft has increased workers’ pay during the Governor’s Executive Order.

To find out more about the Jonti-Craft Clean Hands Helper Portable sinks visit http://www.jonti-craft.com/sinks or call 507.342.5169.

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