Hanging in there? We hope so. We’ll get through this together.

Let’s start with some positive news. One of the COVID-19 trends we noticed this week: brands shifting dollars that would have been spent on sports advertising or promoting new campaigns to coronavirus relief efforts. Wendy’s is shifting marketing spend for its new breakfast menu toward support and relief for its franchises. AB InBev is redirecting dollars from sports and entertainment marketing toward helping organizations on the front lines. Here’s an update on brands doing good during the crisis.

SmileDirectClub is doing its part by assisting with manufacturing medical equipment at its massive 3D printing facilities. We look at the direct-to-consumer brand’s rapid rise, data-driven marketing strategy and customer experience focus in our latest “Brands on Fire” feature.

Concerned about communicating to customers with the right dose of sensitivity? We highlight a framework for striking the right tone and re-evaluating marketing messages that could potentially miss the mark.

For our B2B folks, a new CMO Council report shines a spotlight on the challenges marketers face when creating content that resonates with and provides value for customers. Measuring that engagement is the No. 1 pain point, according to the survey. We also present five best practices to consider when enlisting clients for a customer reference program.

Let’s end with a dose of adorable: a quarantined Jimmy Fallon reads his nightly monologue on Instagram while his two daughters climb all over him, block the camera and giggle. Enjoy.

Until next week,

Kaylee Hultgren
Group Content Manager
Chief Marketer