Our official stance on the COVID-19 virus is that it sucks. Bad.
First and foremost, I’d just like to extend our condolences to anyone who has had their health or their loved ones impacted by this crisis.
We still are just starting to understand the impact this is having in terms of human and economic cost. Obviously our first concerns are the at-risk populations and all the people who are facing life-threatening conditions. I also can’t help but think how hard our business community is getting hit, and all the people who are already facing loss of their jobs and businesses. A lot of these people have to fight hard in the best of circumstances, so seeing this go down is just really, really tragic.
For our part, we are up and working. We have had our team working remotely since last Friday & have done everything in our power to make that transition seamless for our people and our clients. For the indefinite future, we will be doing all meetings via video/teleconference and observing all CDC/government guidelines.
Most of our work shouldn’t be impacted other than the fact that some folks might do a little more work not wearing pants. Core values are intact – we are still working Full Team Ahead, Getting $hit Done, and showing Client Love every chance we get. This has definitely been a Learn for Life opportunity, and while I’ll admit it’s been a challenge to feel as Seriously Awesome considering everything, we’re eager to make up for that in the work.
Branding, advertising, social, design, and most other work isn’t impacted – other than the aforementioned potential lack of pants. Our main challenge is really on-set content production. We will continue to be able to provide outdoor video production and photography as long as the assignment does not call for our photographers to come into contact with any crowds or into any other unsafe situations (not that I can imagine a client asking us to film an ad featuring a crowded situation right now). But indoor production is a little touch & go – we probably can work through most requests, but definitely will have more of a conversation around the logistics to make sure everything is safe and we have a crew ready for you. I’m guessing this is honestly more of a challenge for our clients than it is for us – I know a lot of people are taking a hard look at how they are controlling access to facilities.
For all our clients and extended family out there – please let us know how we can help. We know a lot of our clients have been hit hard and fast by this, and everyone is scrambling to figure out what to do. While I certainly don’t think we have all the answers, we are lucky enough to be healthy ourselves and ready to work. If there’s anything we can do to assist you or your businesses, we’d love to pitch in.
Texas small businesses impacted by COVID-19 should fill out this Economic Injury Worksheet immediately & submit to the Small Business Administration:
https://tdem.texas.gov/covid-19/#1584551794550-8cefdca0-1039
Stay healthy out there everyone and of course — wash your hands!
Sincerely,
Ross Cromartie
President
