Plus Some Tips on How to Effectively Communicate Your Cleaning and Disinfecting Protocols to the Public
COVID-19 changed all of us, for better or for worse.
The availability of vaccines has boosted confidence for many when going into public spaces, but even with vaccines, we are still seeing breakthrough cases.
So while many of us are heading back to public spaces regardless of COVID case numbers, there are still many who are fearful of public spaces and how clean those spaces may or may not be.
The Psychology of Post-COVID Anxiety
When we experience something dangerous, such as natural disasters, our brains naturally respond with defensive behaviors. During a natural disaster, fear and anxiety can be a healthy reaction as it activates your fight or flight mode, urging you to flee to safety.
But long-term disasters, like the COVID-19 pandemic, can have lasting effects. Being in survival mode for so long can literally change the way our brains function, causing many to be stuck in survival mode or develop anxiety.
As things began to open back up, many felt apprehensive heading into public spaces. For some, this fear and anxiety dissipated as they became more confident about their health and safety or felt protected by the vaccine. But for others, this anxiety has not gone away.
Those that aren’t confident heading back into public spaces may be avoiding public areas altogether or as much as possible. Others may have gone back into public spaces out of necessity but experience anxiety the entire time they are out.
What Can You Do to Help?
It’s important for us all to try to get back to normal life as much as possible post-pandemic. While psychologists can help those suffering from COVID-19 related mental illnesses, we actually all play a part in helping everyone feel safer while they are visiting public spaces. How so?
Communication of cleaning can be vital to ensuring public confidence that your space is safe. Visitors to your building aren’t going to know what you do to keep everyone safe and healthy unless you explicitly tell them.
By now you have probably developed an effective COVID cleaning protocol. In this article, we’ll be looking at ways to effectively communicate your cleaning protocols to the public.
Building Trust: The How
It’s important to not just gloss over your cleaning protocols when communicating them to the public. The pandemic not only changed Americans’ cleaning habits at home, but it also made them more knowledgeable on effective cleaning and disinfecting techniques. In order to build trust and confidence in your organization, you’ll need to share more specifics about how you are cleaning and disinfecting your public spaces.
Oh, the Places You’ll Go: The Where
The platforms you communicate on are just as important as the how. Don’t just use one platform to share this information. Rather, sharing it across multiple channels will help reinforce this knowledge with the public and continue to build trust and confidence. Here are the places you should be sharing your cleaning and disinfecting protocols:
- Social Media: Meet your visitors where they are online. Just about everyone has a social media account these days, making social media a great place to share information.
- Newsletter: Email marketing isn’t just for sharing your next event or sale. Your newsletters can also be informative about your organization, including sharing your cleaning practices. You might even share a blog you’ve written about your cleaning protocols in your newsletter, for a more in-depth read for those that want it.
- Website: Consider having a COVID-19 page on your website if you don’t already. This can be a great place to list your cleaning protocols or link to a blog post you’ve written about your cleaning and disinfecting practices.
- In-Location Signage: Reinforce the information you’ve shared on digital channels in-location with signage listing your cleaning and disinfecting practices.
Final Thoughts
When we share what we are doing to keep everyone safe and healthy, everyone benefits! Even those who feel more comfortable heading into public spaces will appreciate that you are continuing to keep your spaces healthy and clean. When cold and flu season arrive, you’ll already be prepared with your top notch cleaning protocols and be an old hand at effectively communicating those practices to the public.
