• by Aaron Paquette , Columnist, March 10, 2022

Feb. 24was the day that changed everything. When Russia invaded Ukraine, it marked the first globally significant war of the social media era, and the first globally experienced event not involving Trump or COVID since the Great Recession. Together, brands are learning on the fly how to navigate war, as the world watches.

The first challenge facing brands during wartime is tone and placement of creative. A jubilant Applebee’s spot juxtaposed with war coverage on CNN went viral for all the wrong reasons, as did a Sandals Resorts ad. Kylie Jenner used Instagram to send “thoughts and prayers” to Ukrainians, and then sell lip gloss two hours later. And one marketer lost their job after posting about a trade show, “While Russia is taking over Ukraine, we’re taking over the Amazon industry event…Whoever can’t handle it, take shelter.” All of these are epic fails of bad timing, bad taste and bad tie-in to world events.

The second brand challenge is whether to continue operating in Russia. Many companies quickly folded due to censorship and sanctions. However, for those with substantial in-market operations, a turning point was Yale management guru Jeffrey Sonnenfeld’s list of companies curtailing or maintaining their Russian businesses. McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo eventually ceased operations at great cost, after immense pressure. McDonald’s operates 850 restaurants and employs 62,000 in Russia. PepsiCo employs 20,000, and spent $5 billion in 2011 to buy a Russian dairy. At press time, major brands on Sonnenfeld’s “remain” list include Abbott Labs, AbbVie, Burger King, Dunkin’ Donuts, Mondelez and Subway.

And the third brand challenge is how to provide meaningful support to Ukraine. Underwear mogul Andrew Christian received blowback for his Instagram post offering an autographed pair of blue and yellow “Ukrainian flag” undies in exchange for a donation to a Ukrainian charity.

But other brands are making more thoughtful in-kind donations. Airbnb is offering free short-term housing to up to 100,000 Ukrainian refugees. Talbots is shipping 8,000 items to Ukrainians in need. Etsy is cancelng $4 million in outstanding fees owed by Ukrainian sellers. And brands including Amazon, Bank of America, FedEx, Intel, J.P. Morgan and Wells Fargo have all announced seven-figure donations to Ukrainian relief efforts.

How can brands navigate this complex new environment?

*Mute the tone. These are scary, serious and uncertain times, between the Ukrainian invasion; the potential for nuclear war between Russia and the U.S.; disruptions in the oil, wheat and precious metal supplies; and the highest nominal prices Americans have ever seen at the pump, fanning the worst inflation since Reagan stared down Russia. So it’s time to tone down ads, downplay exuberance, and avoid any jokes about the invasion, or any language that could be considered insensitive or needlessly provocative.

*Curtail Russian operations. As Professor Sonnenfeld puts it, business leaders need to move past the idea that remaining in Russia can produce a win-win outcome. “This is one step away from open warfare. This is a last-ditch effort. You’re helping those workers by not having [the West] dropping bombs and shooting them.” Leave Russia, explain why, and explain how you’ll mitigate the pain for the Russian employees, customers and vendors left behind.

*Contribute to Ukrainians. If your brand can’t make meaningful in-kind contributions, then donate to Red Cross, UNICEF, World Central Kitchen, USO and other Ukrainian relief efforts, and make it easy for consumers to donate via your website and social media channels. Follow Amazon’s lead and offer to match employee contributions. Better yet, follow Apple’s lead, and match them two-to-one.

Every brand must do its part to halt the invasion, protect Ukraine, and prevent the spread of war around the world.