On Monday Deloitte published the results of their first weekly Retail Industry Sentiment Survey's. It asks what key issues matter to major retailers, both 'Non-Food' and 'Food & Grocery' (in the current Covid-19 climate) with questions around such topics as:

• The Industries Recovery Speed
  • "Once the pandemic is contained, one-third of respondents (33%) in non-food retail believe the industry will take about 1–3 months to recover; 41% believe it will take more than 6 months for normalcy to return".
• Current Key Priorities
  • "Cash management, workforce health and safety and eCommerce offerings are the top three priorities over the next four weeks for non-food retailers while workforce health and safety, supply chain and delivery fulfilment are key priorities for food and grocery retailers".
• Where the Government can Help
  • "A high proportion of respondents (35%) believe that the government should prioritise clear communication of COVID-19 combat strategy for the retail industry; financial aid is the number two priority for respondents, followed by rent relief".

In the current environment we are all trying to cut through the noise to hear what the trusted experts have to say. Demonstrating an understanding of a client's challenges is the first step to positioning your firm as the best partner to help, so how can firms connect valuable research like this to the clients and prospective clients that matter?

Well if we look at the research, Edelman's Thought Leadership Study suggests that for content to have the best chance of succeeding it should be applicable, current, digestible and from a trusted source.

However, if the expertise stays in the heads of the experts it's no good to anyone. Equally, if content stays buried on the website the wider market receives no benefit. This may seem like a difficult task for the marketing team, but if this content is expert led like Deloitte Financial Services team have managed here, then it can be timely, tailored and valuable.

Therefore, in my opinion, if firms like this can be sharing timely and relevant insights regarding the most important data that comes from this research then their clients and markets will see the value.