Good afternoon, Bidtellectuals. Here’s the latest for the week of April3-10th. (For more on the Guinness Ad, click here.)

The CDC now recommends wearing a cloth mask at all times when visiting essential businesses like grocery stores to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Articles with tips to make at-home masks abound and some designers like Louis Vuitton are taking matters into their own hands to create and/or donate some pretty stylish ones. Apple donated 1.9 million masks to the state of New York to help healthcare professionals on the front lines.

Ok, now onto the advertising industry. The big takeaway from research and articles this week is: how brands respond to this crisis matters. According to Mediapost, there are three brand “friends” emerging: “The All About Me Friend,” “The HelpfulFriend,” and “The Friend in Need.” Can you guess which one is the most appealing? 78% of consumers believe brands should help them in their daily lives (KantarResearch). Give these two recent eMarketer podcasts a listen to understand what consumers are looking for from brands; we pulled out the key insights and stats they mention. Some takeaways: deliver content that is helpful. Be sensitive to the climate. Help others if you can. 29% of Americans have already begun using a brand due to the innovative or compassionate way they’ve responded to the COVID-19 crisis. (Edelman) Now is the time to build trust. If you need landing page tips, we recommend these.

Additionally, we recommend not blocking coronavirus content in your campaigns. Not only do IAS and eMarketer agree, IAB is imploring “all brands, agencies, adverication rms, and other companies in the digital advertising supply chain not to block the news” for the safety of the industry. News is news, and guess what? Coronavirus is the only news right now – and everyone’s consuming it.

How’s working from home going? Bidtellect’s SVP of Sales Terah Bocchi’s practical advice for working from home with kids is now on AdExchanger. And if your pets are anxious, try DogTV (yes, it’s a thing). AdExchanger also wrote that Zoom Happy Hours are taking over advertising and pitched some ideas and best practices. And they didn’t even come to our 90s karaoke one yesterday! We recommend a theme – dress up is something to look forward to.

And, finally, Happy Passover and Happy Easter everyone. In case you missed this adorable press conference video, New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Arden announced that The Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy are deemed “essential workers” and won’t stop business-as-usual; however, she stressed that they may be extra busy taking care of their own sick family members, and to not to be sad if they arrive late or don’t make it to you.

Don’t feel like reading? Watch here: