One of the positives that the pandemic has created is to encourage people to be more innovative and creative. Some of the following may be helpful to brands as they reopen.

Adobe made its Creative Cloud, including Photoshop and InDesign, available for free to college students and professors until the end of May as long as certain standards were met. However, current Adobe subscribers can also tap a hidden cancellation offer to get two free months of Creative Cloud before being charged.

Available for free to everyone until July 1 is Adobe’s web conferencing software, Connect. Tech publication techradar calls it the best video conferencing software on the market today.

Google was one of the latest to jump in with “Rising Retail Categories.” Their intent was to help manufacturers and retailers in the U.S., Australia, and the UK arrive at better and informed decisions by providing insights on products consumers are searching for.

For example, fresh cut flowers understandably experienced a big uptick the week before Mother’s Day with a 70% increase in the U.S. Believe it or not, swimming pools ranked the highest in April, followed by golf bag accessories and water parks and slides as the most searched for products in the U.S. Neck gaiters/face masks, sneeze guards, evaporative coolers, outdoor umbrellas and sunshades, pool liners, and pool covers trailed. Finishing last were party streamers and curtains.

In early May, Google reported increases in U.S. searches for sewing machines and baking supplies. On the other side of the world, in both the U.K. and Australia, tetherballs and chalk ranked highest.

CMOs interviewed by Google said they intend to use the data to improve their promotional efforts, products, services and content creation. The entry of “Rising Retail Categories” comes at an important time for Google. In late April, the company informed its investors that consumers were clicking on less ads even as more searches were being conducted.

“Rising Retail Categories” is an important tool for marketers as states reopen at different levels and schedules. Having this data should help CMOs better focus their campaigns and budget and fine-tune their resources, particularly in different geographic areas. SEO specialists should also be able to analyze product popularity to create more relevant keywords.

Another gain for marketers is they can leverage the new data to better monitor their marketing success and product approval ratings. In addition, Google says the data is updated daily.

Cloud-based software company SafesForce announced in early May the launch of Work.com to help brands reopen their offices safely. The new platform is COVID-19 focused and features a 39-page playbook to assist brands in restarting post-pandemic operations. The website also furnishes resources for such things like manual contact tracing, the process of identifying people who may have come in contact with someone with COVID-19, and shift management.

Central to Work.com’s guide considers four possible scenarios, three possible pathways, and a structured approach to reopening. Also included are three suggested tracks to success accompanied by stories of recognizable companies that succeeded in each.

About the Author: Ronn Torossian is CEO of 5WPR, which was named pr agency of the year by the American Business Awards.