Amidst the COVID-19 crisis, many publishers are struggling. However, at media update, we’re seeing the highest amount of traffic on our site (higher than ever before!). 

So, what did MU do to excel? We put on our thinking caps, and said, “Well, it’s do or die —  Let’s see how it goes.” 

And so, we had our laptops programmed by our IT department, which marked the beginning of our new remote working lives. 

Nakedi Phala takes you through media update’s journey of working through the pandemic and how we have been managing to keep on keeping on! 

Here’s how we’ve managed to let the good times roll: 

Our tech-savvy use of remote desktop

Thanks to our brainiac IT team, we’ve been able to remotely log into our fancy work desktops, right from the comfort of our own homes. This has meant that we have all the benefits of our work infrastructure, but without having to head into the office.

Utilising remote desktop technology offers us ease of access to all our content and tools. This has helped us enjoy the same user experience by the effortless access to our files on our computers at work all from the comfort of our own homes. 

The use of remote desktop has also helped us improve our productivity — we’re more engaged and efficient in our tasks than ever before! Essentially, this has allowed for greater advantages, such as mobility, and the freedom to complete our daily tasks — stress-free! 


Throughout our experience thus far, our IT department is able to troubleshoot any issues we experience, ensuring that connectivity is never a problem. Meaning, we’re able to work non-stop in order to provide you with the news you crave without any disruptions. 

We’re in on the Zoom

Since we’re now a remote team, we make use of Zoom to conduct virtual meetings and webinars. This has helped us easily share our screens during meetings for detailed elaboration on information, statistics and relevant stakeholder data. 

This virtual meeting platform has made it easy for us to relay any important messages through its recording feature, which we can reuse and share as part of our content or to educate our very own audiences. 

Reaping the benefits of Discord

For those quick chats and updates, Discord is an audio platform that has helped us communicate our insights during meetings and, let’s face it, during those lonely moments when isolation is getting us a bit down. It’s convenient to use, as some team members have the app downloaded on their cell phones as well as their laptops. Whenever there’s communication trouble on one platform, ‘Cord is our friend.
You don’t have to be a gamer to use this app (although some of us are); this is a great app that offers an interface with rich text support. If there’s ever an interruption in voice communication, you can simply just type a message to alert your team. And the app is very easy to set up!

Chatting up a storm on WhatsApp and Hangouts

We rely on WhatsApp messaging for sharing formal messages that could potentially benefit our brand, and any industry-related information (we also send a lot of memes). For example, often we’ll share news making headlines and how it affects us. We’ll then chat about how we can help or turn the news into an opportunity. 



Google Hangouts helps us communicate work-related messages — it’s more like our professional communication app. This is a simple app to use that can be pinned to your desktop,   with notifications coming through immediately. Messages on our Hangouts group are, overall, work-related and strictly business. Unlike WhatsApp, where we share casual messages at times to lighten the mood. 

We are the keepers of time  

At MU, we’re time stewards. We created new time schedules and our management introduced siesta time — a good three-hour fiesta! Being at home can make one tend to relax a little, so keeping to schedules and respecting time has been a great discipline method that has worked for us as a team.

This has allowed each one of us the opportunity to take control of our work lives, making sure we still stick to deadlines and create, edit and share content in record time for our audiences to enjoy. Nothing makes one feel more in control of their work than time. 

We’ve adapted 

Through the current crisis,  we’ve proven to thrive during difficult times. We have frequently received guidance from our human resources and management department, which has allowed us to adapt to our new way of working.

Our homes have now become a place of work and a place of relaxation, meaning we have had to - and succeeded in - creating barriers between work and play. How can you accomplish this at your own company? For starters, you can continue to dress up as you would at the office; this puts your mind in a state of professionalism like you were at work. If you find that your schedule is devoid of any meetings with clients, you can play it a little casual by putting on some tracksuits and slippers — you’re home after all — live a little! 



During your break, do what you'd do while at the office — take a coffee break, take a walk in your garden or order lunch. In a nutshell, take some time to recharge. 

At media update, we strive to bring you the best content in media, marketing and publicity, and we’ll continue to do so. Tell us how your own brands have been adapting during these trying times!
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