While some businesses are thriving in these unprecedented times, many are unsure if they’ll be strong enough to ride this wave.
We’re 36 marketing professionals, who’ve put our heads together to give you our top advice.
Without further ado, here it is:
Get Creative
We’re seeing eateries offering new delivery services, fitness venues offering online classes and wholesalers starting to deal with direct consumers. These are great examples of business owners getting creative to survive and, in some cases, thrive. But what if these ideas don’t apply to your business? What can you do?
Seeking creative advice is the best way, but we appreciate not everyone has the budget at present. Here are some free ideas that could help you think outside the box:
- Seek new markets. While there are of course losers, there are many winners. Think of business as energy; it’s never lost, just transferred. Who are the winners and how can you help them? Think about IT service providers, food delivery companies, online services, computer manufacturers, virtual entertainment.
- Discover new ways of trading. New times mean new approaches. If you are a retail store, can you move your wares online? Investing in an e-commerce website could transform your business, safeguarding it for now and strengthening it for the future.If you are a consultant or coach, all the technology is there to offer home tutoring for your clients, but the options can seem overwhelming, which is perhaps one of the reasons you haven’t properly looked into it before. Asking for advice and recommendations from those already using such tech is a good place to start. In difficult times, human beings often become more helpful to one another as one person’s success very much depends on another’s.
- Identify people’s needs. Whatever the situation, people always need stuff and services. What do they need now that you can provide? Perhaps your business could start a subscription blog or offer paid-for advice in your field of expertise.Take a look at the job boards to find out which areas companies are recruiting in. Could your business fulfil their needs without them having to recruit?
- Think BIG. Crises like this often make people less cautious than they would normally be. Have you considered trading worldwide but haven’t ventured there in the past? Perhaps now’s the time. Not all countries have been impacted by Coronavirus to the same extent. Could you do business with those whose economies are healthy? And what about the countries who have already experienced a peak in Coronavirus cases, such as China – a huge market, whose economy is on the way back up? Thinking big can earn big.
Communication
Do your customers know your policies regarding Coronavirus, such as returns, re-bookings, new ways of working, and so on? Communication is the absolute key, not just to survival but to success. It can be hard work and feel like the lowest of priorities, but really it needs to be top. Letting your clients know you’re still operating will give them the confidence in you they need to continue doing business with you.
Communication channels are manifold, and can include notices on your website, news on your blog and posts on social media.
Once you’ve finished reading this article, communicate with your clients. Let them know you’re here, and you mean business!
Planning for the boom
Lots of things are uncertain at the moment, but one thing is guaranteed – this will end in the not too distant future. When it ends, people are going to want to get out of their homes, enjoy themselves and do and buy the things they haven’t been able to for the past few months. You want a slice of that pie, right? A big slice. Well, to get that, you need to get through this. So, think creatively, diversify, find new markets, think big and communicate, and you’ll be one of those enjoying the upturn in the months to come.
