Is your business suffering due to the current global COVID-19 pandemic? Are you looking for new and meaningful ways to engage with new audiences online? Do you find yourself trying to look at ways to adapt your business so that you come out stronger on the other side of this lockdown?
Over the past 5 weeks during the UK COVID-19 it has become more and more apparent that in order for businesses to survive, they must adapt. With the closure of all non-essential shops, eCommerce is thriving in this current pandemic and those who have not taken the opportunity to market and sell online are suffering. It has been reported that leading high street retailer, Primark, has gone from making a whopping £650m in sales a month to £0 as the coronavirus has forced them to close all stores across Europe and US. Before now, Primark had little to none online presence and no eCommerce platform and thus, were unable to sell and promote their products. This is one of many examples of businesses who now need to adapt and rethink their entire business plan in order to survive. Here are 5 ways to help your business stay ahead during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
Now more than ever is the time to get your business online, whether that be with a website, social media marketing or both. With the example above in mind, it’s clear that in this current climate businesses will not survive without being online and engaging with your already established customers and reach new users to generate more sales and leads. It is fundamental that you use these crucial weeks to create and deploy an effective and manageable digital marketing and web development strategy.
For some businesses, it might not be possible to make sales and close deals as of now, however this does not stop you from networking and generating leads. Whilst others are focusing on the here and now, use this time to get to know your target audience and reach out to them to ensure that you have a pool of potential users and customers once lockdown ends and things begin to calm down.
Now is the time to get creative and adapt your services in order to meet the needs of what people need now. An amazing example of this is Peaches and Pearls Boutique who are renowned for their eco friendly and high quality eyebrow products and tools. When lockdown began and people were panic buying and supplies were low, Peaches and Pearls Boutique owner Chantelle took to the opportunity to produce and sell her own hand sanitiser which gained the brand a larger audience and further sales overnight. Be sure to find a way to adapt and support your audience during the COVID-19 pandemic.
As much as it is important to adapt your business during this time, it’s fundamental to ensure you do not completely change your products or service to what customers need now. You must have a strategy in place for after this as well as trying to maintain business now. For instance, when looking at the example above it would certainly increase sales for now if Peaches and Pearls was to purely invest in hand sanitiser supplies, however when things calm down there may not be a need for this and thus could result in an immediate stop in sales which could be fatal. Make sure you are planning for the future because we do not know for certain how long this will last for and we may see business return to normal sooner than expected.
Since the lockdown began there has been a certain community feel amongst everyone across the country. Whether you are painting a rainbow, clapping at 8pm or running 5k to donate £5 near enough everyone across the country is doing what they can to support the NHS and their key workers. Be sure that your business is also showing your support to all NHS staff and other key workers, whether you are offering discount prices, donating your services and products or even if you can just put up a social media post showing your thanks and support. Additionally, this is a time for businesses to show support to one another, be sure to share what other companies in your community are doing and in turn they will be more likely to support you.
PageNorth is here to help any business who needs support whether you are looking for a new website, need a new digital marketing strategy to ensure you are still reaching your users or even some web or marketing consultations to help you launch your services. Get in touch with us today and start your digital journey today.
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