Nationwide lockdowns and social distancing have hit businesses hard. Some have gone under, while others are struggling to keep up with their expenses. While the pandemic won’t be indefinite, many businesses will be unable to recover from their losses. Whether your business is among those that thrive, depends on the measures you enact. With a proper strategizing, you can mitigate the losses and keep your business profitable and endure. Here are the best strategies to apply during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Complement current market trends
It’s difficult to predict what will happen with market trends in an unstable economy. Many businesses are unable to maintain cash flow with their current models, which is why they’re looking to trends to see what remains profitable.
Spend time studying the current market and see if any business models can be adapted to your company. If your business provides products and services locally, it might be worth seeing if this can be done in a remote fashion. There are a surprising number of businesses that have made the transition to remote work and delivery, despite not initially predicting this would be viable.
Consider brand repositioning to help attract consumers that are in quarantine. Market your business as less of an in-person service and instead focus on a combined model. Approach sales from an in-person and online perspective and try to adapt your service to accommodate this change. If you can’t immediately capitalize on this, count on the increase of online business after quarantine to be worth the trouble and changes.
Plan ahead with policies
It’s impossible to know how long the pandemic will last, which is why preparation is crucial. If you’ve previously had plans for your business’s advancement, you have to adapt them to predictions for the pandemic’s outcome. Should it end sooner than you thought, competitors that planned for this will have an advantage. Any short-term plans you might have could be ruined if the pandemic lasts well over six months.
To mitigate this, you will have to form plans for different scenarios. Start enacting policies for changes in the next three months. At the same time, plan for changes and improvements in half a year from now. When you have contingency plans for the shortest and longest reasonable lengths of pandemic measures, you can consider yourself well-prepared.
Learn from competitors
Different businesses have seen different results during the pandemic. The truth is, every market is different and it was impossible to predict what this situation will bring. However, every business is aiming to come out on top by introducing their own changes and measures. Instead of starting from the ground up, you need to see how specific adjustments are affecting businesses in your field.
Learn from others’ mistakes. See how their marketing efforts are holding up. Has increased marketing on social media helped maintain customer engagement? Did the transition to online sales affect different markets equally? Analyze the data you acquire from other businesses and find out which factors determined the outcome. Some might depend on the location of the business, while others might be connected to the targeted demographics. Keep this in mind as you craft your own business strategy and you won’t be making the same mistakes others have.
Continue with promotional events
Live events are a big part of many business’ marketing strategies. With the pandemic in full swing and quarantine measures enacted, very few of these live events can be realized. Those that can are limited in scope, as individuals will be hesitant to appear in person. This means that businesses need to be able to adapt their events to a different kind of audience, while still maintaining the integrity of the live event.
Businesses are now creating hybrid events that are part live and part virtual. A number of individuals can be present in person, which allows sponsors and speaking guests to give the event some meaning. Others attend the event through remote viewing, which gives them the opportunity to be present and contribute, while also staying safe in isolation.
While these events might be effective, they’re also very logistically demanding. You would have to enlist help for live and virtual event management to organize one. Setting up the infrastructure so that both audiences have simultaneous views and are able to communicate with the hosts is difficult, but necessary for a promotional event. This would provide exposure and help improve your brand image in spite of quarantine measures and keep your viewers engaged.
Protect company morale
Many workplaces have taken measures to reduce the chances of their workers contracting the virus. This has led to the shutting down of offices and facilities where employees are normally in high numbers. Employers have turned to remote work to keep the business functioning and to retain the attention of their customers. This can only be so effective for some businesses, and work has become limited in scope.
This has left employees uncertain of their jobs and positions. The lack of workplaces further erodes morale as employees rarely communicate with one another in person. To mitigate this, you’ll need to improve communication channels and stay honest with employees.
As this is an unprecedented situation, try to listen to their ideas and suggestions, as they could be worthwhile. Emphasize the passing nature of the pandemic and that the business will remain steadfast, as long as work continues. Hold the occasional virtual meeting where you can explain the current state of the business and how changes will lead to improvements.
Conclusion
The pandemic has hit the entire economy, which doesn’t bode well for businesses and consumers alike. The good news is that it won’t last forever, nor will quarantine measures keep everyone locked up for too long. As long as you adapt to the sudden switch in pace and apply clever changes, you’re likely to keep your business afloat well after the pandemic is over. Keep some of the above strategies in mind and you won’t lack for good ideas.
