COVID-19 has upended most businesses this year, so know that if 2020 has been particularly challenging for yours, you’re not alone.
You’ve likely had to rethink your entire marketing plan to better connect with home-bound customers who are unsure and frankly scared of what more may or may not be coming. On top of that, you’ve probably had to undergo your own company’s version of crisis management during this pandemic.
About 100,000 businesses have permanently shut down during the pandemic as of September 2020, according to Yelp.com’s Local Economic Impact Report.
But you don’t have to be a statistic. The following eight marketing tips and opportunities are intended to help you better adapt and meet the needs of an uncertain customer base no matter what wave of the pandemic we’re in.
Prioritize trusted relationships with your customers
During this pandemic, while it might seem counterintuitive, consumers have largely weighed their relationship with a business over finding the lowest price.
With so many businesses closing, your customers’ loyalty is pivotal to keeping yours open.
Reward your loyal customers (or members) as appropriate and be sure to over communicate what your business is doing during the COVID-19 pandemic and how it’s doing it so that you stay top of mind.
Truly, one of the foundations of building trust is meeting your customers’ needs. Every business can do that a little differently, but it should always be top of mind. Take nothing for granted.
Invest in online
Every business is different, but with online sales only continuing to grow, this is an opportunity you can’t sleep on.
Whether it’s live-streaming workshops or classes, upgrading your ecommerce feature on your website (or even just featuring it more prominently), put yourself in your customers shoes.
What other barriers can you remove to make it easier than ever for people to support your business no matter where they are?
Emphasize the value of your product or service
Consumers’ needs have clearly changed in many industries. It’s imperative to communicate how your brand, product and/or service is still relevant.
This can be done with a few tweaks to your website in connection with specific messaging in your email and social media marketing.
Whether it’s something new you’re offering amidst the pandemic or something you’ve always done that is still needed by many today, don’t assume your customers (or potential customers) will automatically remember or even know.
Social media more important than ever
If it’s been a while since you’ve audited your social media strategy, now is the time to do so.
Too many businesses fall into the trap of simply broadcasting to their followers. Don’t be one of them, especially now.
Social media is a platform (many platforms, actually) where you can engage in real conversations with customers and potential customers who appreciate company responsiveness more than ever right now.
Where can you better humanize your brand? Who can broadcast Live to better connect with and update your audience? Are you reflecting the atmosphere that the world now finds itself in?
Asking yourself these questions and adjusting your social media marketing strategy accordingly will only help build that all-important trust factor for your brand.
Do not put off new partnerships
Partnerships can be a great thing. They enable businesses to reach new markets, attain resources they couldn’t create on their own or both.
Because of the crisis the pandemic caused for so many, partnerships were easy to put on the back burner.
Review who you might’ve been talking to before COVID-19 struck. Can you restart that conversation? If you didn’t have any in the works, take some time to research who might be a good fit moving forward. Partnerships can truly bring new life to not only your marketing but your overall business as well.
Continue purposeful experimentation
If your reflection on how your business has pivoted the past several months is all a blur, you’re definitely in good company.
The immediate need to pivot for survival as the pandemic began definitely forced thoughtful experimentation with your marketing strategies to take a back seat.
Pause and take a look at what you’re doing now. Where can you A/B test to ultimately drive better results? (Check out these nine tips for more effective A/B testing.)
Of course, anything you’re experimenting with needs to be measured and analyzed, so carve out the appropriate time to do so.
Audit your competitors
What are your competitors doing during this COVID-19 pandemic? Are they hosting AMAs (Ask Me Anything threads) on social media with their CEOs? Are they streamlining their ordering process? Engaging more with their social media followers?
It’s important to understand the ever-changing landscape that we’re all in. Plus, you can easily get some inspiration from it.
Give back to the community
If there’s a way that you can adjust your overall business strategy to donate or volunteer for the benefit of your local community during these times especially, you should do so.
Not only is it the right thing to do when and where you can, but this can also help raise:
- Community support
- Brand awareness
- Overall good will
Be sure to communicate your community efforts openly as well.
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic is not going to end overnight, but don’t lose hope! Focus on your wins, learn from your losses and communicate in every possible way you can with your customers. Your audience needs to understand your value in their lives during these difficult times.
If you need assistance with digital marketing automation so that you can focus on the bigger picture, schedule your free demo of DailyStory today.
