How To Safeguard your Business as Coronavirus Escalates

Prepare for the impact of COVID-19 on your business

Let’s be blunt…!

Anyone who thinks that COVID-19 won’t affect their business better consider this:

AND that is just the immediate effect…

I’m sure you get where we are going with this:

So what can you do about it?

It’s simple:

Be as prepared as possible and be further ahead than your competition.

Tips to safeguard your business during Coronavirus

Consider some of these options as part of your Business Continuity Plan (BCP).

1. Get creative

The best way to safeguard your business during the months that coronavirus will affect our lives is by thinking out of the box and getting creative.

It’s pointless to waste time panicking when you need to get to work to keep your business running and to assure customers of your high level of service and safety.

This is the perfect opportunity to spend time creating better content than ever before. Think about how you can innovate your offer so that people don’t necessarily have to come to your business premises.

2. Upskill

With schools being closed and many staff being told to work from home, people will have more time on their hands (and very little time in traffic).

This is a great opportunity to go through courses that you’ve bought but not completed, or go online (even YouTube) and learn something new that will benefit your business.

If you want to learn how to use Canva to create eye-catching graphics and images, just click here.

3. Go online

Instead of doing in-person and group events, take your marketing online. Explore the many options available for you to reach consumers such as Zoon, Google Hangouts, Skype and more.

Some of these are even free or very low cost which makes reaching people during social distancing easier than you may have thought.

4. Protect your business/cash flow OR your client’s business/cash flow

This means making strategic changes to protect the livelihood of your business, and your clients’ businesses.

Because if your clients can’t do business, neither can you!

Here are some options to consider:

1. If you or your client are in the business of live events/conferences -> MOVE THEM ONLINE.
2. Do you or your client have a store in a shopping centre? -> explore online shopping or free delivery.
3. Restaurants/gyms/hair salons etc -> let EVERYONE know you disinfect 10–20 times a day (for example).
4. If you or your client are travel agents -> use this time to GENERATE LEADS. Traffic will become cheaper for lead conversions EVEN IF people are spending less.
5. More people will work from home and more people will be online -> GENERATE LEADS now for future sales.
6. Plumber/builder/contractor etc that works at client’s residence -> let everyone know that your team members take x,y,z precautions before they go into anyone’s home.

5. Use all the free tools available

In addition to moving your marketing online, provide even better value to your customers online too.

The algorithms and platforms love it when you use their free resources like Facebook Lives, Instagram Stories and IGTV.

People will be spending more time than ever before on social media, so be committed to showing up and sharing information with them.

6. Connect with your audience

As we strive to keep our distance from people in the flesh, the internet allows us to connect in so many different ways with people across the globe.

Keep up with your followers by answering questions, responding to comments and engaging with them on social media.

7. Adjust your marketing

People have a “save money” mentality right now so it’s becoming increasingly more difficult (and expensive) to sell online at the moment.

But, that doesn’t mean there isn’t opportunity!

As bigger players spend less on Facebook due to poor ROI on their sales/selling campaigns and launches, this is the ideal time to run branding and conversion campaigns for your business.

This is a brilliant way to safeguard your business during these challenging times. You can build brand awareness for a lower price than usual.

You can also run lead generation campaigns to grow your list. That way, when everything is back to normal you will be in the perfect position to start selling to people again.

If you want to learn how to create easy Facebook Lead Ads, click here.

8. Safeguard yourself and your staff

Of course, as much as we want to safeguard our businesses, they would be nothing without us and our staff.

It’s important to prioritise your mental, emotional and physical health right now.

If staff can get their work done remotely, let them work from home. Have a daily call with them to keep tabs on their progress if you need to.

But chances are, most people will work reliably and productively, maybe even more so than ever before.

No one wants to lose their job because of businesses closing down due to coronavirus (and it IS already happening!).

The takeaway on how to safeguard your business during Coronavirus

Yes, there is considerable fear and panic in the market and life in general right now.

That being said, there is also the opportunity to make pivotal changes to your business.

The way consumers behave will be fundamentally changed because of Coronavirus, and businesses that adapt to these changes will be far better off.

No one knows how long the outbreak will last nor the lasting impact on the economy. And yes, things are looking pretty bleak in terms of the world economy at the moment.

But you are not passive. You are not going to lie back and let things just happen around you.

Entrepreneurs are many things but above all, we are people who take action.

Consider this a battle and you are going to war.

How do you and your business survive?

You adjust, adapt and innovate.

Originally published at https://blog.bigdomino.co.za on March 16, 2020.