10 Steps You Need To Know About Marketing Your Business During The Coronavirus
It’s astounding how much information is floating around regarding COVID-19; how to suppress it, social distancing, what to do if you get the virus, political talk and so much more.
It’s inevitably is causing substantial amounts of stress on many small business owners. The uncertainty alone can drive you crazy. How will bills be paid? How long will this last?
If this sounds familiar; you’re likely asking yourself questions like:
- How much will COVID-19 affect my business?
- How can I market my business during this time to keep numbers up?
- Should I pull from my marketing budget to cover other expenses?
- How should I Market my Business During Coronavirus
These are real questions; and I think it’s important to understand that there’s no harm in the fact that you’re asking yourself these questions.
We have to be honest with ourselves as entrepreneurs.
Reality is, the Novel Coronavirus will indeed impact businesses in every industry. It will cripple many. It’s important to understand this.
The market has historically been on a pendulum and to deny that it’s due to swing in the other direction again is very naive.
With that being said; it just takes adaptation and proactivity to beat this nasty virus. In this article you’ll learn how marketing your business during Coronavirus (COVID-19) will pay dividends in the long run.
You have two options
Option #1: Be a victim, pull marketing budgets and react to the situation
Option #2: Seek opportunity. Find solutions. Improve.
Lucky for you, you’ve already decided to take option #2.
Here’s some things you can do right now, that you MUST do right now..
Social Media Marketing
With the federal government mandating quarantines in several areas of the country as of today 3/21/2020, people are spending more time online and on social media than ever before.
Parents working from home, their children working on assignments online at home. People are glued to their phones right now.
A recent release from Sprinklr shows nearly 20 million mentions of coronavirus-related terms
It’s time to take advantage of the millions of people on social media. If you’re a business that has put social media on the back burner now is the time to use social media to market your business during Coronavirus.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
It’s one of the most talked about topics in digital Marketing Your Business During Coronavirus. We all know the power in ranking for search terms your potential customers are using to search.
One of the pitfalls of SEO is that it’s not an instant victory; it takes time. Months.
If you have a website that is not getting the attention you think it deserves; it’s time to look at what you can do to make your website more visible.
There are many things you can do to increase your website’s visibility.
- Secure your domain with HTTPS
- Make sure your website has proper title/meta information throughout
- Confirm your website is mobile compatible
- Increase the speed of your website
- Create more content, frequently
Now is a great time to create content for your website which can be shared with your social following. Increase your search engine visibility while feeding your social networks.
Email marketing
Email marketing is one of the most underutilized marketing channels there is. It’s amazing that despite the power of email marketing, businesses still overlook it.
Email marketing can be used in many different ways:
- Notify your audience of important changes
- Attract readers to your blog
- Sending special offers
- Asking for feedback
If you don’t have a clue where to start – I recommend MailChimp because of their free forever plan. You can get started today, for free.
Sign up for an account and create your first email today. Load your email list of customers and send an update email to try it.
Here’s an excellent piece by HubSpot on How to Build an Email List From Scratch.
We use a 3 step process to keep our audience extremely engaged with us…
- Create new post (like this one)
- Send an email to our database with a link to the post
- Share our post on all social media channels
Having a solid email list is like the foundation of your home in terms of marketing.
If you have an active email list; you’ll increase revenue much faster than a business that does not.
Facebook & Google Paid Advertising
Historically, when the market slows or shows signs of uncertainty it’s been common for business owners to want to stop or slow paid marketing efforts.
This is why many businesses collapse – they cut their own throats.
Sure, sales will likely go down. But I can assure you that there are still many people who can afford to buy, and will continue to. We must keep our brand in front of everyone.
There will be people who can not afford to buy from you – but they will eventually. You want them going to you and not your competitors.
There are people who won’t tighten their wallets and will continue to spend. We have to stay in front of them as much as possible.
Installing a Facebook pixel on your website is simple and allows you to re-target your website visitors with a Facebook Ad. We highly recommend it.
Benefits Of Continuing Marketing Efforts Through COVID-19
What can you expect from your marketing efforts during this time period? Let’s take a look.
Get Ahead Of Competitors
Anything you do now that your competitors are not doing is putting you ahead. Creating alternative ways to reach your target audience during these times of social distancing will put you ahead of you competitors.
A good common strategy is to be mindful of what they’re doing and do it better.
Learn More About Your Target Audience
It’s always beneficial to learn more about your customer base. What are problems they’re facing that you can solve? Their buying behaviors? What motivates them to purchase?
The more you understand about them outside of their demographics, the more strategic you can be in creating content that converts them into customers.
Your research can equip you with the ability to create content that addresses their specific needs. You can position your product or service as a solution to your audience’s specific problems.
Taking this time to learn more about your customer base will allow you to be strategic in the language and imagery you use in your content moving forward.
Build Relationships With Potential Consumers
Whether you’re a B2B company that needs to nurture leads or a B2C company that needs to “warm up” potential customers, every business can benefit from stronger relationships.
It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.
Why let this time go to waste? Use this time wisely to build real relationships with your potential customers and convert them into a paying customer.
The best way to build a relationship is to provide unconditional value. Consistently. We do this through content, and regular contacts.
Send all past customers a card, give them a call just to check in. Be genuine.
Capitalize On Customers Ready To Purchase Now
So many businesses are temporarily closing down for COVID-19, narrowing down the public’s options of where they can turn to for goods and services.
If you’re open for business, let people know!
Continuing to market your business through the Coronavirus can be as simple as letting customers in need know that you’re here, you’re open and you can provide your product or service like usual.
If anything has changed in the way you’re conducting business, make it very clear to your customers how to go about doing business with you.
Conclusion
It’s important to understand that these feelings of uncertainty and stress are natural. It’s not the time to have a nervous breakdown, it’s time to prepare.
Use this time to take a good look at not only your marketing, but your business in general.
How is your business spending money? Where can money be saved? What part of your business could you offer remotely?
Even though offices are closed, many businesses are still pressing forward and doing business. We all must model and collect ideas from them.
Marketing your business during Coronavirus can be done remotely, on the couch even.
Doing the little things consistently will pay dividends as this virus clears up. And that’s something I think we all must remind ourselves of.
This reality we’re in is temporary. Eventually we will come back from this. The business owners who focused on their digital marketing during this time will come out on top.
So what are you doing differently for your business right now during this time of social distancing?
We would love to hear your input in the comments below!