It goes without saying that we are living in unprecedented times. None of us are really sure how to deal with it, what we should be doing or when this will all be over.
But if one thing is clear to Advennture Design, it is that now is not the time to get lapse and put everything on the ‘in a few months’ time’ list. In the simplest way possible, think of lockdown like the Christmas break (we know, much nicer but still – let’s be positive!) So many businesses start trailing off around November time saying, ‘we’ll sort it after Christmas’. When January comes around, how insanely long are those to-do-lists?! And the regret you feel for pre-Christmas decisions is a little too much to bear.
If you hope for business to pick-up again post-pandemic and crawl back to your previous success, you need to remain proactive now. Once the doors re-open, consumers will be inundated with things to do and ways to spend their money that have been inaccessible to them for the months previous. The choice will be overwhelming – and you need to make sure YOU stand out!
We’ve put together our top suggestions on things you can be working on NOW to ensure success the other side.
Revisit Your Existing Services
Is there something your customers have been asking about for a while? Has there been an idea floating around in the back of your mind for months?
It may not seem like the most logical time to launch something new, and we’re not suggesting you do it today. But imagine planning it all in, preparing a timeline, designing your branding and being ready to go for when those doors open. Businesses with something new to offer on day 1 are sure to be top of the hit list for your customers – they haven’t experienced anything new for a long time!
Plus, you’ll probably never have this much free time on your hands again to plan it out perfectly.
Update Your Website
For most businesses, the website really is a back-burner job. It’s the sort of thing you launch and hope it will remain in-date for years to come. Unfortunately, the reality of business growth is they quickly get out-of-date with no time to address it. And if you’re hoping your customers haven’t noticed, we’re sorry to tell you they have.
Take an hour to sit down, navigate through your site page-by-page and make a list of updates needed. You’ll be surprised how much time you can save addressing them all in one go.
When customers are again in a position to visit or buy from you, they’ll be pleasantly surprised to see you’ve used your lockdown time wisely to improve their shopping experience.
Start a Blog/Vlog
Now is the time to adjust your Marketing to suit the times we’re living in. Sometimes ‘Keep Calm and Carry On’ isn’t the way forward and can lead to you looking a little tone-deaf and insensitive to the surroundings.
Instead of focusing your efforts on selling right now, put your efforts into content creation. Starting a blog or putting some simple videos together not only provides educational content your consumers are looking for NOW, it also provides fantastic ever-green content for the future. Remember what we said about updating your website – this stuff is perfect!
Think about what your customers want to know – what are their FAQ’s, their sticking points? How can you be of help? If you can clear up any uncertainties now, your audience will be further the Marketing Funnel and heading towards ‘Conversion’ in time for when the world hits ‘play’!
Branding Overhaul
If you’ve been questioning your branding for a while, there’s probably never been a better time to change it up! With business on pause anyway, you can see this as an opportunity to re-launch a better version of ‘you’ as a business.
Perhaps your business no longer reflects what you offer or stand for, maybe the colour scheme has changed over the years or the font might just be a little out-of-date. Fashions change and this is true for branding.
If It Doesn’t Work, Change It
Our fifth and final point is simple, if there’s something in your business that wasn’t working before – then change it! If your accountancy system is out-of-date, get a new one. If the team structure is difficult, swap it round.
Almost no business is perfect, and that’s OK. But now is a time when you can make life easier for yourself by taking the time to go back to the drawing board and plan out the perfect processes. After all, when the world opens up again the last thing you want is the same old sticking points stumping your growth.
Advennture Design can support of all the suggestions made in this blog. We are offering an exclusive deferred payments plan for up to 3 months during the coronavirus pandemic, so financially there is no reason you cannot get started and take the bull by the horns! Email hello@advennturedesign.com