The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in major disruptions in the lives of consumers and businesses world-wide. In adapting to the lockdown some changes to how we do business may remain permanently.
The genie is out of the bottle. The pandemic blew the cork off and it seems unlikely that we'll go back entirely to doing business as usual.
Even as the economy opens up and government-mandated social distancing eases off, many people will still be cautious. The pandemic shutdown has trained consumers to do things differently and businesses have had to learn to respond.
Necessity has made online shoppers out of some of the most unlikely people.
Seniors, flip-phone users, computer-phobics and technology-luddites suddenly embraced the concept of point-and-click purchasing. In doing so, they've discovered the convenience and ease of ordering online for curbside pickup, or better still, direct delivery to their homes. Some of them may even continue to do online shopping long after the pandemic is over.
Many small businesses, in an effort to adapt to a challenging situation, made the pivot to selling online in some form or other. You no longer need an ecommerce shopping system built into your website; Facebook and Instagram are making that possible. Still, it is rented real estate, and it would be better to have your own system in place.
Those business owners who have been selling to clients online have to ask themselves what they'll do about such sales once people can shop in person. If you've invested in online sales to tide you over, do you want to simply let go of that potential sales channel? Would it instead make better sense to invest in developing it further?
You may find you have to work a little harder to get those online sales post-pandemic, but they'll be worth it in the end. The key to success with online sales after lockdown will be, as it always has been, a matter of getting in front of the right potential customers with the right offer at the right time. Do you have a strategy mapped out for how you'll make this happen?
Marketing communications have largely shifted to reaching people online.
Remember flyers? Those bundles of newsprint had, it seemed, become the sole purpose for most local newspapers to still publish and deliver a weekly edition. You may have noticed fewer of those piling up at home these past few months. That's because many businesses stopped printing them while they were shut down. But other companies, like a few of the grocery chains, switched to thin, abbreviated flyers with the full flyer accessible online.
In a few cases, the online flyer is the ONLY version being produced. And let's be honest, most people were likely taking flyers and other junk mail directly to the recycling bin rather have to handle something that had passed through other people's hands.
Once again, many consumers will likely prefer to check for the weekly sales online after "normal" business resumes. It's not too hard to imagine when you consider how many people opted out of receiving paper bills and bank statements in favour of electronic versions.
This aversion to receiving and handling paper will push more businesses to market their offerings online. Email, despite the rise of social media, has continued to be an effective marketing tool. To this day, email marketing still produces the highest return on investment in terms of developing awareness, engagement and converting consumers to make purchases.
Social media has its value as a communication channel as well. But business owners should not expect to utilize it without some investment in time, resources, and the need to spend on reaching a wider audience. There's no more free ride there, and there hasn't been for some time. The consumers are there, but if you aren't creating engaging content, you'll have to pay to get in front of customers.
The reality is, even if you do pay to get in front of customers (on social media, in search engines, through email marketing) you're going to need to create engaging content. And you're going to need to reach them frequently and consistently over time to compete against online behemoths like Amazon, Wish, Wayfair, or Zappos, to name only a few.
Online tools offer more than just promoting and selling.
Ecommerce and online marketing are not the only areas that have changed during the pandemic. Customer service has also moved increasingly online. Whether through email, website request forms, or chatbots, more businesses are finding ways to interact with customers to solve their issues and provide a superior experience. What tactics have you implemented to maintain and improve satisfaction? Are there areas where you can do better going forward?
For non-retail businesses, the challenge of communication has been dramatic. Without networking events, trade shows, conferences and other opportunities for public interaction, online communication is essential to solving the puzzle of filling your pipeline for more business going forward. Zoom video conference calls, webinars, online product/service demos are a critical component to reaching and converting your prospects. Are you using these? Are you planning unique offerings with these channels to develop awareness and increase your sales opportunities?
Being proactive is your best approach.
The pandemic won't last forever, but waiting for it to end isn't a winning strategy when so many others are pressing forward, learning to adopt and adapt to new technologies. Those who are hoping the changes to consumers' habits are only temporary should prepare to be disappointed. Customers like convenience and if you aren't prepared to give it to them they'll find someone who will.
Not every company needs to make wholesale changes to how they communicate and do business with customers. But those who acknowledge the shift in the marketing landscape and take appropriate actions will be much further ahead than those who choose to ignore these trends. If you're unsure how to adapt to online marketing and sales or want to know how to improve your results, get in touch. We'd love to discuss how we can help you build more business.