2020 really has been crisis management for a lot of businesses as the virus has not only changed the way consumers buy goods and services, but the pandemic has changed the way people do business and communicate (I wish I had shares in Zoom!)
This situation will, in my opinion, reward organisations who have adapted to the changes and the way they market themselves. Sitting it out has not been and will continue to not be an option.
In order to be successful, companies must be visible. None more so than online. Organisations already in a space where they deliver what they do to the doorstep or the consumer have thrived and will continue to do so. The flip side is that companies who have traditionally relied on a physical presence have been hit terribly.
So, what can organisations do to keep the tills ringing? What do they do with regards to getting themselves in front of the prospective customers?
The use of the Internet, mobile devices, social media, search engines, and other channels to reach consumers (digital marketing) is now even more critical to a companies’ marketing. This is because the virus has been causing us all to spend more time online searching. Your prospect therefore, simply must be able to find you in search engines (Google has an 86% market share) and being able to adapt the sales process will be the difference between success and failure.
Drive traffic to your website by utilising social media, Google’s search and display networks; use email marketing and optimise your website. Google very much indexes pages so use a blog and write authentic, insightful content.
The latest trend we are seeing is that paid ads are becoming cheaper. In other words, traffic on the web is up and there are fewer advertisers due to the decrease in smaller businesses advertising. This is because the way the big ad networks make money is through an auction system. They need small businesses to drive up the cost per click (CPC) for ads so that way the big, billion-dollar companies have to spend more money on ads. When we average things out per industry and globally, we are seeing paid ads producing a much higher ROI than before the Coronavirus hit. If you don’t have as many small businesses advertising there isn’t as much competition, so the cost per click decreases.
With your website and business, consider what you can give away for free or offer payment plans. Anything you can do to help people out will be appreciated. You’ll also find that it will drive you more visitors through sharing.
You could also explore running limited time promotions or if you are selling consulting services, you can accept money over a period of a year.
It is a sad fact that we all probably have more time now so use it to your advantage. Put in the effort so you can think and plan. It’s not too late and, that way you’ll come out of the Coronavirus stronger!
