Everyone has been affected by this pandemic, and your business is no different. Even if you are considered essential, or can operate remotely, you will still be affected. Your business will either rely on or work with affected businesses. And if their businesses have dropped off, that’s going to cause a problem with yours.
I’ve seen many local businesses just close their doors. In my opinion, they threw in the towel and gave up. They aren’t hungry. Because at the end of the day, there’s always a way to adapt and overcome any obstacle.
What can we do about it? What can we do in order to get on the offenses instead of throwing in the towel?
Understand that this situation is going to end. Eventually, everyone will be back to business as usual. Right now, there are businesses that are doubling down and making the best of this time. While other businesses (as I mentioned), are on pause or will close altogether. When the dust settles, will you be further ahead further behind?
A friend of mine owns a restaurant. The day that he was told that he could only do take-out or delivery, we talked on the phone. The first thing he said was, there’s got to be something positive that comes out of this. That’s the type of attitude that you need to have. Forget the fear and forget the doom and gloom. You have to make lemonade out of lemons.
Review Your Website
If there’s ever been a good time to do this, now is the time.
Read all the content on your website. Click through every page and make sure your content makes sense. If there are misspellings, fix them.
If you can’t edit your website yourself, that’s a shame. Every one of our customers have access to their website. They can edit their content (among other options) which includes text and images. There is no reason you should be paying someone to make changes like this, unless you don’t have enough time. That’s another story.
If you’d like us to look at your website, call or text us anytime (360) 450-3711.
Also, fill out all the contact forms on your website, and make sure that the emails are delivered. Also, if you have auto responders set up, make sure all the language make sense.
Check your website on your phone or tablet. Rotate the screen and make sure everything looks okay. Again, navigate through all the pages on these devices as well.
Writing
For your website, one of the best ways you can take advantage of this time is to write. That’s it I’m doing here. You can do that on your blog. You need to start posting to it as much as you can. Daily, if possible.
What should you write?
Think about your customers. What situation are they facing now that you can help them with?
Surely, since the virus hit, you’ve had some unique circumstances arise in yours or your customers businesses. Talk about those situations. Explain the situation like a case study. Start with where your customer was at and where they are now after your help.
Showcase your projects or customers. I’ve been writing a lot about past and current projects. In each post, I explain the thought process behind each decision that was made. My goal is that other people will read this and become more educated on web design for their business.
Tell your story. Write a blog post or record a video explaining the story of your business. How did you get started? If you own a restaurant, write a post or record a video about every dish that you serve. Walk around the restaurant, and tell a story about the decorations, the furniture, or anything else. Talk about where you got that furniture and what it means you. You need to really connect with your customers.
Offer advice. Write about your opinions on what your customers can do to better succeed during this pandemic.
Communicate
I’ve seen some businesses absolutely failing in this area. One restaurant specifically, closed their doors a few days into the stay at home order. I looked at their Facebook page, and they had posted two times this year. In my opinion, they could’ve tried harder.
On the other hand, my friend who has a restaurant posts a few times a day. And not just on their own Facebook page, but also active Facebook groups that have a lot of eyeballs. He is let his entire community know that they are still in business and providing take-out and delivery options. I think when this is all over, his business is going to be better than ever. Because during this time, many restaurants in his area have closed, but his restaurant remains open. I know for fact that he has gained many customers that otherwise he wouldn’t have had if those other businesses hadn’t closed. A great example of taking advantage of every opportunity you’re given.
We’ve been adding a lot of COVID-19 banners and notifications on our customers websites. It’s important that you let your customers and prospects understand the state of your business. How is your business reacting to the situation? What are you doing to make sure your business and customers are served, safely? Has your business been impacted? Let your customers know exactly what the state of your businesses right now.
Wrapping It Up
Remember, a lot of people are now at home that weren’t previously. There is a lot of free time on a lot of people’s hands. This is a good time to communicate with your customers on social media and on your website. You may never see your customers with this amount of free time again. Take advantage of it.
Web Design Services
We provide web design services for business of different sizes and industry. From one employee to businesses with annual revenues exceeding $60 million.
Call or text us today (360) 450-3711 or Request a Quote.
Stay safe!
