6 Marketing Strategies to Help You Get Back to Business

Summary: In the coming weeks, the nationwide lockdown will come to an end and businesses will look to reopen, and in some cases, relaunch. As life gets back to some form of normalcy, this transition period will bring an unparalleled opportunity for reinvention and growth. Right now, businesses should be developing a marketing strategy that will help drive business development and sales in the “new normal.”

Outline: This practicum will focus on what businesses should focus on now in order to thrive in the post COVID-19 era.

• Be prepared for change
• Conduct a self-audit to determine what, if anything, has changed with your business
• Analyze how your clients/customers may change the way they do business
• Examine their new behaviors for buying, networking, information gathering
• Determine if you need to adapt your brand message and/or marketing efforts
• Develop a marketing plan (or update your existing one) to reflect what you’ve learned from your market research
• Communicate with stakeholders
• The need for clear and ongoing communication will be elevated
• Tell stakeholders about your recovery trajectory and future plans; share news in a simple, straightforward, authentic way
• More importantly, articulate how you can help your customers/clients, especially through new programs, offers, etc.
• Focus on building strong bonds with your customers/clients so you can be seen as more essential to their success
• Focus on thought leadership (e.g., PR discussed below); now more than ever, experts are needed
• Go digital
  1. Embrace online selling, whether through virtual networking or e-commerce
• Help your community
  1. Assistance and aid will be needed for some time to come, so be a good corporate citizen
  1. Share profits or services with charities or organizations that are meaningful to you and your constituents
  1. Launch your own campaign or initiative to tackle some lingering issues caused by the  coronavirus pandemic
• Invest in free and low-cost real-world tools
• Pick up the phone – schedule one breakfast/lunch/coffee/drinks a week. Keep Zooming.
• Leave your desk. Network – Get back to breakfast/lunch/coffee/drinks. Join new groups. Not just your bar section where you are preaching to your own choir. Go where your clients/prospects/referral sources meet. Google local/national/Chambers of Commerce, Kiwanis https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/241192 Don’t just be a member, be active. Join a committee. Invite appropriate contacts to breakfast/lunch/coffee/drinks.
• Keep in front of clients/prospects/referral sources – Mailchimp, Constant Contact, HubSpot – repurpose your blogs as newsletters, your press releases as client updates, etc. Works with video/vlogs as well. When someone replies to your eblast, respond right back with an invitation to reconnect over breakfast/lunch/coffee/drinks.
• Keep in front of clients/prospects/referral sources – Social media – post updates/links to relevant blogs, vlogs, whitepapers, announcements, alerts, etc. When someone comments, respond with an invitation to reconnect over breakfast/lunch/coffee/drinks.
• Public relations – Extra, Extra – these are reporters looking for sources. Reply to any and all appropriate requests with a short note asking if they need another source to provide input. Put that reporter/freelancer’s contact info into your outlook and email occasionally. Offer to help connect them to another resource (maybe a client/prospect/referral source) who also may be able to help them. Paying it forward two-times over!