It’s no secret that the pandemic has changed many things in our lives, including how we buy and sell and raise awareness of our products.
But now, with some degree of normalcy returning, it’s time to take another look at your business and see if you need to change again.
Relating to your customers
You may have lost some customers this past year or struggled to gain new ones, and if so, you’re not alone. This has been a challenge for many businesses, and even though things are changing a bit now, it doesn’t automatically mean you’ll get an influx of new customers.
Instead, consider focusing more on those who stuck with you during the pandemic.
As always, this starts with being empathetic and understanding of how they’ve been impacted during this challenging time. You could also invoke some nostalgia, but try to balance this with optimism for moving forward.
Additionally, you could reach out to customers who drifted away. Start by sympathizing with how tough things have been. You could even give them some incentive to return, perhaps a free or reduced offer that others aren’t eligible for. This will cost a little upfront, but it will be worth it to bring some of those customers back.
Revisit marketing strategies
Now is also a great time to look at how you’re doing marketing.
If you’re not already doing multichannel marketing, that’s a good starting point. Since people use multiple channels and platforms these days – social media, email, YouTube, and more – it’s important to make sure you’re providing content in multiple ways.
Even if you’re already doing some form of this, it might be worth expanding. If you’ve mostly stuck with email and social media posts, consider doing some videos or even a podcast.
Another option is to survey your customers to get more direct feedback about their current status and what they’re looking for. Surveys should be easy and fairly short, but always leave a couple of options for free-form answers to see who fills it out and what they say. Those options can give you valuable information that you wouldn’t get otherwise.
Refocus on brand
Just as your customers are re-evaluating their needs and wants, you should do the same for your brand.
It’s very important these days for companies to have values that customers and potential customers can relate to and believe in. This may be even more true post-pandemic when everyone has had plenty of time to think and consider what they like and dislike about “business as usual.”
For example, many consumers are more concerned about sustainability, so that’s likely something you’ll want to work on for your brand if you haven’t already. Focusing on diversity and inclusion are also important.
Even better is to find examples of how you’re living up to these values already and highlight those. Customers will appreciate knowing that your company’s actions align with what you say.
Make the most of this opportunity
This is still a difficult time for many, but it’s also an opportunity to think about the way you’ve done things in the past and how to improve. That might be more engagement with your customers, finding new ways of reaching prospects, updating your brand values, or all of the above. The important thing is to take some time to consider what makes the most sense and, if necessary, get feedback from those you’re trying to reach. This will leave you in a much better position as we transition out of the pandemic and create a new normal moving forward.