Six ideas for strengthening your Marketing activities during Coronavirus crisis – Making your Business Fit as a Fiddle

The lockdown has hampered operations, diminished demand, engendered pay cuts and much more. All these factors have affected businesses in a manner that everything seems to be going down the hill. In this unusual scenario, marketers too have hit a pause button in their businesses. With so much changing too fast, businesses need to adjust their strategy based on the ongoing situation and make sure they don’t lose touch with their customers. It’s time to break the mindset and get back on track.

Here are six ideas to stay connected to your customers in these difficult times:

1. Customise your offering – Reconsider what your brand is offering during this adversity. See if you can flex your offerings as per what your customers need right now. If possible, give a free trial. Let people cherish your product and then buy it. As a marketer, you are also an influencer of how your brand sells and it’s a good time to attract customers with free trials and feedback.

2. Create a community – With lesser demand and lockdown in certain areas, lead generation shouldn’t be the primary objective of your business right now. Rather you can pamper your existing audience and create a community of your brand. Instead of selling, talk to your audience. Send e-mailers, take feedback, provide information, boost their morale and tell them that you are with them in this difficulty. This would help you create a long-term relationship with your audience.

3. Venture offline to online – Trade shows, live events, social gatherings all would stay disrupted for a while. This doesn’t mean you can’t connect with your audience. With a rise in digital platforms and the number of people consuming content online, you can host virtual gatherings. Webinars, e-classes, virtual concerts, online interviews, etc. are a good way to keep your community engaged.

4. Nurture your marketing touchpoints – Brainstorm with your team about how your marketing assets can be bettered and optimised. Be it your website, mobile app or e-commerce store, there are things we have been planning for long but couldn’t do because of the lack of time. Go on, cherish the moment and spend some thinking strategically about how to make these touchpoints better. You have all the time you need.

5. Boost your Network – With LinkedIn on our screens, professional networking has become much simpler. Open your profile; check your network, talk to them. Add connections in your profession and ask them how they are dealing with this crisis. What’s better than your target network and you both having the time to talk and share relevant strategies. Don’t forget networking plays a major role in boosting your business, if not now, maybe later.

6. Create relatable content – Both you and your customer are stuck in this crisis. The best you can do is to make your customers relate to what your brand says. Go live, ask your audience what they are up to, help them cope with this crisis. Brands that have a human touch to their communication tend to create better engagement than those which focus on just their product.

Unfortunately, all of us are working in an unusual scenario right now. Stay home, be safe but don’t let this situation hamper your business activities. When in Rome, do as the Romans – When in crisis, do as the market demands. See the better in the worse, you have more time now. More time to brainstorm, more time to act and retrospect. Try incorporating the above-aforementioned ideas in your business. Experiment. Find out what works best for you.