Has your business slowed down because of COVID-19? Take this opportunity to work on the things you never had time for. Here are just 3 things you can do to survive – and thrive.
Deep dive
Been meaning to really look at your business plan? Or better understand your profit/loss statements? Now is the time. Don’t overwhelm yourself. Set a timer for 30 minutes and start. When the timer goes off, get up – take a walk to the kitchen for a drink of water and come back and pick up where you left off.
Take notes.
Write down questions you need to ask – your accountant, your coach, your spouse. And capture ideas. Maybe your original business plan called for a product line but you didn’t have the capital (or patience) to implement it. Is it still a good idea? What would you need to do to get started? You’ve got the time to puzzle out if it’s viable or not.
Maybe there are things you’ve put off doing in your physical space. This might be the perfect time to paint the hallway or deep clean the refrigerator or office area. What will you commit to deep dive into?
Learn a new skill or upgrade a current one
This is a great idea both professionally or personally. Read the book(s) you bought last year but never had time to read. Got behind on a podcast or blog you like? It’s time to catch up.
YouTube is an amazing resource! Learn how to meditate. Or line dance. Understand how your website works and what you can do to improve it. I’m going to watch at least one Ted Talk every day. What skill will you learn or upgrade?
Work on your marketing
Marketing is more important than ever! Email and social media marketing are the best ways to stay in touch with your customers – especially now.
Don’t make it complicated.
Don’t have a marketing strategy? Take an hour and figure out what you want to achieve. For example – add 10 new followers on Facebook. Or sell 5 more widgets every week. And what you need to do to make that happen. Treat it like a brainstorming session. Tada – basic marketing strategy done.
For email marketing start by looking at your options. Two email platforms I use a lot are Constant Contact and Mail Chimp. But there are others, do a Google search and see what’s out there. Read the reviews, look at the prices and decide which one best suits you.
Social media is simpler yet – up your game. Don’t post regularly? Commit to posting a minimum of 3 times a week. If you are posting consistently then double it: currently post 3 times a week – post 6. If you already are rocking on Facebook – check out Twitter. Or Instagram.
What one thing will you commit to today? Tomorrow? Do one thing a day (or every other day) and soon you’ll have practices in place that will be sustainable when the world finds its new normal.
Bonus tip: Take a breath
The most important thing to do is to just breathe. No one knows what’s going to happen tomorrow. But stressing about it today doesn’t solve anything. You can’t control a pandemic but you can control your response to it. So wash your hands, eat healthy and take a deep breath. How are you taking care of yourself – physically, mentally, and emotionally?
If you need help with any of your marketing goals – strategy, social media or email marketing – contact me for one free hour of consulting. Working together we’ll make it through this.