The COVID-19 pandemic took, and is still taking, a huge toll on businesses all over the world. It’s new territory for everyone, and people are working hard to piece their businesses back together now that some states are coming out of quarantine. It will probably be quite a while before people feel comfortable in large groups again. Even when all states have opened back up, things won’t be normal right away because everyone has become so accustomed to staying home and social distancing. 

The changes we’re seeing in the world are going to continue to affect businesses, but there are things business owners can do to get their business back on its feet following the pandemic:

Communicate More Effectively

Communication is more important and more tricky than ever. People aren’t just walking into storefronts or inviting service professionals into their homes. Instead, businesses have to communicate with customers more creatively and more effectively. Keeping your connections strong with customers is what will help your business get back on track once people start making purchases and scheduling services more regularly. How can your business communicate more effectively with its customers?

• Implement webchat on your business website in order to make responses immediate and convenient.
• Allow your customers to text you, instead of call, to make appointments.
• Send out regular engagement emails and/or text messages to your customers, with useful information.

Stay Relevant to Customer Needs

With the changing times, customer needs will be changing too. No matter what industry your business is in, there may be changes that need to be made in order to stay relevant to customer needs. Being flexible and responsive to what consumers are asking of your business is the only way to get your business back on its feet following the COVID-19 pandemic. How can a small business ensure they’re staying relevant to customer needs?

• Listen to and learn from customer feedback: If your customers are leaving their feedback in reviews, or if they’re communicating their needs to you through questions about your services, your business should be listening and learning from them. Your most valuable feedback comes from your customers. 
• Keep your business flexible and be willing to adjust to the changing times and needs of your customers. Growing pains are not avoidable after such a huge worldwide crisis. Instead of trying to avoid these challenges, embrace them and learn from them. 

Adjust According to What We Learned

It’s probably true that everyone will be making changes to their lives following the pandemic. Businesses are no exception to this. One important thing businesses can do to ensure future success is to adjust according to lessons learned throughout the pandemic:

• Adjust to changes in little or no time.
• Keep records of customer and transaction data for future engagements.
• Stay relevant and present on social media.
• Build strong relationships with your loyal customers, so they continue to frequent your business. 

Small businesses are struggling right now, but things are starting to look up. Now that the country is working in phases to open back up, businesses should be focusing on getting back on their feet so things can get back to normal and their revenue can quickly increase.

For more insights on marketing strategy that actually works for small business, connect with Jay Bean, Founder of FreshLime and Small Business Marketing Expert on LinkedIn and Twitter. If any of these tips have helped you or if you have anything to add, please comment below. We’d love to hear from you!