These have been extremely trying times for everyone. An absolutely staggering amount of people have lost their lives to the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy is in turmoil and we are all feeling pretty low.
As a business owner for 16 years, and a marketing communications professional for more than 30 years, I keep asking myself “Now what?” The U.S. is starting to reopen. How do we climb out of this highly stressful situation and get all our businesses moving in the right direction again?
There are no easy answers, but a few things have come to mind.
Demonstrate that your business remains active. It is tempting to hide until this all passes and re-emerge in a few months. With that strategy, however, your firm risks being forgotten while your competitors continue to beat their drums. (Microsoft, for example, has been doing a good job of beating its drums steadily through this crisis. Not in our faces, but with announcements about things like their environmental sustainability programs.) Now is a good time to create, post and publicize digital content such as blogs, educational whitepapers, videos and case studies. It is also smart to post regularly on LinkedIn and other social media.
Connect with others as best you can. Do check-ins of key people (clients, client prospects, partners, influentials, funders etc.) so people know you aren’t simply lounging in your backyard with your fingers crossed. Take time to listen to what they are going through as human beings during this difficult time. Health and well-being conversations first; business conversations and requests later.
Diligently read about the economy and your industry. I am reading an inordinate amount of news and opinion pieces these days. It is keeping me smart about what is happening in business and specifically the industries I pay attention to, including marketing, technology, environmental sustainability and travel. As I read, I take a bunch of notes, process the information and think about what this all means moving forward. Things are changing fast. Life and work will not be the same in the coming years.
Think about reinvention. This “quiet time” provides a great opportunity to reinvent or pivot your business. Perhaps you end up making some creative enhancements. (A great example is the Inn at Little Washington, a prestigious restaurant outside of DC, using mannequins to fill seats in its now socially-distanced restaurant. Brilliant idea.) Or maybe you make sweeping changes. Your instincts will tell you when you are onto something really good and meaningful. I recently discovered “Op-Eds from the Future” in The New York Times. Think of it as a combination of futurist, science fiction and opinion pieces. Really mind-opening and they help generate new ideas.
Make announcements. A couple months ago, I would have counseled companies to stay very quiet. Not anymore. The public is getting saturated with reading about the pandemic and media outlets are a little starved for non-virus news. This means it is not a bad time for an announcement, especially if it relates to doing something good for humanity. Feel-good stories are being written regularly to balance the bad news. And guest posts are more welcome now because media outlets have had to lay off precious staff after being hit hard by significant advertising cutbacks.
Shore up your infrastructure. Now is a also a good time to work on all those things you couldn’t get to before. This might be IT enhancements, website enhancements, a new intranet, SEO (search engine optimization) or starting the company newsletter you always meant to create.
Line up new partners. Think through your partner strategy. Is it working? What prospective partners would you dance well with and how can you support each other now and into the future? Email inboxes are not so crazy busy right now. It is a little easier to get through to people and collaborate on interesting new initiatives.
Try to have some optimism. This pandemic has been so tough, tough, tough on the world. Most people I know try to stay optimistic and then they slide into a funk. This cycle seems to repeat itself almost daily for many. As businesspeople we can give into this hopeless feeling, or we can, as my dear mom has said in the past, give ourselves a kick in pants and get moving. Try to reframe it in your mind if you can.
Don’t be too hard on yourself. Try to remind yourself that you didn’t cause this pandemic. Meaning, you are not (at least not entirely) to blame for the current situation your business is in. We are all in this together. As the DJs on KEXP, my favorite radio station, often say, “You are not alone.”
Practice good self-care. Now is the time for good self-care, whatever that means for you. Maybe it is a run in the middle of the day, a bath at night or getting enough sleep. Mindfulness in nature, even if it is your garden, or sitting quietly for 15 minutes with a cup of coffee, may help as well. I have been watching episodes of Larry David’s comedy “Curb Your Enthusiasm” (available via HBO and Amazon Prime Video) to laugh out loud and neutralize my brain before I go to sleep.
I am wishing you the best as you navigate this tumultuous time. It is not easy and I have empathy for you. Let me know if you need any support.
