Covid-19 & Digital

With all the fear being spread by media outlets, it’s easy to think whatever ship you’re on is sinking. Well, for starters, in most cases, it isn’t. The ship has hit an obstacle for sure & there will be a delay until the breach is fixed, but the cruise will resume after that.

Firstly, you need to understand your customers might not be very rational even at the best of times & given the current predicament, they will probably be more prone to irrational fear-based decisions. Having feelings of fear & uncertainty at times like these is perfectly natural.

So, we want to help keep you in business, and we want you to keep you ticking. Hence, this article will focus on how to keep your customers calm, rational & protect them from jumping ship into the cold icy waters.

Reason 1 – COVID-19 will be defeated

It’s not a question of if, but when. And this positivity isn’t some pipe dream. It is realism with a dash of cautious optimism.

A kind reminder to an anxious customer that this is only temporary, may help alleviate the stress. You can even be proactive & send them an email with any positive stories you find online about potential cures or improvements of the situation. Your customers are not used to seeing fear & panic from you, so solidifying a positive force in their life would mean a whole lot more.

This message is not the only thing you can include in this email, however; so, here’s more:

Reason 2 – Online marketing and eCommerce will inherit the future

The trend towards online businesses is only rising, regardless of this recent pandemic. You might think we are having a crisis, but what we are seeing is a potential glimpse of the future, where people will simply prefer to 'stay at home'.

Companies whom had a physical only location & have lost considerable amounts of money & traffic because they had to close shop, should see this as a lesson to put more weight on their online presence. They could push to establish their brand in the future playing field, which is dominantly online.

Even if you lose customers during this crisis, remember that this too shall pass.

Reason 3 – Now is the best time to ACT instead of freezing

Not to sound too opportunistic, but the reality is we are lucky to be operating in the only field which was damaged the least by this outbreak – online businesses. Internet consumption has spiked so much that Internet Service Providers have had a hard time handling the demand.

Digital is a zero-sum game. If you have second thoughts, I’m sure your competitors will gladly take advantage of any temporary absence. When the dust settles, the top-ranking websites will receive the traffic back and then some.

Here are a few stats and facts you can show your client to make them realize the best time to act is NOW and NOT later:

• Shopping from home currently rules since people are self-isolating. After this is over, brands that have shown quick response times and decent delivery quality will benefit.
  
  
• Digital content is exploding as people search to occupy their minds, and even Netflix can barely handle the demand as more people are subscribing than ever.
  
  
• Everybody is basically currently ‘trapped’ at home. This means even more time spent on social networks, and this may be a good time to boost your social media marketing game for you and your clients.
  
  
• The competition might be thinner during the pandemic as many are weary and hesitant to act, trying their best to cut their costs as if this is the end of civilization (hint: not yet it isn’t). After the pandemic is over and confidence returns, many will realise where the future lies, and the competition will probably become even tighter. Now is a great time to step up your game while some are wary.
  
  
• Amazon is stepping up to the plate and opening up 100k new jobs to cope with the spike in demand.

Reason 4 – The world will bounce back

History tends to repeat itself and the world will recover as it did with much deadlier pandemics with less medical advancements and virtually no global communication.

Unfortunately, there are enough precedents of doom and gloom and tragedy to learn from, and in each dip following a world magnitude calamity, the bounce back is followed by a boom of sudden prosperity. After WW1 and the Spanish Flu, we saw the Roaring Twenties. After WW2, the world saw a boom that is still expanding.

Ebbs and flows, peaks and valleys are always there. Smart players will always strive to benefit in these situations and will buy into this dip or cash out once the graphs start correcting to their former peaks. And they will, they always do.

The question is, will you be there to enjoy the boom?

Reason 5 – They are in good hands

This one includes all the above and more.

It's not time to abandon ship because they who understands the bigger picture and is proactive in his approach will see the rewards.

This is your time to shine and add value.