As restrictions are starting to be lifted and we’re starting to emerge from our homes, it’s time to start thinking about what the next step is for your business. COVID-19 has put us into a deep recession and we will likely be here for a couple of years. What does that mean for your business and what can you do about it?
Don’t Wait
Companies who invest during a recession are the most successful on the other side of it. Don’t wait for that recovery to happen, or you’ll be too late. Everyone else will have a big jump on you. Instead, take a long term view and start focusing right now on the activities that will set you up for success on the other side of this crisis. Face to face meetings are likely not returning to previous levels any time soon. As we have seen in China during its recovery, remote work and digital trends are going to continue to grow. Make sure you’re meeting your prospects and clients where they are now instead of waiting for the other side of this recession.
Focus on Relationship Building
In a recession, you don’t really want to spend money on advertising. So instead, now is the time to focus on relationship building. Focusing on building relationships now will help translate into more sales during a time when selling is going to become more difficult. Pitching without building a relationship first doesn’t really work anyway, so start building those relationships now. As we’ve seen in the data, marketing is working better than ever right now.
Taking the time and putting in the work to build good relationships through LinkedIn, your website, and email marketing are more important than ever right now. It’s time to focus on the three goals of B2B marketing during a recession:
- Build Your Audience
The most undervalued asset in every business is your audience of clients and prospects that you can talk to whenever you want. During times of crisis, people look to thought leaders to provide them with insight-driven actionable content. Building this audience will dramatically increase the value of your business over time. - Capture & Follow Up on Leads
Make sure you’re not just growing a large audience on LinkedIn. You need to capture and follow up on those leads or you’re not going to get all the value out of your audience that you can. Be sure to direct your audience to content on your website and then capture prospects and immediately follow up with them. - Stay Top of Mind
You’ve built an audience by being a thought-leader and producing great insight-driven content. But you need to continue to stay top of mind. Engaging content is the best way to showcase your expertise, provide your audience with insights they care about and keep you top of mind. Make sure that you’re following up with captured leads by providing them with valuable content that helps them in some way during this difficult period. It’s the number one way to stay top of mind.
The key is to tailor your marketing to offer insights that match your clients’ and prospects’ needs during this time and as we move forward through this recession. The businesses that build relationships during this recession by providing the right kind of insight-driven content are the ones who are going to do the best on the other side.
All the best,
Bill Bice
CEO
