Post Covid – 19 Recovery For Small Business
So we know the world has changed.
In this podcast I want to cover some of the important things to focus on and give you some pointers as to the right way forward – I’ll be honest – there is a lot of rubbish out there.
There are two parts to this.
Changed World – Changed Consumers
Business Automation – It’s all online now
There is nothing to buy in this podcast, but if you want some more information about how I can help – then the show notes have all the information you need.
Changed World – Changed Consumers
It’s now all about the three C’s.
Cash
Consumers
Credibiity
If you and I can get these three things right – everything should be ok.
These are not my models, not my view of the world. But having spent the last ten years working with small firms I have seen all the mistakes – made some myself. But, I have also seen how the ‘big players’ are doing it – not that they are always right. It’s the principles I am interested in.
Little thing. Amazon collect email addresses. It’s probably easier for them to use a Social Media feed to provide updates and information about your order. All of the social platforms allow ‘access to tools’ however – then ownership remains with the platform which means you are locked out if THEY decide.
Owning your customer data is the start – hence email/sms/letters – yeah shocking eh.
Your customers are now more discerning, have more choice. And, at the moment time on their hands – time to search and check, time to compare and watch – then decide.
They have less cash – well at the moment they probably have more – hence the increased sale of hot tubs – but that will change as the real effect of this Corona thing comes into play.
So cash maybe at a premium – getting customers to spend is likely to be harder than ever before – as if it was easy before March 2020.
Less cash, more discerning customers, less affected by conventional marketing.
But greater engagement with social media, more tools to help you grow a business provided you have something to offer and you can show your audience how you solve problems for them how you can make sure the sun shines on their parade.
If you want more long term customers. Spend less time selling and more time engaging and then cross selling them something – be more human, be nicer. Nice people sell more.
Business Automation – It’s all online now
It used to be the case – get a website, get online – done.
Businesses flew – sales went up and everyone was happy.
Along came Amazon and Ebay, Argos. Then everything was fucked. There was no going back from that.
Then some small firms went all ‘light the fire’ and small upstarts started to take major shares of the market place. Brewdog appeared to take on the big pubs and brewers. A million different types of Gin appeared.
Environmentally friendly toilet roll suppliers started to take shape and share in the market place – see it’s damn easy to take 2% of a £billion pound market place and have a great business.
It is now really straightforward to appear as a solver of problems with quite a simple online presence. One that solves problems, comes across as ‘nice’ is priced appropriately. And adds all the bits – delivery, click and collect – ongoing ‘once per month’ – like pet food sellers – this market is massive and it makes sense.
People stay with one brand of dog food – until the dog dies.
You need to replicate this. You can do so online.
This is how.
Website – online shop.
One the collects email addresses, phone numbers and home addresses along with social feeds. So you can make contact using.
The phone – god forbid eh.
Sending letters and postcards -still cheap
Following and interacting on Social – free
Automate the fuck out of all those three – this platform does exist for your small business.
Before you get all ‘compliance’ on me GDPR is a thing and is solved really easily.
Business automation means…
An online presence for taking and processing orders.
For creating offers and deals that you can promote, that you can wind into a story – the reason for today’s post online.
Allows consumers (your customers) to consume content when they want.
Allows you send email/sms/arrange click and collect or delivery.
Automating does not mean having a stupid AI powered bot on your website asking how they are today – I don’t want to speak to a fucking computer – even the really advanced Amazon one reverts to humans quite quickly.
If you are concerned about customers -pick up the phone.
When you get all of these things right, you become a trusted supplier, a trusted friend. The business that understands them – you follow up with them – not with sales messages but with valuable content.
Valuable content that you can send out on a multi touch basis – sms, whatsapp, social, letter.
On this point of social media – when was the last time you purchased something from SM. It maybe free – but it’s a time sink – and not an effective one. You can start on SM – but it has to end elsewhere.
Just for one minute, think about the last time you purchased something new. Write down that process and ask your customers – how they found you – dare ya to actually speak to a customer about something other than selling them summat. You’ll be surprised.
You have a great product or service, you are something to add to the world the changes lives, makes them feel better – be proud of it – work out the angles, work out what makes others interested in it – and then automate the fuck out of it.
On that point – my ‘Shop In A Box’ package does all of the above for you and I’ll show you how to use, how to make it work – how to make it effective – which is more important than anything else.
Website – Shop – Social Sharing – Email and SMS Marketing – Search Engine Listings – Remote Direct Mail – send letters and postcards without leaving the office or from the beach.
In fact all of this works from the beach if you choose to.
This months music is from Zac Smith – https://www.mixcloud.com/zachary-levin-smith/ it’s on the intro and of course in full at the end.
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