Please Don’t Stop the Marketing!

It’s a nerve wracking time for all of us so I wanted to give you some ideas and resources to help keep your business healthy by continuing to reach out to clients during the outbreak.

Don’t Stop the Marketing

Now is the time for marketers to step up and hustle. Those who retreat and hide get forgotten when the crisis ends. So, take the time now to:

• find ways to help your clients solve their new critical challenges;
• reinvent how you deliver your product or service based on what the new “normal” might be in a few months; or
• refresh your stale marketing messages and tactics so they really tell the story of how you can help your clients.

OK, But What What to Do?

Here are a few ideas that you can be doing in the next few weeks to potentially generate new business now or set yourself up for success when this is all over.

1. Call your customers and check in. In this scary and isolated time, people appreciate if you personally reach out to ask them how they are doing. At the very least, you provide a sympathetic ear, at the best you find out what they are working on to see if you can help. Even if it means doing some pro bono work or just providing a referral, your clients will remember that you checked in and provided value when it was needed.

2. Conduct a marketing audit. This is the perfect time to take a step back and look at your marketing. What’s working? What’s not? Does your website even say what you really do anymore? Do you have testimonials? Case stories? Do you give people a reason to sign up for your enewsletter? Do you need videos to help drive more traffic to your site?

(I created 4 videos with tips and ideas on how to use video marketing to attract more clients last week. You can see them on my YouTube channel. In fact, in this photo you can see my assistant and I getting ready to film. I don’t recommend hiring him. He adds very little to the process.)

Now, make a list of what marketing needs to be updated or what new materials you may need and take this time to get it done.

3. Collect testimonials. As part of your marketing refresh/update/rebrand, reach out to your clients and ask them for a testimonial. This is a GREEAAAAAT thing to do now because a) hearing your clients say why they love you really brightens a dismal day; b) it helps you tighten up your brand messaging; and c) it provides you with content for your website and social media posts. Want a video testimonial? Host a Zoom call with your client and film it.

4. Repurpose content. Have some presentations that you could repurpose and turn into an ebook, lead magnet, checklist, quiz, blog post, social media posts, or videos? Take a look at all of the content you have created in the past and see where you could update and publish something new, quickly and easily. One of the best things you can do to market your business or expertise during a crisis is to educate, provide guidance, and offer value. So, get on it! (I’m happy to give your business a shout out during this time – Send me a link to some of your new content and I’ll share it on my social media channels.)

5. Further Strengthen your Unique Difference. I love helping my clients identify and strengthen what makes them different. To do so, create a customer journey map where you list out every touch point a prospect and client has with your company and look at where you can add more value or further differentiate your offering to stand out, grab attention, and be more irresistible to your clients. Be creative.

Take the time to focus on some of these ideas and when this is all over your brand will be stronger than your competitors’, who probably sat out this time in fear.

Some Much Needed Fun & Mental Wellness

I also wanted to share some things that are just fun or make you feel better. If I can help make you calmer, make you laugh, or just recommend a great bottle of wine, my mission will be accomplished. So here, have a smile on me:

Watch John Krasinski’s Some Good News Channel. It makes me laugh, cry, and most importantly makes my day a little better.

One of my clients, Cara Lindell, the Founder & CEO of Kinetic Konnections, and her team could no longer help clients with pain, mobility, or developmental challenges during the stay-at-home mandate. However, she found a creative way to provide value and stay top-of-mind during this “break” by sharing videos of three simple movements to help her clients and their children stay calm during this stressful time. So, I wanted to share them with you all, too.

Finally, I saw a fun story that shows how a little creativity and humor can help boost your brand and business. A winery owner in Maryland has a dog who loves when customers come to the tasting room to buy wine. But, when social distancing started, the owner would take the wine orders out to people’s cars to minimize contact. This made the friendly dog sad.

So, the owner went online and found a vest with side pockets that the dog now wears to carry wine bottles to a customer’s car. There are treats in the vest so customers can “tip” the dog for a successful delivery. Needless to say, people are ordering wine just to see the dog. Read the whole story here.

Stay safe and healthy!