There’s a lot happening in the world right now, there’s no doubt about it. But although times are uncertain for many, it’s also time to face our fears, and embrace the unknown.

It’s true, the world as we knew it has changed, and instead of waiting for the moment it’s all over, we need to think differently – very differently. The world is changing, and life, as we knew it before, might never look the same, or it might at the least, take a very long time to go back to normal. Whatever normal is. That’s why many businesses around the world have had to rethink for online, strategise and understand what the world’s new message is, as well what might change in the near future. Luckily, making sense of chaos is not something new to us – it’s the exact thing marketers do every single day.

It's familiar territory for some.

We rebuild, relaunch and re-establish brands all the time. So as difficult as this all is, at Warbble, we see this as an opportunity too. Many businesses are going to come out of the ground because of this, and many already have.

Remember 9/11, or the great recession? Some of the greatest companies were founded during these hard times. To name just a few, these great companies were Instagram, Uber and WhatsApp. These types of businesses have fundamentally changed the world in a single shift.

Right now, the power is all in the people, and it’s unfolding in front of our eyes. This is a historical moment! And when this is all over in the distance future, people will ask, “What did you do during this time?” 

Whilst we recognise that there is unnecessary pressure to “better ourselves” during this time, and you perhaps can’t write a novel or learn a new language, you can certainly better your business, pivot and lay the groundwork.

You have an opportunity to share a great story about how your business used this time to grow, understand, and most importantly, adapt. Are you going to use it? 

Here are a few ways we recommend moving forward and using this time to ramp up your online presence, with precision.

Understanding your customer, all over again.

Your customer is the reason your business exists and the centre of it too. But recent events may or may not have changed their situations, behaviours, interests and way of life. For one, their buying habits are changing significantly. And they’re just as affected by this, as you are. With this in mind, businesses need to start from scratch and begin to understand their customers all over again.

When your customers change, so should your messaging. And so we need to ask;

What is it that they like about you specifically? What problem do you solve for them? Why do they choose you over competitors?

Knowing why your customer chose to support your brand is crucial information. We need to go back to those thoughts and make sure your business is aligned to your customers’ changes. This takes a lot of digging, without any speculation, or jumping to conclusions. In fact, it takes a team of specialists and detailed analytics to find the answer. Looking at both your website and social media, our team of experts can track your visitors and interactions, and get to know them on a personal level to understand who they are, and what’s changed.

What to consider when moving your business online.

Should your business move online? Our answer to this is always, yes. Every single business should have a presence online, even if the majority of your sales comes from foot traffic, social gatherings or word-of-mouth. In fact, word of mouth can be even more powerful online.

Moving online can also help you divert your business, and diversifying your income. It’s the very reason photographers are still making an income through video photoshoots, nail salons are delivering home nail kits to their clients, and personal trainers are teaching their classes online too. Really, the sky is the limit. In fact, one of our favourite clients, AVCOM, an events company, was severely impacted by this pandemic, as but they took their time to think, adapt and adjust, and are now selling packages for virtual events.

Perhaps you can’t make sales online, but by moving your business online, your brand can communicate with customers, and they’ll remember that. Hearing from their loved brands can provide them with a small sense of normalcy that they’ll be very grateful for. Plus, you can work on improving your SEO ranking, which can direct more foot traffic when customers search for your store, post-lockdown.

So, build it and they will come, they say. If only it were that simple. In fact, in the transition of moving online, many businesses have failed miserably. We’ve seen the rush to move online due to the pandemic panic, for obvious reasons. But this rush in work shows. And it can even damage your brand if it’s not done right. 

The thing is, you can’t just “go online”. You have to go through mountains of research, design, copywriting, analytics and so much more to make it effective.

As the saying goes, “If it’s good and fast, it won’t be cheap. If it’s cheap and good, it won’t be fast. If it’s fast and cheap, it won’t be good.” We are seeing so much of this at the moment, whether it’s website builds, social media marketing, email marketing or more, and this saying couldn’t be more accurate.

So, the simple truth is that moving online is a business investment – one that requires calculated decisions, precision and research. And moving online is not a temporary solution, it is a long-term commitment that takes time and attention from a team of experts before you’re able to see and reap the rewards. If you can afford to make this investment and if you have the time to, then yes, you should definitely move online correctly.

Reminding your customers who you are.

Now that you have a better understanding of who your customer is, and what might have changed, how can you remind them why they like you? Online communication and digital marketing is the best way to keep your brand top of mind, especially during a time when your business might be easily forgotten about. The trick is getting it right. As the panic continues, many brands are over-communicating, sending poorly thought-out posts and trying to ‘jump on the bandwagon’, as quickly as possible.

Your brand has to remind your customers why they liked you in the first place, and that means telling meaningful stories, engaging with them and meeting them on their level. At the moment, it’s all about building loyalty, so that when this ends, your brand will be remembered.

And the communication doesn’t stop at just your customers. Think about your internal team too. If you’re a big corporation, employees are leaning on you for comfort and support, and that means communicating and reminding your internal team that you’re on their side too. We can learn a lot from how the CEO of Airbnb is communicating clearly and consistently during this time.

We have a number of proven strategies to do both, whether it’s inbound marketing, email marketing that actually converts, paid advertising or social media marketing, we’ve enhanced our clients’ online presence in immeasurable ways.

At Warbble, we also like to use the WHAC method from The 3-Minute Rule, by Brant Pinvidic. This method helps organise information so that your audience processes it in the right order and receives all the information to better make their decision. The order in which you give the information is absolutely essential, and it goes like this.

• What is it? What do you do? Tell someone in a nutshell what it is you do or offer.
• How does it work? Explain exactly how it works and functions so that it is clearly understood.
• Are you sure? Give them reasons to back up what you’ve said, and why they should believe you. This is the chance to convince them why they should believe the ‘what’ and ‘how’ it works.
• Can you do it? This is about whether what you offer is actually practical when put into action. Prove it – show that it’s real, attainable, and logistically soundproof.

Learn from those who have done this before.

Things like remote working, and running a business online, is not something that’s new to our Warbble team, but it is new to many businesses across the globe today. With many businesses stuck with no revenue, without any prior warning, surviving this crisis might seem like only a distant dream. But the truth is, if you market effectively now, your business will weather the storm, and not only survive, but thrive. 

We’re more than happy to lead the way for both our clients and businesses alike.

On a positive note, it’s very possible to use this time to keep your customers engaged, your staff productive, and also communicate clearly online. Our areas of expertise in inbound marketing, email marketing, social media and more, can help you do just that.

To sum it all up, let’s get ahead in the economy, together. Because after this crisis ends, your business with either be 1) worse off, 2) the same, or 3) at the next level. If you’re courageous enough, you’ll see that there are many opportunities waiting for you to grasp them. 

So seek out the discomfort and step out of the comfort zone, into the unknown. We’ll be right there beside you. We can all come out on top of this.