How Covid has changed the way we run our business now?

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Due to Covid, there has been a significant trend for businesses having to adapt online.

In my experience with our clients over the past 7 months since Covid started in Australia, we have increased our website and digital marketing service by 210% compared to the same time last year.

A lot of business owners have struggled to maintain sales and have never needed to have a website or digital presence before. They feel completely overwhelmed and lost, they realise they have to adapt but don’t know where to start.

If your business has suffered loss of income due to Covid, regarding foot traffic etc and you are overwhelmed, I hear you!

Here is my TOP 10 list of how you can take your business online:

1. Where are your customers?
   Start with revisiting who is your target audience? and write down where you think they are online and what are they looking at?

2. Goals?
   You need to have clear goals of what you are wanting to achieve online. Do you want to get referrals? sell products? sell your service? There are so many amazing platforms for you to be able to succeed in the digital space. You just need to know what it is you are wanting to achieve.

3. Get Social:
   After working out where your ideal customers are spending their time online, a few example platforms: Facebook? Instagram, Pinterest, Linked In, YouTube, etc. I would recommend starting with just one of these platforms first until you get the hang of it then you can go into the next one. You do not need to be on all platforms at all. Quality over quanity.

4. Your website:
   Are you selling products? If you are selling physical products. You will need a website to do this effectively. From my experience the best platforms for selling products are: Shopify, Amazon, Ebay. You can even sell products via your facebook and or instagram page.
   Are you selling your service/course? Your website would need to really showcase what you do and the results of what you provide. Usually I would recommend doing an email newsletter or a free digital download that your ideal clients would sign up for, to start to build a rapport with them - to eventually convert them into customers.

5. Google My Business:
   Did you know that your business listing is like a mini version of a website? update your business listing at any time which will increase your profile online and direct people to your website.

6. Start a podcast, or a blog:
   Podcasting is a great way to share your knowledge, your personality and really connect with your audience. If you are more of a writer (and you of course can do both - if that’s what your audience will want) Blogging is a great way to get more customers to your website (organic SEM) and a way to educate your audience on what you provide.

7. Mailing list:
   Newsletters are a great way or keeping your customers/potential customers up to date with what you are offering, teaching, giving, doing etc. Most customers will not purchase straight away, but if they sign up to your newsletter - it means they are interested in what you do. We recommend doing your newsletters in your website. In squarespace (a platform we use) you can even create a blog post and publish and also save a copy as a newsletter and have that go out to your mailing list.

8. Driving traffic to your online store or website:
   You have your website all shiny and new, but! where are all the people? There are many ways to drive people to your website. A few options are: Update your website, update your google listing, do a blog post and post out to your socials, pay for google ads (pay per click campaigns), do a digital newsletter.

9. Advertising on social media:
   You can create a specific targeted ad campaign on any of the social marketing platforms and then check the results at the end of the campaign to see how it performed. If it worked, do more of that! If it didn’t try something different.

10. Cross promote:
    Yep, nothing new with one. You can cross promote online just like you may have collaborated with a bricks and mortar business. Do some research and see what business you could promote your product or service with and reach out to them. If they can leverage from your business - it’s a win win. You can offer to write an blog article for them or perhaps offer your services in exchange for promotion.

Feeling exhausted?

You can always reach out for help. The type of people that could help you regarding all the above are: Photographers, Copywriters, Social Media Managers/Experts, Website Designers, Graphic Designers, Digital Marketers and business coaches.

If you would like to get in touch with me to chat how we could help you, get your business online or just need more advice on one or more of the points above, click here to message me.

Thanks Saffron, :)