As the second wave of Covid-19 looks inevitable and new measures are introduced, it looks like we’re heading for another period of uncertainty – and a new raft of business challenges. So how can we turn this into something positive? Use this time to review and reset your marketing objectives, and you can press play on growing your business, while the rest of the world is hitting pause again.
“Execution is a specific set of behaviours and techniques that companies need to master in order to have competitive advantage. It’s a discipline of its own.”
Ram Charan & Larry Bossidy, Execution
Learning from lockdown
Having survived the first lockdown, we’re hopefully better equipped to deal with whatever comes next, especially if we take note of the lessons learnt. The way our clients adapted to and implemented change on a very rapid basis was highly impressive. Those who weathered the storm best, were the ones who had these things well-and-truly locked down:
- Took time to reset their goals and objectives, marketing strategy and budgets based on a new normal.
- Made a plan for communicating with clients and used more digital formats like webinar, email and social media.
- Checked in with their clients personally to keep them reassured.
- Embraced new formats like video and podcasting.
- Used more digital channels to reach new clients.
- Kept events and networking going by taking it online.
- Kept learning and moving forward.
- Regularly reviewed results and adapted their approach.
- Created a more flexible approach to marketing based on what was happening.
Review, reset, reap the rewards
So, learning the lessons from the last lockdown, there’s plenty you can be doing now to keep your business in tip-top shape while we sit this thing out. Firstly, forget a year-long detailed marketing plan. Nothing is as crucial as reviewing your goals and resetting them to suit this new normal. And above all, ensuring they’re adaptable – because quite frankly, who knows what will happen next!
“However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.”
Sir Winston Churchill
For the clients that we provide outsourced marketing to, we’ll be carrying out a regular 90-day review to check their objectives, activities and performance. Then we’ll set out an outline plan of activity in calendar format, making sure we check in with them every two weeks to see how everything is progressing. With each review, we’ll be looking for answers to these questions:
- Where are we now and what have we learned so far?
- Where do we need to get to?
- What needs to happen to make it happen?
- Who’s going to do it?
- How will we know if we’ve been successful?
Secondly, make the most of all the digital channels out there to connect with your clients. And if you’re not confident you know what you’re doing, don’t be afraid to obtain, recruit or buy in the knowledge you need. If budgets are tight, work out what you need to deliver and see if you can cut anything elsewhere to pay for it.
“The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.”
Michael Porter
At Uniquity, we’ve spent the last six months investing in learning with Digital Marketeer, ensuring our skills are bang up to date. We’ve also become StoryBrand Certified Guides to ensure we can help our clients clarify their message and create a marketing strategy that works. Basically our advice would be, work out what skills you need and go find them.
Need help to reset?
Why not book a call to discuss a reset strategy for your business? Together we can ensure you emerge from these strange times fighting fit and in a better place than when it all started.
