With all the uncertainty around the spread of Coronavirus COVID-19 and what it will mean on society as a whole, I wanted to reach out to clients, colleagues and friends with an update on Temerity Digital, and to extend our support and advice to make sure we all get through as a community.
Currently, it is business as usual for our team, with a work-from-home action plan now in place. Our web design projects, SEO campaigns and other digital marketing strategies are continuing as normal and monthly reports and updates will be sent through at their regular intervals.
During these uncertain times, it can be tempting to do as little as possible, and just try to “get by”. But while cutting unnecessary costs is a smart move, this is actually the best time to be investing in your business!
As Warren Buffet says…
“Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful”.
I saw an awesome post on Facebook yesterday of a local bakery who has put together “make your own sour dough kits”. They are literally selling like hot cakes!
So, don’t be afraid to reinvent yourself and think of angles for your business that can help people out during these crazy times!
How your business can prosper in the face of Covid-19
As our economy reels from the effects of Covid-19, it’s easy for businesses to panic, stop spending money and basically shut up shop. But the reality is that businesses can thrive in down times. Here are some important tips to help your business prosper in these difficult times.
- Have a plan – sitting down and writing an actual plan can help you come up with a way forward and provide a feeling of control
- Stay engaged with customers – actively reach out and let them know you are there for them and show ways they can continue to buy from you
- Be creative with meetings – Zoom and Skype make it a lot easier to have meetings with people all over the world, creating online videos can also help staff and customers alike
- Practice altruism – over the next few months, think of ways you can genuinely help others in need, this is about sticking together and providing support first and foremost
- Balance work and health – allowing flexible working conditions and suitable health safeguards will not only protect your staff but your productivity in the long term
- Stay patient and calm – accepting that we are in for difficult times ahead and practising relaxation and mindfulness will keep stress levels down and improve mental health
- Adapt and look for opportunities – be aware of all the challenges facing your business and find new ways, new solutions and new markets
Why SEO is an important tool during tough times
Temerity Digital has been providing online marketing services since 2003 and in that time we have witnessed a lot of ups and downs. Three factors stand out when it comes to those who do well in tough times:
- they look at ways to evolve
- they put their customers first
- they continue to invest in their business
SEO is a very important strategy that all businesses should be investing in, especially when things get hard.
It’s understandable that some business owners think:
“Hardly anyone is going to buy anything for the next 3-6 months, I should just stop everything”.
But there are several reasons why SEO is key right now.
Create content that keeps your audience/clients engaged during the crisis.
Providing assistance, advice and updates during the tough period that lies ahead will not only keep your brand front of mind to customers and prospects, but also increase goodwill. So, when they ARE ready to take action again, you will be the logical choice.
Ensure you are staying visible on search
Even if you feel no-one will be purchasing your products/services in the coming months, shutting up shop is the worst thing you could do. Search volumes are still strong and with people likely forced to spend more time at home, this will continue through the “quiet” period.
Despite uses being cautious and not willing to take action right now, they are still searching on Google. So, if you’re showing up high in the results, this increased brand awareness will pay big dividends when the user moves from the research phase to a buyer.
Keep up with new search trends
The changing environment means businesses have to evolve too. Some consumers may search differently from before so it’s crucial to monitor Google Trends to see what new keywords or questions being asked in your industry. This will allow you to adjust your business model to better serve these people and also create content on your website around these topics. Not only will you future proof your business, but you’ll attract more visitors to your site by ranking prominently for these new search terms and topics.
Data is your friend
Keeping a close eye on your website traffic is very important during tough times. Not only can you see if visitors to your site are increasing or decreasing but also if certain pages are getting more traction than others. Data can give valuable insight into which pages and content you should be focusing on and looking to optimise.
SEO isn’t something you can just “pause”
“Pausing” an SEO campaign even for just a couple of months will do more harm than good. Not only will your search rankings slip, but you won’t have access to keyword ranking and traffic data during this time, which will make it harder to analyse longer term trends. Plus when you’re ready to start up again, it will likely take a number of additional months to get back to a prominent spot and start generating leads. So, even if you get through this tricky period, you won’t be in a position to take advantage of new business when the buyers DO return!
Continuing to invest in SEO during these tough times will allow not only maintain your web presence but allow you to get ahead of other businesses. With less competition, it’s your chance to not only dominate Google in the short term but be in a very strong position when things return to normal.
Now is actually a great time to start SEO
As a business owner, you might think this is the worst possible time to start an SEO campaign. But the exact opposite is true. SEO is a gradual process and it usually takes 3-6 months to start ranking well in Google.
By using this quiet time to invest in SEO and build up your web presence, your site will be perfectly poised in a prominent position on Google when consumers start returning to the market.
Paid Ads still have their place in today’s market
While SEO should be seen as a long term game that requires an ongoing strategy, Google Ads can in fact be switched on and off. This makes it more tempting to push the pause button during tough times. But a targeted Ads campaign can actually provide noticeable benefits for your business and ensure you come out the other side stronger.
What to do with your Google Ads campaign:
- Keep campaigns running, and be aggressive in a time when other might be conservative. If consumers are still searching for products or services you offer, you want to reach them when they are in a state of need.
- Search volumes are only slightly lower, and while conversions won’t be as high, cost per click is also down, giving businesses an opportunity to reach their audience for less.
- As with SEO, maintaining strong brand awareness will also put you in a better position with consumers just “looking”, when they return as active buyers.
- For businesses looking to scale down operations – keep your presence through brand campaigns and top performing campaign themes – but scale back budgets as needed.
Everything will return to normal
It will likely take a number of months, but everything will return to normal. It might be a slightly new normal but people will continue to do business.
It can be easy to get caught up in the panic, slash costs and do nothing but wait out this crisis. But the longer you wait to take action, the harder it will be to get back on track.
Use this time to strengthen your business so you’re in a great position when things improve.
Stay safe.
