It has been half a year since the outbreak of Coronavirus, and in a short period of six months, it has managed to flip our lives upside down.
Sad, but isn’t it true?
From having to practice social distancing, avoid going outdoors until it is quite necessary to wash hands frequently, wearing masks, and seeing our loved ones falling sick, the Coronavirus is something that none of us expected.
And, this is not it.
Our businesses are suffering to a great extent. Shutdowns owing to the COVID-19 pandemic have affected a host of industries and sectors in a myriad of ways. Part of the fallout has also changed the behavior of Web users, which brought recognizable trends in organic traffic, conversion rates and eventually in online marketing
It would not be wrong to say that COVID-19 came as a reset for the entire world. And, in the coming months, businesses are going to become more reliant on digital marketing than ever. It might sound too alarmist, however, in many cases, digital presence will be the deciding factor in what the business would be able to make it through the tough times ahead.
It is estimated that in total COVID-19 will cost the economy around $2.7 trillion. Shocking right? However, this is not all. The businesses that are still not turning to online marketing are going to suffer till last.
Now, you must be thinking-
Why Turning to Digital is the Only Option for Companies to Survive Coronavirus?
Here is your answer.
B2B companies, particularly, rely on trade shows and conferences to grow their network and build customer relationships. However, to curb the spread of infection all major events and technical meet-ups for this year have been canceled. Even in the near future, your prospective clients are going to be least open to ideas of letting you walk through the door and shake hands.
Now, you are getting it a bit right? The solution to halt in physical meetings and conferences is opening new channels over the web or social media platforms where introductions can be made and relationships can be fostered.
Larger companies are also in the position of losing millions of new business opportunities due to the cancellation of events. However, most of them have smartly shifted their marketing budget to digital marketing strategies. Even the companies that may not have a Facebook page before now need to move into content marketing, social marketing, SEO and influencer-led campaigns.
We are in highly uncertain times, but with the increase in remote working, companies are turning to digital channels and embracing the transformation. In the last few weeks, a great spike has been experienced in the number of companies who are looking forward to creating or updating websites, creating social media campaigns, and launching new e-commerce channels.
What does all that mean?
It means that if you are one of those who are finding it hard to survive the crisis, then you should start planning for internet marketing and reinvesting your business plans. And, you also need to keep adjusting them as things unfold.
The major advantage of online marketing, besides the fact that it does not require face to face interaction and thus it aligns with social distancing practices, is that it is measurable. Marketers can easily obtain which activities are generating the highest quality leads and what are the expenses for the same, in other words, they know the ROI.
Let’s check out a few activities that are happening around digital media and brands as we speak:
- Airlines and the cruise industry have reduced or paused their current advertising campaigns owing to the current climate. Does it make sense to drive traffic when consumers are not interested in buying tickets..eh?
- With the widespread fear of health, there has been an upsurge in the SEO marketing and PPC plans of pharma, healthcare, and vices (i.e. alcohol)
- The thrive in e-commerce, especially in CPG (Consumer packaged goods) marketing is definite.
- With several events and tradeshows getting canceled, the business that saw an upsurge in leads and activities is diverting their spending to online marketing to make up for the missed opportunities.
- Remote work policies are fuelling their investments in project management tools and work-flow automation projects such as Trello and Slack. E-learning platform subscriptions and telecommuting tools such as Skype and Zoom are also spending a lot in their marketing budget.
Thinking which Digital Marketing ideas will work during the Coronavirus?
No need to toss your mind much, we have brought some effective ideas to make sure your business survives the pandemic.
Let’s dive in:
Make sure your business can be found online:
Coronavirus has locked us inside our homes and since people can’t go for their regular shopping and weekend trips, where they are mostly found? The answer is online.
Search traffic has greatly increased over the past few months and will continue to climb in the coming year. We are all glued to phones and customers keep looking for updates within various communities. Also, we are looking for ways to pass the time, and for many, that includes shopping online.
Anything that will be posted online will be consumed more than ever before. This is the best time to go online and give your business kickstart. Utilize the power of well-defined SEO strategies to climb at the top of SERPs and make it easy for your customer to find you online.
PPC is Right Move for Business:
With more people at home busy on their phone and laptop screens, it is an excellent opportunity for businesses to use PPC marketing to connect with prospective customers and gain competitive advantage. According to Thrive’s senior PPC Manager, CPC is likely to reduce in the coming days, thus reducing the amount advertisers spend on ads. This will scoop up more opportunities for start-up businesses.
Be Prepared for Bounce-Back Surge:
Coronavirus would stay this year, but it should last (as it has in China) after a few months. And, surely when things would be normal, customer’s spending habits would also stabilize.
Remember that SEO is a long-term strategy and what you will opt for an SEO campaign today will affect your search engine position two months from now. Holding off your SEO campaign could have a detrimental impact on the revenue potential two months from now when coronavirus will fade away.
Local SEO is more relevant:
Make sure your business is utilizing local SEO strategies to optimize the search results for “near me” searches. If you want your customers in your geo region to find you with ease, then your website should be optimized for local search results.
During the coronavirus, online reputation management is as crucial as ever because it is a great time to connect with the audience during this chaotic time. Another way to boost local SEO is to try to get positive reviews.
Online reputation management should also be an important aspect of your digital campaign at the moment because it is a great way to really connect with your audience during these chaotic times.
Think about a special offer:
This is an uncertain situation, however, you can use it as an opportunity to show support to your customer base by providing them with special discounts. Identify the correct potential customers for your brand and create special offers.
Many people are simply browsing at home and looking for discounts to save money. It is a great time to engage with your customers and maintain a steady stream revenue that will keep your business up and running until things are back to normal.
Use this time to finish your to-do lists:
Now that you are not taking-in person meetings or not commuting, you might manage to get some time for you. Those marketing items that have fallen through the cracks and lost your attention can now be addressed.
Perhaps your website might need a new design or your SEO campaign needs to be re-start with more effective strategies or you might need an effective social media campaign. Studio27’s SEO and social media professionals can provide you with result-driven strategies to overhaul your business in two months and all while working remotely.
In a nutshell,
Businesses must be agile in this difficult time and prepared to pivot quickly. Keep looking for new ways to serve your customers while they are at their homes. Businesses that think on their feet for your business and adjust with COVID-19 marketing ideas swiftly will be ahead of their competitors that fail to follow their approaches.
What are you waiting for?
Put your pedal into metal and get your brand the deserving digital presence before this opportunity to build a solid online reputation is over.