Businesses getting back to a new normal.

So many people are staying at home and spending more time online. Focus on creating meaningful content that will be important to your customers, for social media and your website. Some services and policies may have worked fine pre-COVID-19 but now need to be tweaked a bit, coming out of it. The key is to communicate with your customers.

If you've been open with restrictions and will now allow more services to be available, let your customers know. If you stopped doing business during the crisis, you'll need to keep customers informed on how you plan to re-open, while still practicing safe policies.

You may need to consider how your business should adjust to a new normal. For example, if you relied on customers coming into your location for sales, you will need to look at online options to accommodate those people who are now shopping from home. Pay attention to trends and focus on finding new opportunities. Be creative with ways to expand your customer base by addressing areas that you might be able to fill with your products or services. Consider your business's strengths and weaknesses. Do you have something new to offer a local consumer? Do you have new options for pickup or delivery?

Look at your branding:

With regards to advertising, make sure your branding is at it's best. Have a look at your website, marketing materials and social media presentation to ensure that they will attract customers, old and new. If not, change it up. Remind people of what you have to offer and how you will be doing so. Maybe get a brochure designed or revamp your website.

Social media & online business:

This is still one of the quickest and easiest ways to get information to your customers and attract new ones. Continue to remind your them of your plans and let them know that you'll be available. Make sure your hours of operation are clearly stated or how they will be changing.

• If you don't have a website or social media, you should consider implementing them. The cost and ease of these options are totally worthwhile. 
• Create a landing page with a signup form, share the link across your social media and then send regular updates to keep people informed about everything going on with you and your business.
• Consider setting up social media ads to boost awareness among your current customers and attract brand new ones, too.
• If you already have an online store, you may be experiencing a dramatic increase in online traffic and sales, due to recent events. You'll need to be creative in your response to continue to meet the needs of your customers.
• Watch for ways that may open up for your online store to sell your products in unique ways, to help the consumer.

We will all be happy when things are as they used to be. Until then, we need to move cautiously to ensure the safety of everyone, while keeping our products and services available to the community.