We here at Catdi Printing hope that the following tips will help you make sense of this situation and devise some next steps for your business to take during the quarantine.

Keep Calm and Devise a Plan

First, take a deep breath. Even if the quarantine itself isn’t stressing you out, you’re still likely asking yourself:

• Can I keep my business afloat?
• Do I have to close the shop for a while?
• Can I afford to pay the wages of my employees?

And these questions are stressful. The coronavirus quarantine has to be taken seriously if we want to put a stop to the epidemic. While the world works through it to get over this bump on the road, you can take care of a few things in your business’ marketing efforts.

As you may know, conferences and outdoor marketing are both out of the question due to concerns about spreading the virus. But, it doesn’t mean all your marketing needs to come to a halt. Here are some areas you can address now that you have the time:

1. Focus on Content Marketing

Content marketing is a powerful tool not many businesses leverage. Studies show that those who focus on blogging are as much as 13 times more likely to see a positive ROI than those who don’t.Content marketing takes time and effort. If your department was previously focused on other methods, specifically outdoor methods, maybe you never had the chance to dive into content marketing. Now you can, and it’s not only something to keep you busy in the present. A well-crafted blog will be beneficial in the long term as well.

2. Strengthen Your Email Marketing Game

You are not the only one who’s probably taking cover in the comfort of your home – so is your consumer. If you’ve never had an email marketing campaign, this is the perfect opportunity to start.

Email marketing is the digital version of a tried and tested method of promoting a brand – getting something in the mail. Except now, it’s much easier, and cheaper to send the coupon to thousands of customers at the same time. And thanks to great software like MailChimp, emails can be so personalized that the individual customer reads something that seems written only for them.

Did you know it may also be the preferred means of communication for your customers? Some statistics show that around 91% of shoppers want to hear from their preferred businesses via email. And if you think about what an email is, it makes sense:

• The format allows you to give more information;
• Links can be added to allow a user to easily inform themselves;
• Is less invasive, since the user can choose if they want to click to open an email or not.

3.  Update Your Current Web Design & Leverage Social Media

Rather than doing away with your current website,  an cost effective alternative to is freshen your current website. Simple things like adding a blog or redoing the homepage can help your SEO and strengthen your position in the SERPS. Doing these couple of things can be really cost effective.  In addition If your business does not have any social media accounts, you should consider opening some. Social networks are a great way to keep in touch with consumers in a way that seems less informal than through emails or your official website.

Social media allows customers to interact with you directly by commenting on your post or sending you a private message. And again, your customers want you to interact with them. Around 86% of consumers want a brand to have an honest social media approach.

So, you may also be thinking “what can I possibly post on social media at this time?” Well, here are a few suggestions:

• Business updates – for instance, if you have a restaurant, let your clientele know what your plans are for the near future. Are you closing? Are you only taking delivery orders? Why?
• Safety recommendation – you can share with your consumers, small tips on how they can stay safe at this time, such as washing their hands for at least 20 seconds or practicing social distancing;
• Behind the scenes – consumers love to see what goes on behind the scenes of your business, so if you have a particularly interesting manufacturing process, now’s the time to share some photos or videos!

Non-Business Plan Ideas & Recommendations

We also have to talk about the personal implications of this quarantine because it’s not always about the business:

4. Let Your Employees Work from Home If Possible

It’s really important for as many people to align themselves with national efforts to stop the spread of the virus. For business owners, that means allowing your employers to work from home where possible.

For example, most of the tasks your marketing department has are likely taking place online anyway. There’s no point in forcing them to come into the office while everyone else is worried about the virus. The same goes for the HR department and other employees that don’t have to physically handle things in your business.

It’s also a way to show your employees you care about them and value their safety more than your bottom line. Plus, you really don’t want to be the business that made its employees come to work at a time like this. This kind of news spreads fast.

5. Spend More Time with Your Family

It’s times like these where we realize just how important it is to spend time with family and close ones. Though you may be worried about your business and want to focus on reassuring your employees, you need to do the same with your loved ones.

And yes, you can’t necessarily go out and travel for a while, though there are plenty of activities at home to take part in and bond:

• Watch a movie;
• Cook together;
• Make a DIY project;
• Play a tabletop game, etc.

6. Meet Those Around You, Establish Relationships and Lend a Hand

It’s a busy world we live in. So busy, that most people don’t even know their neighbors, even though you may have been living next to them for years.

And some of your neighbors may even be more scared about this pandemic than you are, and for good reasons. It’s widely known that older people and those with a compromised immune system are more at risk to suffer the worst of the coronavirus symptoms. The vast majority of those who’ve succumbed to the disease come from these categories.

So if you are not that worried or are not highly at risk, you can take this time to help others. Maybe you have a single, old woman living next to you. Why not knock on her door and offer to help her? You can go grocery shopping for her, and buy the things she needs, but can’t get herself because she is worried about the virus. It’s a really small gesture when you think about it, but one that is really vital for some people.

7. Keep Yourself and Your Family Safe

There is a lot of evidence that shows the coronavirus is not as deadly as other diseases out there but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be careful.

Because it’s often not about you but those around you. If one person is careless, they can infect hundreds of others, some of which may be more at-risk. So it’s important to take care of your own health at this time and protect your family, friends, and other people you come into contact with.

The CDC has a few recommendations on how to make this happen:

• Stay indoors as much as possible – the virus is transmitted from person to person, so the only way to really protect yourself is to avoid close contact with other people. So stay in your home, and only go out if you really need to, such as if you need to go to the pharmacy or grocery shopping;
• Wash your hands often – you can touch an area that’s been compromised, and then take the virus from your hands to your body by touching your face. Washing your hands regularly with soap and water is the next essential step to staying safe. If they aren’t available, you can use hand sanitizer instead;
• Practice social distancing – if you’re a lovey-dovey person, you should refrain from hugging, kissing, shaking hands, or even fist-bumping people for a while. Keep your distance from people, just to stay safe.

Over to You

With around 170,029 confirmed cases of coronavirus worldwide, it’s easy to panic and want to lock yourself inside your doors. But, it’s important to remain calm at this time and remember a lot of things can’t be put on hold.

Like your business. There are a lot of things you can still do to ensure you are still communicating with your customers.  At Catdi Printing your safety is our # 1 priority. Period.As in business and life sometime you just have to change the medium a little bit, for a while. Please call us if you have any concerns at 713 882 4629

The post Coronavirus Affecting Your Business? Here’s What You Should be Doing Instead of Panicking appeared first on Catdi Printing.

There are many ways you can continue communications going with your clients. It is best that you use all the necessary avenues you can think of to make sure your customers know you are open and that your services are still available to them. There are a lot of people who do not know that your business is not open. During times like this, people are more likely to be focused on things that they need to maintain the health and safety of themselves and their loved ones. We at Catdi Printing create a COVID-19 Marketing Resources

So what are some ways you can reach out and let people know that your business is open? There are a few ways you can go about that. Continue reading to find out the ways you can openly communicate with the public during COVID-19.

Use Direct Mailing

Many marketers turned to digital channels during the pandemic for a bunch of reasons. It made the most sense for B-to-B companies where their customers were at home accessing email but not their office postal mail. Yet the increase of electronic communications eventually produced a certain numbness among consumers who began freely exercising the use of their delete buttons. Likewise, social media was used more for interactions with friends and family with advertisements often viewed as an unwelcome intrusion.

Not so with direct mail marketing. Mailbox content thinned out, and well-targeted, well-produced, pandemic-sensitive direct mail was welcomed.  Further, health authorities such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) quickly established that both mail and packages were completely safe, thus minimizing concerns over disease transmission. In fact, there have been no confirmed COVID-19 infections in the U.S. from either mail or home-delivered packages. Both the USPS and the package delivery services have done a great job further allaying concerns through their own best practices and procedures.

Direct mailing is a good way to get the message out that your business is open and ready for business. Electronic communications is probably the number one way a lot of businesses are out there communicating with the public that they are still open. While that is a way you can go, when you go the direct mailing route, you may stick out amongst the pack and that could very easily lead to more business coming to you.

Use Your Site

Another way you can communicate with your customer base is through your website. This is the easiest and most efficient way you can let people know you are open since almost everything is done online today. One thing you can do is set up an “alert” email chain where your clients can enter their emails in so your business can send them updates via email on what is going on with your business. 

Something you want to remember when using any method of communication with your clients, is it is okay to acknowledge that these are not normal times that we live in. Address the issue right away so your customers know you understand what they are going through. The second thing you want to do is not keep the marketing of your company exactly the same as it was before covid. That will just give off the sense that you are not attentive to the struggles that the people are going through. A big thing you can do when reaching out to people during corona is give them hope. This does not mean you have to tell them everything is going to be awesome, but it does not take a lot to make sure your communications with them are on the positive side. This will make them think fondly of you and your business and that will only help both you and your customers in the long run. 

Social Media Is Another Tool at Your Disposal

Whether it is Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Instagram, Snapchat, or any other form of social media, those are the number one forms of communication used today. More likely than not, you have your business page on one of those platforms. The best thing you can do with your page is use it as a line of communication. Use social media to reach out to the public and let them know you are open and tell them why now is a great time to purchase whatever you are selling. It is not going to be an easy task, but it is one that is manageable. 

As it was with the direct mailing and website, the number one thing you want to express through social media is compassion. If you come off as someone who is just trying to make money off of people during a pandemic, the public will immediately shut you out and go somewhere that seems more like they care. These are sensitive times and now is not the time be as aggressive as you once were. 

In the end, these are trying times for everyone, from businesses to families. Almost everyone has had it rough. While your business is important, you do not want to lose sight of what is happening in this country. It is not wrong of you to market your business during a pandemic. It just means you now have to be even more careful of what you say and how you go about doing it. It is a tricky path but one that is manageable.

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