Six months ago, finishing touches were being made to 2020 business plans ready for a prosperous year ahead. Post-Brexit, the British economy was finally moving forward. Back then, nobody could have imagined that a global health crisis and a resulting economic meltdown would mean plans would be thrown out in favour of damage limitation. So with plans out of the window, what should small business owners be doing now to emerge stronger after Covid-19? MD & Founder of Cherish PR Rebecca Oatley explores 5 ways to help your business to emerge stronger after COVID-19.
Realise what’s important to you
Many business owners made the decision to start their own business for personal reasons. Often they can be put aside in favour of that big contract or managing a growing team. But the world has changed. Now is a great time to refocus on why you are in business and what is important to you. Write a new business vision that directly links to personal ambitions. Refocus success metrics around the vision and work up a “you focused” 2020 plan.
Don’t be afraid to look back to move forward
They say that you learn more from your mistakes than your successes. To emerge stronger, review and gather insights on both from recent business past. Which moments affected the business and how was this managed. Can this be applied moving forward? What were the milestone moments and can this be replicated in future plans?
Now is the time to “speedboat” your business
You may have heard that small business benefits from being the speedboat, not the tanker. This means that big companies are slow because of associated overheads like expensive office leases, big machinery etc. After COVID-19 minimise fixed overheads to be able to move faster. Review your business now and work out of cumbersome contracts that are slowing your business down. Agility is key.
Baby step business planning
Be realistic when setting milestones for 2020 and beyond. The global economy may be affected by the virus for months and years to come. Now is the time to set achievable milestones that you can be successful against – whether that’s targets like reducing overhead sustainably by X% or maintaining a breakeven position.
Marketing is more important than ever before
Often the first expenditure to go in times of trouble, but marketing is critical to ensure you are top of mind when your customer is making a purchasing decision. COVID-19 has moved customers online, and so making sure your digital marketing is up to scratch and being proactive online is more important than ever before. Review your marketing to make sure it’s working hard digitally.
