Unprecedented—this is one of the many words used to describe the COVID-19 pandemic. And it truly is. Most people never thought this could happen in their lifetime. Even more people never expected its consequences to be as bad as they have experienced or still experiencing now. Because of this, many did not come prepared to face these challenges.
The business sector had to enforce drastic changes to survive the obstacles catapulted at them by the pandemic. Employees worked from home, entrepreneurs took loans, and—worse—businesses closed one after the other.
Unfortunately, some of these changes are bound to stay even after the pandemic. Even then, this crisis served as an experience for entrepreneurs to be prepared for unforeseen events.
How to Get Ready for the Post-Pandemic World
Online Presence
Technology has proven to have an enormous role during this pandemic. As people stayed home, they used their devices, gadgets, and the internet to connect with the outside world. Through technology, people were able to do things that they would typically do outside before the pandemic. They shopped, talked to their friends and family, worked, went to school, and so on.
Due to this heavy reliance on technology, online presence has become a requirement for businesses. Nowadays, consumers discover brands through online platforms and do their research before making a purchase.
Websites, social media presence, digital marketing—all these matter when trying to survive the post-pandemic world. Increasing the online presence of your business helps you reach a wider audience while reinforcing your brand in a more streamlined way. It also provides an avenue to engage with consumers, whether it is through customer service or lead generation.
The Right Technology
Since people have embraced the purpose of technology in this socially distanced world, technology would more likely play a significant role in the post-pandemic world. Intelligent automation benefits businesses only if they are willing to integrate it into their processes. It saves time, money, effort, and employees’ productivity.
Knowing the right technology for your business is subjective. Entrepreneurs should be the ones to decide on this. The process of automation entails several steps, adjustments, and data to ensure its success.
At the end of the day, it’s the companies’ growth and survival, as well as the employees’ well-being, which comes into play. While facing this change, remember to keep an eye on your goals and always be ready to adapt.
WFH Policies
A way to embrace technology in the workplace is through offering remote work options for employees. Since the lockdowns began, work-from-home has been normalized—and it’s more likely to change the landscape of work in the future.
Companies have revised their policies to cater to work from home options for their employees. The guidelines may include a hybrid setup where employees can show up at the office for a part of the workweek and work from home for the rest of the week. Other companies also give employees the choice of WFH, office, or hybrid. Some have also embraced outsourcing for effective delegation of tasks.
Having these policies in the company gives employees the freedom to choose the setup that matches their preferences. Some can do more work when they’re alone, while others love working in an environment with white noise. Such policies could increase productivity since employees would be working in conditions that they prefer.
Customer Retention
Customer retention is a lot cheaper than acquiring new customers—about five times cheaper, to be exact. Loyal customers would also spend up to 57% more on businesses that they steadily support.
However, don’t get this wrong. Investing in marketing and advertising remains essential to businesses. It’s just that companies also need to allocate some of their resources to build customer rapport and loyalty. They can focus on the following efforts to increase customer retention:
- Customer service. Improving customer service can involve personalization, accessibility, availability, empathy, and several other strategies. Customers should have a pleasant experience with you, and it should make their lives easier.
- Increased customer engagement. Communication with customers could range from interacting on social media and asking for feedback to having an e-mail list. This way, people receive updates about your products and services while also being reminded about your business.
- Free stuff. Getting things for free feels amazing for the average person, and it’s also an effective way to make them feel like they matter. Other than simply giving out freebies, businesses can consider starting loyalty programs, giveaways, or special subscriptions to loyal customers.
A Pandemic Security Preparedness Plan
Surviving the pandemic requires compromise and reassessment. It may involve a lot of questions for entrepreneurs to address in order to enforce plans.
Planning is a crucial step to surviving the pandemic as this guarantees success in the post-pandemic world. In a way, sustaining the business during the pandemic gives the company a head start to help deal with the post-pandemic world’s problems.
The preparedness plan can easily be a holistic change for your business. So, even before making it, you should evaluate all the aspects of the company: finances, culture, identity, processes, employees, and so on.
There could also be a way to avoid laying off employees, but you would need utmost transparency. Since WFH would probably remain after the pandemic, businesses should include managing pay for remote workers in their plans. Most of all, consider the cost of your plan. Aside from doing the math, you should also monitor where the money will go—or not go—when the plan is enforced.
Prepare Your Business for the Post-Pandemic World
The pandemic may have been unexpected, but businesses can learn from this and start taking precautions. The post-pandemic world has drastic changes waiting for every business, which can reflect online and offline.
Technology will be ever more present in the post-pandemic world. Automating business processes, increasing online presence, and updating WFH policies will help you cope with this change. Customer retention is still an integral part of the process, as it saves money and resources. Most of all, businesses need a preparedness plan to safeguard themselves and their employees.
Author Bio:
Amanda Poe is the Vice President and Head of Marketing for Outsource Access in Atlanta, Georgia. She has a passion for technology and streamlining processes while utilizing the most affordable resources. With several years of experience, she aims to grow clients big and small, while helping them keep their life in balance.
