5 Things you can do for your business during the LockDown

Even though everyone is staying indoors and only allowed out for one hour a day or to get essentials it does not mean that our business’ have to be put on hold. There is lots of stuff that we can do to make the most of this downtime and maybe even secure the limited sales that will be available – Here are our top 5 things that you can do for your business during this UK COVID-19 lockdown

1. Market Market Market

Although the UK is in a state of lockdown life still keeps ticking along and so do the people in it. Hunters will be hunters, golfers will be golfers and Airsofters are still going to be thinking about airsoft regardless if they can play or not. When the boredom sets in and they have rearranged their loadout for the 15th time they are going to start looking online for new kit and accessories. If they are going to spend money then best that they spend it with you and not somewhere else. Make sure you are in the spotlight and can be seen on socials and online.

Marketing doesn’t have to cost a fortune. There are lots of things that you can do for little or no outlay – you could jump on Facebook and help a new player with a tech question, you could film a youtube video or review a product, you could launch a podcast and interview airsoft celebs, you could even live broadcast or just write a few posts. Apart from the time investment all of the above are pretty much free. Some shops have got very creative and launched Facebook live quiz’ or online socials – The sky is the limit, so think big!

2. Polish your website

Websites are our online storefront and as such, they need to look as good as our physical storefronts. This lul in proceedings is a good time to get online and polish up our websites. Are all the images of high quality and from multiple angles? Can the customer really appreciate how good these products are and how to use them? Are the descriptions strong enough to support the product? Could you add a video to the listing to show how the product works or explain a special feature? These all help to reinforce our virtual storefronts for when customers are ready to spend. This might seem like a thankless task during a period of downtime, however, think of it more of a time investment so that when everything is back online your business is in a strong virtual position.

If you are not very good at writing copy why not speak to some of your top customers – This might be a good opportunity for them to get involved and help as I’m sure they are just sitting at home and twiddling their thumbs! 

3 Get into a Routine

This is important for your physical and mental health and also to remain productive when working from home. You cant be asking “why am I not getting any orders” if you are sitting on your sofa in your pants, watching real housewives of new york at three in the afternoon. If you are working from home then the keyword there is Working. 

Everyone has their own little tricks to stay productive – a buddy of mine who has children decided to work from a dedicated room in the house and explain to his kids that between set times Dad was “out of bounds”. I’m sure this was a hard concept to get across but it worked very well. Other people find that keeping to their normal routine is the best way – getting up on time – getting dressed in work clothes and being at your desk on time. However you make it work, Make sure you Work

4 Think outside the box

What else could you do in your business? Is there something else that you could be doing to overcome the current restrictions. In the 1960’s when Dominos opened its doors, it was planned to be a classic pizza shop where people would phone in, place an order and then come and collect. They noticed that they were not getting the footfall and had to make changes or risk going out of business. They decided to offer local delivery in a few of their stores and their turnover almost doubled within a month – thus the chain we all know and love was born and I’m sure you can agree it has gone from strength to strength.

Think about this example – is there something that you could do in your business to adapt to what is going on? Do you have a skill you could apply? Perhaps you have an embroidery machine and you could personalise pouches before they are sent out to customers – have a think! – Think outside the box!  

5 Do your bit

This one is not really about benefiting your business financially but more about karma and doing good. What is going on in your local community? Is there something that you could help out with? For example, Does the local care home need someone to run errands or collect supplies for the facility and you could use your company van to help? I’m sure when things are back to normal your good deeds will be recognised by the local community. Tough times like these are when we all need to come together to help one another – If you pay it forward it will come back!