Things are a bit crazy now to say the least.  Coming into the office this week we received a phone call from a client, who happens to be our next-door office neighbor. This put it all into perspective…

“We wanted to let you know that with everything going on we are going to have trouble paying our invoices until all of this settles down, over the weekend too, we had to let go more than 50% of our employees…” They advised us they had to cancel 20+ events and don't know how it will impact their business long term.  - The next day our parking lot, which normally was full, was empty.

Many of us are going to experience these calls, event cancellations, panic, and uncertainty. No one knows the extent COVID-19 will have on the supply chain, production timelines, inventory replenishments and other critical elements that help us conduct our day-to-day business. So, what should we be focusing on? How do we protect our companies from a pandemic?

CONTROL THE CONTROLLABLES

With all the uncertainties – focus on the elements of your business you can control. Do you have weekly sales calls or meetings? Keep them! Do them remotely via webinars. Use this time to keep up with your team, discuss upcoming projects, and connect with them on a personal level to make sure they are doing OK. Take advantage of free resources like Zoom Meetings to stay in touch with your teams.  Do you send out prospecting emails? Keep doing them! Shift the focus from product-centered to ways you can help them with their current struggles. Remember you and your customer share the same challenges now.

Check out some of these resources:

https://zoom.us/docs/en-us/covid19.html - use this to host meeting with customers and your team

https://calendly.com/pages/pricing - use this to organize your digital calendar or to let customers sign up for webinar appointments

https://kahoot.com/ - use this to create fun interactive quizzes during meetings

PPAI.org Corona Virus Updates – use this to find out all the latest information regarding suppliers and COVID-19

BE AS CREATIVE AS YOU ADVERTISE

We are the trendsetters, the creative minds, the innovators of the business world. Adapt quickly to the digital meeting landscape with customers and get creative! Think about hosting private or open webinars for your customers. Consider topics such as trending products in the industry, how the pandemic is affecting the promo industry, or solutions for their current projects.  Think about fun webinars featuring un-boxings of samples and new products. Boost engagement by having interactive meetings using services like Kahoot to add in fun quizzes and surveys during the live meetings! If your customers have canceled events talk to them about using those marketing dollars to send kits and promo to the end-users homes. Many people will be in their homes for weeks…think about sending promo that helps them work, play, and enjoy that time!

FOCUS ON THE FUTURE

It's fair to say that the future is unknown. Orders and projects are slowing down as companies turn their focus to the health and safety of their employees and businesses. What happens though, when in a few months, everyone comes back to work at the SAME TIME and all the events that were postponed or canceled get scheduled to the Summer or Fall? What happens if new inventory is delayed or is dramatically limited? It’s probable that there will be a huge surge of orders, all with similar in-hand date windows. Conferences will be stacked on top of each other and rush orders could rise with reduced time to plan for rescheduled events. Inventory could deplete at a faster rate without time to wait on future stock.  It’s our responsibility to be cognizant of this and to help our customers AND suppliers be prepared. Once your customers settle into their home offices, schedule time to discuss these future projects. Encourage them NOT to wait. Start brainstorming and coming up with plans to execute their projects and get your orders placed and in que asap.

ORGANIZE AND REFRESH

Messy showroom? Office? Inbox? Website? Social Media? Take the time to clean up your image and work space. Set yourself up for success by reorganizing your office, freshening up the showroom and purging all those discontinued pieces that have been sitting out there since 2000.  We always have the excuse of being too busy to get organized – so what’s the excuse now?

There is no guaranteed strategy to overcome situations out of our control such as COVID-19 – but there certainly are ways for us to be more proactive and responsible businesses in times of crisis. Encourage your teams to evolve their business strategies, connect digitally, and take the time to refresh your brand and work space. Continue to connect with your customers and don’t forget the human element. Suppliers, Distributors, Customers and End Users are all feeling similar effects and we need to work with one another to come out better on the other side!

Stephen McFadden, CAS

Promo Kitchen Sous Chef

President of Perfect Promotions & More, Inc.