Marketing Tips During COVID

So here we are still in the middle of the COVID situation. It’s early June. People are starting to begin to return to normal life, even as cases continue to go up around the state of Oregon. From a business standpoint, and from a marketing standpoint, the businesses that we have seen be most successful through all of this are the ones who are able to stay positive, stay open (if legal to do so) and not talk about COVID.

They had NOTHING about essential workers, and avoided using phrases like, “in these unprecedented times”, “in these uncertain times”. Those little keywords right now are actually repelling people from coming into doing business with you.

Stay Positive

So what do you do?

• Well first, stay positive, always push out a positive message. Offer crazy deals because people are starting to get out. You want to capture their business if they have a choice in your community. That’s the number one thing.

• Number two, this is your opportunity for spectacular customer service. People are coming through your business and they might be a little bit nervous. If you can appeal to their sense of caution and concern, and also provide them great customer service, show them how much you appreciate them coming to your business and keeping you going, you will potentially lock in a customer who will be loyal for many, many years to come.

• The third thing is stay consistent with your messaging. DON’T pull back on Facebook or whatever other advertising that you’re doing. The most successful businesses we have seen, haven’t quite doubled down, but have taken advantage of staying in the game.

We have seen great deals made by radio stations and TV stations, trying to maintain some business and keeping their airwaves full or the pages in the newspaper full. So if you’re a smart shopper, you can get good deals. Take advantage of those a little bit, but keep your messaging going.

So those are the tips that I would give, coming from the experience of the successful clients that we have.

Keep Pushing

Now let’s talk about what’s next. Now that businesses are beginning to open more and Phase II is becoming comfortable for some people, it’s about getting back to work. Again, I would say, find a great price point on a service that you offer and push that offer as much as you possibly can.

The next thing I would do is commit as much budget as you possibly can to the advertising platforms that you’re already comfortable with. RIGHT NOW, is when you need to know what works for you. If you’re just starting out and you don’t really know, will Facebook work for me? Will Google work for me? It’s a little bit tougher. If you’ve already been advertising and you know what works, that’s where I would double down and get some budget out to be able to put some information out there, so that your customers know you’re open again.

And a third tip, as we move through June and into July and the rest of the summer…

Take Care of Your Employees

Show your employees how much you appreciate them. If your employees are taken well care of and things are put in place to make them feel comfortable, it will show in the work they do and in the face they present to your clients.

You probably can’t talk to every single client that comes through your business, maybe you can. But if you have employees, say if you’re in a restaurant, if they’re happy and they’re comfortable and they feel like they’re well-supported, you are really going to see a different level of customer service. So it seems like everything comes back to customer service. It probably does, but that’s another tip that I would give you as we go forward.

Going in the Right Direction

At BP Media Solutions, just like you, we’re ready to go to work! So give us a call, let us know how we can help. We’ll always sit down for a 30-minute free consultation to give you an idea of what we would suggest you do. If we can help you, then we will definitely go to work for you. If not, we’ll at least point you in the right direction.

If you have somebody that can handle some of the things that you would pay us for, then great! You’re ahead! But we’d love to be there and work with you as we all move through this interesting summer that’s ahead. But stay positive, keep pushing, find a great price point, take care of your customers, take care of your employees, and thank the people that come through your door as we come into the summer of 2020.

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About the Author Brian Prawitz, owner of BP Media Solutions.

Brian’s passion for customer service led to the creation and launch of BP Media Solutions in May of 2015. “Going the extra mile, providing face-to-face accountability, and exceeding goals are all things I live for.” Brian spent 25 years in radio as an award-winning news and sports announcer in Seattle, Missoula, Montana, and Roseburg, Oregon. He spent 18 months in the Marketing Department at Seven Feathers Casino Resort before BP Media Solutions was born.

Brian and his wife Jannie were empty nesters for about three months before welcoming all three of their grown daughters and one son-in-law home from various colleges in 2020. They love camping, theater, Disneyland, and (Brian loves) golf.

To connect with Brian: bp@gobpmedia.com