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How to Overcome the Economic Crisis as Entrepreneurs and Business Owners?

Covid19 arrived suddenly and swiftly to shake our world. It promised not to distinguish between latitudes, countries, or social classes. It came to test our healthcare systems, our societal values; the capacity of the States and the preparedness and adaptability of businesses around the world.
It came to CHANGE PARADIGMS, ways of perceiving, thinking, and acting where one of the big winners is: THE INTERNET.

It is impossible to deny the key role that this network has played during the pandemic. But perhaps the most interesting thing is to see how everything that has happened at the start of 2020 has generated such a “glocal” consciousness around the internet, that it is urgent to consider it not only important but indispensable.

This digital transformation on a large scale presents itself as “the vaccine” that could save all businesses willing to adapt to these new conditions from intensive care, while the traditional global economy continues to crumble from its core.

If the economies of the first world are suffering from the Coronavirus and the economic crisis that was already looming, imagine what is happening with the rest of the countries and with sectors like commerce, tourism, the entertainment industry, and manufacturing, just to name a few.

Border closures, restrictions on public mobility, quarantines of entire cities; cancellation of public events, suspension of classes in schools and universities; drops in production, temporary closure of businesses; fall in oil prices and rise in the dollar; not to mention the widespread panic.

Let’s be honest, not all entrepreneurs and business owners are going to withstand this, unless…

ADAPTING TO THE DIGITAL WORLD, THE VACCINE FOR ECONOMIC LOSSES CAUSED BY THE CORONAVIRUS.

It’s true that this took us all by surprise and that many businesses today do not have a solid digital marketing strategy focused on conversion, but that cannot be an excuse. This is the moment of truth.

Are you a REACTIVE or PRE-ACTIVE entrepreneur/business owner?

photo of restaurant sign CLOSED
I’ll put it this way: adapt now or suffer the consequences.

Some brands are using this moment to give prevention advice; the web is already saturated with that information. Others are providing useful free content, which is good for users and as part of brand recognition and positioning, but it is not enough, businesses do not live on likes.

So, what to do?

Visionary entrepreneurs read the environment and seek effective solutions. Among them is the internet seen as a powerful sales channel that not only generates economic gains that “save” them in these times of crisis but also contributes to the long-term solidity and growth of the business.
You can start taking actions in this direction now. Some clarifications:

  • You do NOT need to have a whole system set up to start
  • It does NOT matter if you are a large company or a small business

What you need right now is cash flow, you need to produce! Ask yourself the following questions, analyze what you have and your capacity, and take action.

1. Which of your current services can you already offer to your target audience online?

Examples:
A financial consultant, a lawyer, or a psychologist who makes visits to their clients or receives them in their offices can schedule all their appointments via video calls through:

Hangouts, Zoom, or even through Facebook video calls if the client has trouble handling digital tools.

Screenshot of the ZOOM tool for video calls

This tool has a free plan where you can have unlimited one-on-one meetings. And for meetings with 3 or more participants, up to 40 minutes.

2. What new service offer can you create and sell to your target audience online?

Examples:

  • A veterinary clinic can offer a new service to do follow-up and control consultations and even basic pet care through their website (video calls + form)
  • A restaurant can offer online guidance to help their customers design a healthy and creative menu for the coming weeks.
  • A photographer can review all the unused files. Then edit the images and sell them in online image banks, to companies, or specialized sites (Wedding photographer to wedding magazines or websites; Travel photographer to newspapers, travel agencies, hotels…)
  • The same previous example applies, for example, to musicians, videographers, audiovisual producers, among others.
create a new offer for your target audience. If you are a photographer, edit your travel photos

Reinvent yourself. You can add other complementary services to your current services or create new ones related to your business and knowledge.

3. What new service offer can you create and sell to a new audience online?

Examples:

  • Do you have a project area that specializes in submitting public tenders? Your knowledge is worth gold. Document the entire process and sell this know-how through consulting and training.
  • Do you have a fitness center where you have experts in different areas? Consolidate a virtual course that teaches everything from nutrition, lifestyle habits, basic exercises, and even emotional intelligence.
  • Do you have an agency or work as a virtual assistant? Teach it! Through masterclasses or workshops, you can share your knowledge while monetizing it. (This applies to all professions and skills)
Create a new offer for a new audience such as an online course

Share your knowledge, there will always be someone behind you in the process who wants to learn.

As you implement it, maintain active observation to keep improving. Listen to your audience. DOCUMENT EVERYTHING.

Once you start seeing results from conversion, don’t stop there. You need to project this new way of selling and delivering your services and products within a solid digital marketing system that can be automated, measurable, and scalable in the medium term..
Once you start seeing results from the conversion, don’t stop there. It is necessary to project this new way of selling and providing your services and products within a solid digital marketing system that in the medium term can be automated, measurable, and scalable.

The way you handle this “how to overcome the economic crisis” is key to strengthening your business. The decisions you make are crucial.

A paradigm shift implies a new way of seeing things, including what was perhaps previously rejected as absurd or incomprehensible. Being aware of your own paradigms and other possible ones leads us to be open to the future. Moreover, when a paradigm changes, everyone must change.” (Schweizer, 2009, p. 120).

 

HOW TO OVERCOME THE ECONOMIC CRISIS CAUSED BY THE CORONAVIRUS?

Do not resist change

Take advantage of the push that COVID-19 has given to digital transformation and the need generated throughout society so that through the internet you make your business come out victorious from this crisis.

Surely you are asking yourself, what will happen to my business after this crisis? How much longer will it last? Will I have to lay off staff? What budget should I cut now? STOP, this is not the time to panic.

By definition, being an entrepreneur is:

The decision and initiative to carry out actions that are difficult or involve some risk.”

And as a business owner, you must assume that role with a cool head to find the most effective way to adapt to the conditions of the environment we have today.

Ready to face this situation? These are the three things you must learn and implement in your business as soon as possible.

1. Read the environment: the Internet and digital transformation in business.

As we told you in the previous article, COVID-19 accelerated a paradigm shift worldwide, where the internet went from being an alternative to being an essential tool for “survival”.

From there we can deduce these facts:

  1. Habits are changing, society has a greater awareness of the Internet and its power, not only in communication and entertainment but also in business and education.
  2. Internet consumption is rising rapidly, we can already see all our contacts or the brands we follow doing Lives on their social networks or consuming more content than usual.
  3. The more users there are on the platforms, the lower the cost of advertising. This is because there is more opportunity and space for our ads. Maybe the costs per click and customer acquisition will vary, but that is the challenge: to share valuable content with the defined audience at the right time.

 

Do you understand the panorama?

It is true that you will have to make adjustments in your business. As an entrepreneur, you must learn from this crisis and find a way to transfer, rethink, or create your services or part of them online.

 

First, do this self-assessment of your business or venture. There are four possible scenarios you may be in today in the digital environment: Initiation, Movement, Positioning, Expansion.

2. Do a self-diagnosis: What digital stage is my business in and what steps should I follow?

 

GROUPS 3 AND 4: POSITIONING AND EXPANSION

Businesses in groups 3 and 4 have read the environment very well. In the digital transformation process, they have undergone a long process and have achieved good or great economic results from the internet.

They are the ones who have not been so affected by this crisis and even their sales may be increasing.

Some examples:

  • Zoom: one-on-one meeting and online conference room platform. In the third week of March 2020, its founder increased his wealth by USD 200 million dollars.
  • Domestika: to name just one of the online education platforms that have added thousands of users who, in the middle of the quarantine, are looking to learn something new.
  • And Merqueo: a Colombian technology company that delivers groceries to your doorstep. Its co-founder shared on his LinkedIn account how this crisis has made the brand exceed all the sales forecasts that were had.

 

If you feel identified with these groups, CONGRATULATIONS, our advice is to optimize your sales funnel and analyze what other service offerings you can develop to attract another audience.

 

GROUP 2: MOVEMENT

In group 2 are the businesses and companies that recognize the importance of the internet. They have a website, social networks and have even carried out digital strategies and advertising on social networks and/or Google.

The digital objectives of these companies are linked to brand positioning and that is where they focus their efforts, which means that customer acquisition through these means is received as a collateral effect.

It is likely that those who belong to this group are not selling their products and services during these quarantine days because their customers cannot visit them physically, do not know them well enough, or do not have the system to sell online.

As a result, they may be thinking about suspending, cutting, or eliminating communication and marketing resources. BIG MISTAKE.

 

Let’s see what history says:

Infographic the worst marketing decision during the crisis. Kellogg's vs Post

In the 1920 recession in the US, Post and Kellogg’s were the strongest brands of the time in the cereal category in the food industry, competing for the market.

But when the recession hit all US households, Post decided to cut all its advertising budget out of panic, and poof! They lost the battle to Kellogg’s, which wisely decided to double its budget and launch a new product.

The result? They increased their profits by over 30% and went on to dominate their category for the following decades.

Kellogg’s is an example of how they adapted and took advantage of a crisis. They understood that there would be fewer advertisers, making it easier to reach the end user and lower customer acquisition costs.

If you are part of this group, you should know that you have a lot of ground covered, especially in the stages of user recognition and consideration. Now, you need to broaden your view of the reach of the internet and implement your own marketing and sales funnel that allows you to close deals, sell more products, schedule sales appointments, among others.

GROUP 1: INITIATION

And finally, group 1. Perhaps the most affected in this crisis: they have suspended or reduced their operations; they do not have a communication channel with the characteristics of a website and social networks; and they do not have a system to sell their products and services online.

This group includes 100% traditional businesses and ventures. Those who in recent years have relied solely on offline marketing and advertising strategies such as:

– Word of mouth
– Public Relations
– Cold calling
– Telemarketing
– Advertising in newspapers and magazines
– Advertising on radio and TV

Since the decision to stay away from the internet has been effective so far, they consider that they do not need it to run their business. They are overwhelmed by this technology or simply reject it because they consider it an expense.

But now the crisis has shown us that if a company does not complement or adapt its communication, marketing, and sales actions with strategies in the digital environment, it is depriving itself of the possibility of increasing sales, scaling its business, and more delicately, it is being left out of the market, at least temporarily.

The entrepreneur or business owner must know that they are not taking a step with blindfolded eyes.

The internet allows access to precise information about their environment and audience, facilitating effective decision-making:

– Detailed analytics of their audience and behavior.
– Statistics on reach and impact.
– Information about the sector and competition.
– Live statistics and immediate optimization possibility.
– Full or semi-automation.

NOTE:

No matter how traditional your business is. Whether it is B2B or B2C or if you belong to an industry where you consider the brand does not matter. A solid digital marketing strategy can attract the right audience and convert a good percentage of them into your clients.

IDENTIFY WHICH STAGE YOU ARE IN AND LEARN HOW TO MOVE TO THE NEXT LEVEL ON THE INTERNET

We invite you to take this, a free tool developed by Trópico to evaluate your business and, depending on your result, access personalized and actionable advice (that you can apply immediately) for your business.

Surely what you find there will drive you to achieve goals faster.

DO YOUR SELF-CONSULTATION NOW

If you are part of group 1 and 2, our recommendation is to start the digital transformation process in your business, sooner or later you will have to enter the fray. Not just in search of likes; but LEADS -> users likely to become clients.

Only those who become aware and react promptly to this crisis; those who take risks and dare to study the subject and apply it to their businesses will have a great advantage over their competitors.

The crisis is the best blessing that can happen to people and countries because crisis brings progress. Creativity is born from anguish as the day is born from the dark night. It is in the crisis that inventiveness, discoveries, and great strategies are born. Whoever overcomes the crisis, overcomes himself without being ‘overcome.’ Whoever attributes their failures and hardships to the crisis, violates their own talent and respects more the problems than the solutions.

– Albert Einstein.

As you will realize, having a business in the digital environment requires strategy, planning, and meticulous execution.

But there are actions you can take immediately to face this crisis and make your business profitable on the internet.

3. React now: How to generate cash flow amid this crisis?

It is evident that this took us all by surprise, and since many entrepreneurs and business owners were not prepared from a digital standpoint to face a situation like this, our advice is:

Do not stay “stunned” by this widespread quarantine; move to find solutions.

To do this, I remind you of the three questions we analyzed in the previous article that will allow you to brainstorm possible alternatives to monetize your business on the Internet as soon as possible.

– Which of your current services can you already provide to your target audience through the Internet?
– What new service offering can you create and sell to your target audience through the internet?
– What new service offering can you create and sell to a new audience?

Once you define a list of alternatives, look for the medium through which you will deliver that service offering to your clients:

– One-on-one video calls.
– Video conferences: video calls with more than 3 people. Small groups.
– Webinars: online conference-type events. The number of participants is unlimited.
– Online masterclasses: master classes delivered through video. They can use the three previous options.
– Workshops: workshops where, in addition to learning from an expert, a section for practical work is allocated.
– PDFs with documentation of your processes.
– Ebooks.
– Do you have an App? Develop some premium features within it.
– Selling products on social networks.

Something you should be willing to do is to be part of the COLLABORATIVE ECONOMY, in the aspect of Open Knowledge: you must be willing to share your know-how.

Do not fear this exposure. Sharing your knowledge positions you within your niche. It makes your audience perceive you with authority and experience. It strengthens the credibility of your brand. It creates and strengthens ties with your stakeholders.

Our final advice for you to implement your service offering on the Internet as quickly as possible is:

Tips for monetizing your service offering on the INTERNET

– Do not wait to have everything perfect to launch it. Publish and improve. This way you save time, and the best thing is that you build your offering based on your user, on what works best for them.

For example, Apps continuously release updated versions of their services.

– You do not need a big production for the videos and images you are going to publish. On the internet, the more the content resembles user-generated content, the higher the probability that they will interact with it.

You should know that the dynamics of social networks are very, very fast. It is not necessary to wear yourself out on a piece that will be relevant for a short time in your user’s news feed.

– Generate conversations, and interact person to person. If the user sees that on the other side, there is a company that only cares about talking about its values, products, and strengths, they will surely skip it.
– Share valuable content: to do this, you must learn to read trends and approach them from your business’s point of view.

It works very well to tell stories: who is behind the company? What is the success story of the owner? How is your product or service made and who makes it? What clients do you have and what do they say about you?

The rule is 80-20: 80% valuable content and 20% purely commercial content.

– Video is king. I insist: you do not need a big production. In fact, with the crisis the world is experiencing, you may have noticed that live broadcasts are trending. Natural, organic, and human content is gaining more ground.
– Document everything. This material will be key to optimizing the process, delegating it, and why not, to create a digital product that teaches others to achieve your good results.
– Think long-term: these actions are a lifeline that you can implement now. But you can’t stay there. Study the concept of a digital marketing and sales funnel. You will understand how to structure a system on the internet that works for you.

“Be fearful when others are greedy. Be greedy when others are fearful.” – Warren Buffett

HEY ENTREPRENEUR, that’s all for this article.

I hope I have clarified the panorama a bit more for you.

Every entrepreneur must learn from this crisis: investigate and verify the content I just shared with you. Look for your own sources, and you will see that this is the right path for these times of significant changes. Do not make decisions out of fear.

I invite you to connect on our Facebook where we will be doing several Live sessions on key topics these days:

– Digital tools to manage your business on the internet.
– Tools to generate content on the internet.
– How to be effective in teleworking.
– Online business models.
– And more.

If you’re interested in a particular topic, tell us in the comments or write to us on Facebook. We will be happy to respond.

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