By Julie Morris
Whether you have a side hustle in the gig economy or manage a large-scale enterprise, you undoubtedly began 2020 with a set of business goals. As a busy business owner or professional, how can you achieve those goals when there’s a pandemic altering the business landscape? Here are three stress-free tools to help keep your business on track for success:
Your Website
Especially now, having a professional website is essential for any business. These days, whether you’re a tech startup, a family-run small business, or a hustling freelancer, you’ll need an online presence to connect with your clients and colleagues. Ideally, your website should highlight your skills and specialties, as well as provide an easy way for customers to reach you or purchase your products and services.
Your site should look gorgeous, be user-friendly, and offer secure credit card payments, regardless of whether customers are using their laptops, desktops, or smartphones. Unless you love to dabble in web design and know some coding, or want to take web development courses to learn how, your best bet is to hire a web designer to tackle it for you. DreamHost points out this will go most smoothly if you have your goals lined out and are clear about your budget.
If money is an issue for your project or you’re just struggling to get through the pandemic hiccup, keep in mind that there are funding opportunities available that you can apply for to help you through this challenging time.
Your Niche
Even if you’ve been in business for a while, it can be helpful to pause and reevaluate whether you’re reaching your ideal customers. According to The Uncaged Life, many entrepreneurs struggle to choose their niche, at least at first. Typically, the confusion results from overthinking. To eliminate this, keep it simple rather than getting caught up in the internet’s conflicting advice.
You can reach the right people by focusing on the problems your products and services solve for your customers. Being solutions-oriented helps you reach a broad range of people with clear, consistent marketing. In fact, you should consider doing some retargeting to keep customers coming back to you. This approach takes the guesswork out of niching, making the process more efficient and stress-free.
Your Strengths
Let’s face it: the business landscape is challenging right now. If you work in an industry that has been upended, you may wonder how you’ll ever get the opportunity to stand apart from the crowd. That’s where a competitive analysis can help.
As Entrepreneur explains, competitive analysis is a process where you identify and evaluate your competitors and their strategies, strengths, and weaknesses. Armed with that information, you can improve your products or services and “play up” your strengths. For businesses, a competitive analysis is a crucial step in attracting your ideal customers.
Let’s say you’re selling products online. Sure, Amazon and Walmart might offer more products at lower prices. However, they’ll never be able to provide the level of compassion or personalization that your company does. Chick-Fil-A, for example, sets themselves apart from other food chains by prioritizing politeness. Be sure to convey those strengths at every level of your organization and throughout your marketing materials. A consistent message is the key, and playing to your organization’s strengths differentiates you from the competition so you can reach your target market loud and clear.
These simple tips help you work smarter without necessarily having to work harder. It’s possible to achieve your goals without adding additional stress to your workload, even during a pandemic. If, after implementing these tips, you’re still feeling stressed, there are still some things you can do. For instance, you might incorporate more stress-relief techniques like yoga and meditation into your day. Even taking a few deep breaths or going for a fifteen-minute walk can be enough to recharge your creativity, so that you can stay focused and productive.
The pandemic has altered our world a great deal. Thankfully, there are ways you can still achieve your goals, even in 2020. Evaluate your website situation, ensure you’re playing up strengths and have clear outreach to the right people. With careful planning, this year might even be your turning point.
Photo courtesy of Pexels
