We have never seen a crisis in recent years that has grounded the economy to a near halt. Millions of Americans have lost their jobs, and the impact is global.
Europe and US markets have been shut down along with the once-booming markets of Asia. Experts agree that global recession is now inevitable.
It’s been a rough month for many companies, but we can’t just sit around and do nothing for our businesses.
There will always be new opportunities for growth in your business, and some changes in your marketing efforts can be the key for your business to survive this pandemic.
We share great ideas from a leading marketer, blogger, and SEO expert, Neil Patel as he shows us ways on how he adapted his marketing to the COVID-19 situation.
Help Others Selflessly
Patel’s ad agency has thousands of customers globally, they may have lost a massive amount of money, but they are encouraged by the trends generated since the COVID-19 situation hit the fan.
The decision to help other people by offering Ubersuggest’s premium features for free has resulted in more traffic to the business website.
New customers who avail of the free trials may or may not convert to paid customers, but in theory, you up your chances.
Other businesses don’t get any traffic at all during this crisis, so giving away freebies is a good marketing strategy to let people know that you want to help during this time of crisis.
People responded by purchasing a paid plan to help the company out due to its selfless efforts.
Take Advantage of Cheap Paid Ads
The latest trend in the market today is paid ads becoming more affordable.
Big ad networks make profits using an auction system wherein small businesses need to drive up the CPC(cost per click) for ads so that big companies have to pay more money on ads.
There is no competition right now for the inventory, which is why CPCs have decreased significantly.
Due to the lockdown, more and more people are spending their time online, which drives more traffic to the web. Since there are few advertisers, ads are now cheaper.
Paid ads are now generating a higher ROI compared to pre-Corona levels. Some companies have experienced a 71% increase in their ROI.
If you have been on the fence regarding paid ads, now is the best time to do it.
Offer Payment Plans
Across many industries, conversion rates have plunged downward. Those in the travel industry have been hit the hardest, with Delta Airlines currently losing $60 million a day.
Patel has discovered a solution for boosting conversion rates up to 12% on average.
Offering payment plans through services like Affirm has boosted conversion rates.
Payment plans give your customers financial assistance during these trying times. For e-book or digital courses, you can offer monthly payment plans.
People go for installment options as they look to reduce their cash spending in the short term.
Provide Educational Based Courses
Since many people are at home, and the majority may be looking for money-making opportunities, you can offer educational based courses on making money.
Unemployment numbers have been staggering since the pandemic started, and more people are looking for new ventures, and online courses can solve their problems.
If you can offer courses like those at Udemy or Coursera, you have a big market in your hands.
Geography Diversification
The COVID-19 crisis has impacted the world economy, and some countries have been hit worse than others.
While Italy and US cases have exploded, South Korea has seen better results in controlling the spread of the virus.
If you get your traffic from countries that are impacted heavily by the coronavirus, you should consider diversifying to other regions for your traffic source.
Here is where international SEO can help you as you intend to gain more traffic. You don’t need to produce more content, all you need to do is translate them for a new market.
Patel used this strategy when traffic from the US slowed down. He saw massive traffic come in from Brazil and India.
Conclusion
We are not over the hump yet with regards to the coronavirus situation. The daily count is still growing, and all we can do is practice social distancing and stay indoors.
This doesn’t mean that you can’t implement new marketing strategies that can make an impact during the crisis and reap results in the long term.
You can leverage the situation and put in some effort to keep your business afloat and hopefully come out stronger after the pandemic is over.
