COVID-19 has taken a heavy toll on the global economy. Businesses are closing, customer demand has declined, supply chains have been interrupted, and new regulations have challenged businesses to reach customers in new ways. Indeed, a lengthy and challenging recovery is already underway. To better prepare for the major changes ahead, the Bartercard team has offered some advice on how you can adjust your business growth strategies for the post-pandemic world. Read on to learn more.
1. Review your current position
Before developing calculated and strategic business strategies, you must first assess your organisation’s current position. What role do you play in the market? Who are your customers? Who are your main competitors? What role does your business play in the greater business ecosystem? Answering these key questions will give you a better idea of where you should be headed post-crisis. Review your customer demographics and how they may change over time. Understand your place in the market so you can determine what steps to take once the pandemic eases.
2. Chart a course for recovery
The next step is to create a plan for sustainable growth. In the precarious business climate of an economic recovery, your first steps could make or break your plan. The margin for error is narrow, and the consequences for failure are exponentially higher. Be direct and honest with yourself about how you can achieve both sustainable growth and early results. Study how your business can weather the worst business conditions without sacrificing stability for immediacy. Whether redesigning your business procedures, diversifying your goods or services, or studying your demographics to provide you with several fallback plans, you should be able to think ahead and make room for flexible, practical adjustments during a downturn.
3. Talk to your customers
Your growth strategies should also take your customers’ opinions into account. The best way to source information is by talking to them. Give customers a platform to provide feedback. Listen attentively to the products and services they consider most useful to them, especially during this crisis. With this information, you’ll be better equipped to create strategic responses. What projects will help solve customers’ crisis-related problems? What products or services will make their lives easier? Recessions often result in sweeping changes to consumer buying habits. When your business knows what customers need, you can address changing demands with a set of new ideas to keep your business relevant.
4. Assess your preparedness
It’s one thing to plan, but it’s another to accomplish the goals you’ve just outlined. As you develop business growth strategies, you need to assess your business’s preparedness in executing these plans and projects. Look into your current resources and workforce and how they will affect the speed and quality of your business’s decision-making process.
5. Don’t forget your employees
Your workforce is the backbone of your business. To make your vision of the future become a reality, you need employees who won’t feel at risk of being displaced should a downturn occur. Protect your workers by providing reassurance and working transparently to maintain job stability. This, in turn, reinforces the value of your team members. If your business fights for them, they’re more likely to fight for your business.
Creating authentic connections
Focus on adjusting your business growth strategies without worrying about possible retrenchment and displacements. At Bartercard, we can help you fill downtime and transform your company’s spare capacity into increased sales. Read our Bartercard reviews here to learn how we have helped countless businesses just like yours. Create more opportunities for your workforce and join Bartercard today!
