Every time we’re faced with difficult times, we’re always encouraged to see good things rise out of all the bad. It restores belief in humanity. Dale Carnegie focuses on the human relations principle that they feel is most important in life; Try honestly to see things from the other person’s point of view. Such a simple idea, yet so powerful!

This is a great concept in the world of marketing. It truly is the basis for how to be successful with your business. When you see things from your clients/customers’ perspective, you can anticipate and address their needs and wants. Your marketing message should always address what’s important to them. 

Right now, we’re all experiencing a wide range of emotions…from fear and anxiety, to uncertainty and restlessness. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions. If you’re not careful, you can become paralyzed by it all. 

Thankfully, some are determined to remain calm. They’re proactive in searching for solutions and adjusting to meet the needs of their customers. These are the ones who will not only survive during this pandemic, they will actually see growth in their business.

Industry articles are all saying what we have seen first-hand, compassion and courageousness is the first step to change. Being willing to stretch your comfort zone, reinvent yourself, and try something new is extremely important. And remember that it’s not ‘all about you’. Instead, focus on ‘what’s important to your customers’. When people go through depression, one of the steps they can take to feel better is to HELP OTHERS. 

There are some solid steps that business owners can take to get on this track to grow during hard times. We have outlined five steps that we believe will be the strongest, immediate actions you can take right now. These recommendations come from personal experience and business studies documented throughout the years.

1. Show compassion for your customers and employers, and ‘over-communicate’ how you’re willing to adjust to meet their needs/wants. They need to be assured of your strength and commitment to do what is necessary to weather this storm. Use all of your communication channels; email, social media, phone calls, texting, etc… Be creative! If you need help with messaging and creating the content, reach out to trusted marketing teams. You’re not alone in this. 
2. Evaluate your strengths, and be willing to Reinvent how you’re doing things. Are there new opportunities with technology that could leverage your sales channels? Perhaps your website needs to be updated to accept online ordering. Is it secure and mobile responsive so that your customers can easily find what they’re looking for? Sharing your expertise and resources in the form of blogs, articles or videos is a great way to showcase how you’re staying relevant to what is needed. 
3. Help others! Lawyer, Civil War veteran, and political leader Robert Ingersoll famously said, “We rise by helping others.” Be generous with your time and talents, and you’ll see that return to you exponentially. Sujan Patel, co-founder of Web Profits, saw his business grow “300% in a single year with a combination of helping others and growth hacking his content strategy”. Not only is it the right thing to do, but you’re also building stronger relationships with future customers who will remember your compassion and commitment to your community. 
4. Write down all of the facts and choices. Then make a plan, and move forward. Don’t be paralyzed by indecision. The fastest way for a business to fail is to not do anything. Most of the things we worry about, never happen. During turbulent times, the plan might need to be tweaked anyway.  Be confident in your decisions. Then execute – measure – adjust and repeat. There’s always another way.
5. Surround yourself with Positive People. Buck the trend of doom and gloom. Positivity is contagious, so get out there and collaborate with smart business people. The Site-Seeker team has enjoyed being the marketing extension with many companies, and the innovative ideas that come out of these trusted partnerships have always resulted in growth. Two or three or four heads are always better than one.

We hope you find these recommendations helpful to your business. Great joy comes from helping business owners and marketers see growth in their business. As mentioned above, helping others never grows old.