If you're a business owner and working from home, hopefully you are staying busy but with the future of our economy unclear, things may be slowing down a bit. Here are some ways to make the most of the downtime so that your business is ready to go when things are back on track.
Examine Your Relationships
Now is a perfect time to examine your business relationships and grow your network. Find interesting ways to engage your customers and take time to see if their pain points have changed. Do something to show them they are appreciated like sending a gift if that is affordable or an email reminding them how much you value them. You can also find ways to network online, either within your niche or generally to people in your area. See if there is anything you can do to support other local businesses that may be hurting.
Revisit Your Business Plan
Sometimes it is easy to find yourself performing knee-jerk reactions instead of addressing your Business Plan as, well, a plan. If you find yourself with nothing to do, use the opportunity to develop or elaborate on your existing business and marketing plans. Get intentional with evaluating your stance in your niche, planning and executing marketing strategy, and focusing on learning from your customer reports.
Update Your Website
There is no greater time to update your website. Ecommerce is becoming even more popular over the next few months, so developing and maintaining a strong website is essential to your business success. Update your copy, check your site speed, and work on your search engine optimization. If you haven't yet, create your profile on your Google My Business page. Make sure your mobile site is up and running smoothly. Most of all, focus on making sure it fits with your branding story.
Learn a New Skill
There are tons of online resources for both personal and professional development opportunities. If you are itching for something to do, take that class you're always putting on the back burner or brush up on advances in your field. Kill the boredom and expand your skill set at the same time.
Overall, there is no way of knowing for certain what the next few months will have in store for business owners. However, we can safely move forward knowing that the only thing we can control is our response. Instead of feeling discouraged and apprehensive, focus on ways you can still add value to your business, anytime and anywhere.
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