Conferences, Trade Shows, and Business Trips are Cancelled; How do we Develop New Business?
What was taken for granted just a month ago is now a distant memory: conferences, trade shows, and business trips now belong to the past because of COVID-19. For the last month, we have been swimming across an unknown ocean while trying to keep what we have built in recent years afloat.
Making sure we have enough cash flow to get through the crisis, managing our resources when orders are drastically reduced, and billing when production is on hold: these are the dark thoughts that await the sleepless nights of managers and business leaders.
Only at the top of the curve will we see the horizon for better days. Meanwhile, staying at home, maintaining a 6-foot distance from others, and telecommuting are the instructions around which we must develop new standards.
Is there a way to build business relationships during this crisis?
How can we make sure that these months of forced break will not erase all the business development work that has been carried out in the past months and recent years?
One thing is certain; there will be an after-COVID. However, those who will emerge victorious after the crisis may not be those who were leaders before the crisis. What strategies should we favor in this unique context? What activities do we need to focus on? Where do we invest time and money to see a return?
NIHITO Facing a New Reality
Before COVID hit, we used to say, nothing important happens in the office (NIHITO). Therefore, business development and marketing teams were often on the road, attending trade shows, meeting customers, and presenting at conferences. However, in the time of social distancing, event cancellations, and travel bans, NIHITO might need to be reinvented, because important things must now happen at home through technologies and telecommuting, at least until the situation has settled down and it is safe to meet in person again.
Reinventing the Art of Business Development
Building business relationships at conferences and trade shows must be reinvented. Traveling to other cities, regions, and countries to visit customers and give demonstrations must also be diverted to other activities. Making prospecting calls, which was already an archaic technique, risks being received badly by those who have not shown an interest since the beginning of the crisis, especially since the vast majority are now working from home.
So, what do we do in a context where everyone is confined, subject to anxiety, destabilized by the turn of events, and probably not in the best mood to be sold a new product or service?
Sponsoring, advertising, hiring, traveling, and meeting face-to-face are all actions that we must forget in the short term. Instead, consider teaching, instructing, and explaining new knowledge to potential customers. Normally, most companies only think of selling or supporting their customers. Educating their market does not seem to be a priority. Yet, education is one of the best practices for selling a product or service.
Earning loyalty by providing potential customers with value-added information creates a whole new business relationship. These potential customers want to learn how to solve problems relevant to them. They are looking for this value-added information. They will put their trust in those who will help them solve their problems. Consequently, they will have more respect for those companies that are helping them do a better job. Therefore, educating our potential customers with value-added content is our best asset for building and strengthening business relationships in this difficult time.
Providing Content to Stay in Touch with Your Network
There are three reasons for using content to stay in touch with your business network. First, since activities have slowed down, people have more time than ever to read and learn. Training has now taken an important place in their empty agenda. Not only do they have the time, but many also have the concentration since they are working from home (this obviously only applies if children are busy in another room).
Second, this sensitive approach respects those who need distance and those who are overwhelmed by the impact that COVID-19 is having on our lives. Everyone is facing never-before-seen obstacles and is trying their best to overcome them. Therefore, it is important to be aware of and, above all, respectful and empathetic toward those for whom this situation is more difficult.
Finally, the content approach redirects the tactics of a salesperson who is too eager to talk about and demonstrate their products. This applies especially to those who say they are customer-centric but whose behavior is product-centric. The current situation gives us the opportunity to turn to those having issues, challenges, and problems and help them find solutions.
Content is More Valuable than Ever
The economy wheel is idling, if not nearly stopped. However, the inventory turnover of bookstores and online courses is running at high speed. Reading seems to bring some comfort, and learning gives us a certain impression of control over a situation of unknown scope and duration. Content, whether in the form of books, articles, or videos, brings a social presence into our isolated journeys.
Promotion is Less Relevant than Before
Banners and advertisements inserted here and there in newspapers, websites, or social media feeds seem disconnected from our reality (unless they are related to COVID). Sometimes, they seem to land straight from another world — as they were designed before the crisis and have not been adjusted; they lack empathy for our current situation. More than ever, any act of promotion must consider the context in which we live. Of course, we have to continue to live, but we need to switch to listening mode rather than staying in speaking mode. We need to ask ourselves how our potential customers are experiencing the current situation and how we can, using our solutions, help them get through this storm.
We are lucky; we have the World Wide Web
Creating value-added content is the most effective way to build credibility and establish brand awareness with potential customers at low cost. In normal times, this strengthening of credibility and notoriety carried out via advertising or public relations is expensive and difficult to verify. However, in these abnormal times, not only are we in cost reduction mode, but we also need to double our benefits. That’s good because content published on the web is cheap, and its impact has already been tested and proven. Not only will it enable your business to increase its credibility and build awareness, but it might also generate new leads and more demand for your solutions.
We are lucky; we have Social Media
The more valuable and relevant your content is, the more people will share it and the greater the demand will be. That’s good because content on social media reaches potential customers outside of your contact network. The value-added content will serve as a magnet to attract those who need your solution to solve their problem, and social media will be your antenna to reach them. Social media is more useful than ever to temporarily replace business events, offering social links while limiting contacts.
Conclusion
Developing business relationships is the main reason we travel to trade shows, conferences, and networking events. Now that face-to-face meetings are no longer an option in the short and medium terms, we need to find another way to build these relationships without being in direct contact with potential customers. Here’s where content, whether in the format of books, articles, or videos, steps in to help in times of crisis.
Educational content addressing problems relevant to potential customers serves as the new starting point for a business relationship. Teaching others how to solve important challenges that potential clients are facing can strengthen your sales team’s credibility and your company’s notoriety. Content ensures that potential customers get to know you, like you, and trust you in order to generate the demand and orders that were anticipated before the crisis hit.
Take Action
To create your own value-added content, follow the guide available for free here.
About Inspira Strategies
Inspira Strategies helps technology innovators improve the success of their products on the market. We use a unique reverse-engineering methodology to build a solid new product introduction and product revitalization process.
Combined with our technical experience and market knowledge, our tested and proven process enables tech founders, CEOs, and product managers to successfully launch new products and revitalize existing ones, generate more revenue from new and existing products, and optimize the value of new and existing products on the market.
