March 24, 2020
This COVID-19 pandemic. It’s been scary and tiring. We’ve been inundated not just with news, but with content from business owners telling you how to handle the crisis. It’s hard to know how to react, but I have one piece of advice that I hope simplifies decisions for you:
It’s hard to say when we’re seeing so many businesses close their doors, take huge revenue cuts, and face the potential of shuttering for good. But here is some truth to keep in the forefront of your mind: Your brand is more important than your profits right now.
It means that you, as a business, are responsible for doing the right thing, whether that means closing your retail stores, posting updates on your website and social platforms about how you’re handling the pandemic and keeping your employees and customers safe, or emailing your clients to offer postponed project dates or new payment plans.
It’s hard, because your business might be hurting, and these feel like choices that will impact your bottom line and drive revenue down sooner than it needs to.
But the sooner you do the right thing, the faster you’ll build or reinforce the trust that your customers have in you.
Right now, trust is the one thing you do have control over. (And FYI, it’s the only thing good businesses are built on.) Your customer has to trust that you care about them. That you’re making decisions for their well-being and for the community’s health. That trust will follow you no matter what happens to your bottom line. It’s what will enable you to rebuild your business after this pandemic is over.
Now tell me which one of these restaurants has a higher chance of reopening and making higher profits after this pandemic is over.
People are watching what you’re doing, and your good actions pay off.
Your brand is more important than your profits because it lives on when your profits cannot.
Brick and mortar retailer:
Product-based online business:
Service-based online business:
Lastly, if you’re in a position where your job and finances aren’t impacted as much as others, consider how you can give back or lift others up. Generosity is a privilege and now is our time to do good.
Copyright 2021 Nicole A. Yang, LLC
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