How Businesses Can Use Social Media in Their Recovery Plan After COVID-19

By Ginger Abbot

If you didn’t have a business recovery plan before, you’ve probably developed one now. COVID-19 didn’t only affect people’s physical health – it also significantly damaged the health of millions of businesses around the globe.

 

Many businesses operate on minimal margins, so the shutdowns and government restrictions following the spread of COVID-19 were deadly for many small businesses. In addition, loyal and potential customers either lost their jobs or were unable to enter the workforce, so they had less money to invest in shopping.

 

The businesses that survived COVID are now benefiting from increasing customer interest and an economy that’s opening up again. For these businesses, the next few years are critical for rebuilding what was lost and putting a plan in place in case this happens again.

 

In the wake of COVID-19, the value of a business recovery plan can’t be emphasized enough. There’s no better time than now to reevaluate how your business will respond in a crisis. Here’s how to use social media in your business recovery plan.

• Keep Communication Open

Your business recovery plan, sometimes called a business continuity plan, will mostly happen behind the scenes. There’s no reason to share that you’ve changed your business goals for the year, scaled back your investments, or had to wait on hiring more employees.

 

However, your customers will need to know if your hours suddenly change or if supply-chain issues will impact shipping times. Keeping your customers informed about changes to their shopping experience will help manage their expectations, which affect purchases and reviews.

 

Although there are multiple ways to update your customer base, a solid social media account is the cheapest and most effective. Which social media platform you use will depend on your customer base – different ages and demographics tend to use different platforms. Keeping your customers updated can significantly help with business recovery after COVID-19.

• Engage Your Customers

Over the last few years, the online world has become wider geographically than the physical one for many customers. Especially in large cities, people used their phones and computers to connect with friends, work, and businesses rather than visit them in person.

 

Although brick-and-mortar stores have mostly reopened now, some customers are still doing their primary shopping online. Having a social media presence is an extremely effective way to connect with customers and direct them to your website. Strategic use of social media and business recovery go hand in hand.

 

Because so many people now use social media, you may also be able to expand your customer base simply by maintaining an account. Social media is the perfect platform for content marketing, a long-term strategy that demonstrates your value to customers and builds trust in your brand.

• Reduce Cost Margin

Your business probably has reduced resources after the finance-sapping effect of COVID-19. Developing a social media presence can be incredibly helpful in this type of situation – it’s a low-cost investment that can bring a sizeable financial return to businesses over time.

 

Contrary to popular belief, most videos on the internet don’t go viral, and most TikTok users don’t spiral to fame in a number of days. Using social media in your business strategy means playing the long game – but it’s a game worth playing.

 

Customer trust takes time to develop, and social media can provide the perfect kind of slow-paced growth your business needs right now to recover. Companies seem to recognize this – according to a recent survey of middle-market organizations, 90% plan to continue investing in digital spending in 2021.

• Follow Changing Needs

Another advantage social media can bring to your business is the ability to track changing customer needs. Your business can check social media analytics and quickly poll customers to learn more about their personalities, lifestyles, preferences, and needs.

 

Analytical tools are especially helpful during crisis events like COVID-19, where customer needs and preferences can change suddenly. Having the inside scoop on customers equips you to pivot and continue to meet their current needs.

 

Historically, many businesses have grown during periods of war. Business owners identified a gap in customer needs and then shifted to fill that gap. While these businesses may be called opportunistic, they were meeting the real needs of real customers. They just happened to make a lot of money while filling those needs.

• Make Shopping Easy

Social media also makes your business recovery plan more viable by making it easier for customers to learn about and access your products. Online shopping has been a steadily growing trend for years, but it exploded in 2020 when people couldn’t leave their homes.

 

Pandemic or not, people still needed essential goods and services like toilet paper, groceries, and medical care. More time on their phones and higher stress levels also meant that many customers made impulse buys just to get something in the mail.

 

Although the percentage of online shoppers has reduced to more normal levels this year, many people still rely on the internet for their purchases. Social media is an easy and attractive way to show buyers who you are, what you’re offering, and how they can quickly access it.

Social Media’s Business Value

Creating a business recovery plan is essential for protecting and reviving your business’s long-term health after COVID. In this article, you’ve seen how social media can help business recovery. Maintaining a social media account accomplishes several goals at once – it can update loyal customers, reach new ones, build trust, and make your business easy for customers to access.

 

At a time when every investment matters, social media is low-cost compared to the financial gain it can bring in increased customer engagement and number of sales. Updating and strategizing your social media use is an excellent way to revitalize your business after the draining effects of COVID-19.

 

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