Getting your Digital Marketing back on track after Lockdown

It has been well documented that lockdown as result of the COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected businesses not just in the UK but across the globe too. 

If you are a business owner who has been fortunate enough to keep your business somewhat afloat during this difficult time then we have some tips for you to get your digital marketing back on track.

With restrictions beginning to ease across the country, you may be wondering how you can attract customers back to your business and hopefully get yourself running again - especially if you have had to temporarily close your doors following the guidelines.

Here are a few things to get you started, be sure to drop any other hints and tips you may have learned elsewhere in the comments below!

1. Update Social Media Profiles, Bio and Information.

If closing your doors has also meant you have had to put your social media updates on the back foot then here are a few things you can do to get the ball rolling again.

• Update your Bio and Information. You may now be facing temporary opening times and a change of how your business operates to fit with government guidelines. Use your bio to let your followers know of the changes you have made - a good example of this is the temporary update our friends at Frothy Bike Co have made to their Instagram bio.

• You can also update the information on Facebook “About” section and you can also post to your business timeline and use the Pin function to stick this to the very top where it can be easily seen. Here is a little update we made on our wedding brand Wooden Cinema Films.

• Use this time to delete any unwanted posts that are no longer applicable or relevant to your business. You may no longer be offering a service or product so remove this to avoid confusion from potential customers.

2. Update your Photography

If you sell products, you may have had to adapt and sell those products online. Now is a great chance to get fresh new imagery produced in order to upload to your online store. Well shot photographs will go a long way to help sell your products fast and the return on the investment is well worth it. We helped recent startup SRM Autostyling with photographing their product range for their online store.

Another aspect to photography is showing the measures you have put in place for protecting your customers and staff if you have walk in premises. Despite restrictions easing, customers will want to be informed of how you are adhering to government guidelines on social distancing and sanitisation - this will help make them feel more comfortable and confident about entering your store. 

You may also have been busy giving your store a facelift or refurbishment, now is a perfect time to invest in professional imagery that you can use in the coming months and years.

3. Add a new Video

Further to the ideas above about having photographs to show the measures you have put in place, why not shoot a video? People browsing your social media are more likely to engage with video content, especially when social media platforms are giving preference to video right now.

This is a great way to engage with your audience and inform them that you have reopened. This presents itself with a fantastic opportunity to increase footfall in such an uncertain time right now. You can explain the changes you have made within your business in a way that could potentially be missed with a simple written post or photo.

The video can also be made available to view on your home page or landing page on your website. Below are a few examples of videos we have produced recently for local businesses and have proven successful at engaging their audience.

We can film these videos adhering to social distancing guidelines, we will have a post very soon on the measures we take to ensure minimised risk of transmitting any potential infection.

4. Update Your Website

If your website hasn’t seen any updates in a while, now is a perfect opportunity to give your website a refresh with a new design, fresh images and video as well as providing information about your business and services relating to the current situation. 

A little unknown fact is that if an update is not made to a website in over a 4 week period, it begins to slip down the search engine rankings. A simple change to your website that updates the coding will ensure it maintains a good ranking and doesn’t get overtaken by other websites that have recent updates. This could be as easy as adding an image, writing a piece of text or including a link.

Here you can use this space to add your newly refreshed images and videos for potential customers to see before visiting your business in person.

5. Plan ahead for the future

As the global pandemic changes circumstances constantly, it is great idea to plan your content for future updates across all your digital marketing channels. 

Keep ideas noted down and develop them. This way you can have a regular stream of updates you can use. Digital marketing and use of social media is more important now, particularly with the current global events that can restrict physical interaction with customers and clients. Keep them informed and engaged so you are in a prime position to attract them as soon as regulations allow. 

Some examples could be that you can finally begin to leverage a certain social media platform you haven’t used before, shoot videos that inform and write blog posts that engage. Show that you are an expert in your field and your client/fan base will have the potential to grow.

If you are looking for help with your digital marketing, be sure to get in touch with our friends at Digitally Brewed, a husband and wife team who are gurus in social media and digital marketing techniques.

Hopefully that gives you a helping hand on places to start reviving your digital marketing and get your business noticed by potential clients once again!

Dan