9 Fixes for a Pandemic-Era Business Slump

Recovering after a pandemic isn’t easy, but it’s even harder to run a lucrative business when consumers are staying away, and expenses keep piling up. But you can stay relevant and connected during challenging times and their side effects. Try these tips for keeping your business cookin’, including during the pandemic, courtesy of Arrowhead Consulting.

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Add a Dash of Creativity

The truth is sales might be dipping and doors might be closing – but many people are still spending money. Apply your creative chops and consider new ways to create income streams.

  • Develop a passive income stream in your niche: books, courses, podcasts, and even blogs can earn cash.
  • Consider branching out into a high-performing product or service category. Digital Commerce 360 notes that the most searched categories online were health and wellness, games and entertainment, fitness equipment, and meals, among others.
  • Target your social media followers with Facebook and Instagram With billions of active users, these social networking giants have a lot of opportunities for your brand to engage with consumers. According to Statista, Facebook is the largest social network worldwide with roughly 2.85 billion monthly active users as of the first quarter of 2021.
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Prioritize Connection

From rubbing elbows with your competitors to heading online for likes, prioritize connecting with your community to gain the support your small business needs.

  • Elevate your marketing and outreach strategy with smarter promotion.
  • Engage with your local chamber of commerce or professional organization for camaraderie.
  • Shop businesses that use locally sourced materials – supporting other businesses earns you good karma. Another way of giving back is volunteering at a local non-profit, which ties into smarter promotion as noted in the first bullet point above.
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Go Back to Basics

Running a business takes plenty of behind-the-scenes effort. If sales are slow, use the time to reflect, reorganize and even rebuild.

  • Examine your business plan and brainstorm new avenues for growth. Harvard Business Review notes that businesses must understand what stakeholders’ behaviors will look like after the pandemic. “Some behaviors will return to their pre-crisis state; others will be transformed, and others will disappear entirely.”
  • Structure your company the smart way by filing for an LLC. Not only does structuring your business as an LLC greatly reduce your risk by protecting personal assets, but less paperwork and tax advantages also make this option ideal for many small businesses.
  • If you’re a retailer, determine whether in-store upgrades are a worthwhile endeavor.

Business ownership involves many challenges, but you don’t have to let pandemic conditions get you down. There’s plenty you can do to give your company the best odds at success, even as COVID throws a wrench in the operation – and these ideas prove it.

Guest blog post by Amy Collett

See how Arrowhead Consulting can help your business attain and sustain organizational health by providing tailored solutions to your unique problems. Contact us today! (918) 631-7321

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Check out this chart that shows what risks new businesses should be aware of.


Graphic created by Performance Card Service.