Communication is a natural instinct in life. Babies are born with the ability to communicate their needs. They study our speech and quickly begin to establish a continually evolving ‘vocabulary’ as a primary means of survival.
During these times, we can all learn a lot from babies.
We need to adapt our business models to prioritise communication.
What we’re lacking in person-to-person contact, we’re making up for in consuming information. Information is comforting. People like facts; we want to know what’s going on, what other people are doing, and above all else, to have the reassurance of knowing what to do.
Baby steps of communication
For most people, including your customers, that means being told what’s happening and how you’re keeping everything going (or not, as the case may be).
A baby will not be quiet when they need something or when they are under threat, discomfort or distress.
Now is not the time to go ‘quiet’. Quite the reverse.
Although we are adapting to keep in touch with each other (hands up all you newly qualified Ninja webcasters out there) communication is much more fundamental than that. It’s all about making your ‘voice’ heard.
- If you haven’t already, update the Coronavirus statement on your website to let people know what’s happening and what you’re doing.
- Tell people what you’re doing to help protect your staff and any customers.
- Make clear any new trading arrangements, such as different trading hours, delivery or collection arrangements. Things may have changed since the first lockdown; don’t assume that all your customers are fully aware.
- Explain how your business is being affected, that it may take longer than usual to contact you by phone, or for deliveries to be made, for example.
- Give clear information about how you will communicate any future changes.
Prove yourself as a guide
If you offer a business or professional service, this is the ideal time to show your ‘expertise’ to prove you’re on top of what’s happening. Use blogs, email, social media posting, etc. Offer the answers to your currently frequently asked questions (which may differ from the usual issues you’re used to dealing with). A comment and a link to official sources, routing customers to useful and credible information, is both valuable and reassuring for your customers.
And how do you get this ‘out there’, I hear you ask? Now is the time (because you’ve got time and you’ve definitely got the need) to get your head around the full range of communication methods available to you.
LinkedIn, blogs, social media posts, your business website, email, and even an actual letter. You know your audience, where will they turn for information?
Find your voice and be more baby
If you need to up-skill, there are loads of free sources of help out there. ‘How to’ is the most popular term entered into search engines. Here are a few sources that are offering great up-skilling content on every type of subject imaginable:
