It’s been A LONG ASS TIME since the pandemic started, and while it’s still affecting life and business, many small business owners have shifted out of emergency mode and into a longer-term strategy for dealing with the “new normal.”

Here are some of the key questions to ask yourself in 2022 to help your customer and strengthen your brand and biz. That’s what I call a WIN-WIN.

1. IS THE MESSAGE I AM SENDING IN LINE WITH MY VALUES AND OFFER?

Providing info and using clear messaging is crucial not only to help your customers navigate the current challenging conditions, but also to ensure the recovery and/or long-term success of your business. Make sure your website, marketing emails, social media posts, and all other marketing channels are using a helpful and honest tone, being transparent about how your business has been affected, and explaining what you are doing to help your customers.

2. AM I MAINTAINING A CONNECTION WITH MY CUSTOMERS?

In-person interaction may still be limited, but that doesn’t mean you can’t reach out to customers in other ways. Keep your customer relationships strong by providing updates, encouraging feedback and responding to questions, holding virtual space for them, giving customers a way to buy or interact with you online, and keeping customers up to date on what your business is doing.

3. AM I GIVING MY CUSTOMERS WHAT THEY WANT AND NEED?

It’s important to understand your customers, and that’s especially true now that their way of life, priorities, and needs may have changed significantly. Stay in touch with customers and ask what you can do for them and reflect on your target audience and customer personas
(module 4) to remember who you’re talking to and what they might need to help with their current challenges and situation.

4. IS MY BRAND SHOWING UP FOR MY COMMUNITY?

The world is divided in many ways, which makes it even more important for smaller communities to band together for support and reassurance. In addition to caring for your business, your team, and your customers, make sure your business is doing what it can to be a positive force in your immediate community, whether that means donating goods and services, charitable work, or otherwise demonstrating your responsibility and efforts toward the common good. How are you showing up for your community?

5. AM I USING THE RIGHT ADVERTISING AND MARKETING METHODS TO REACH MY AUDIENCE?

You don’t need to stop marketing your brand, in fact most consumers want brands to continue to be visible and vocal about the value their products and services offer, as long as they are being sensitive to current circumstances and not exploiting the crisis for gain (ewww). Review your marketing approach—social media platforms, email marketing, digital advertising—to find new sources of traffic and make any necessary adjustments to maximize your efforts by checking your social media insights/google analytics to find any significant changes in where your traffic is coming from. If you’re not quite there with analytics, look at your social media followers (Instagram “insights” is a good place to start) and simply ask current clients how they found you is a great place to start building awareness of your marketing!

6. HAVE I LAID THE GROUNDWORK FOR RECOVERY OR AM I STILL REACTING?

For most of us, the pandemic came out of nowhere, so almost all of us went into reactionary mode. Now that we’ve grown somewhat accustomed to the situation (if that’s even possible), it’s time to start thinking about the next steps for your business, whether that means adjusting to the “new normal” or how to get back to true business-as-usual.

For my Brand Clarity Students: Revisit the module 6 workbook where we outline goals and include your marketing budget and strategy, team support, potential changes in demand and revenue, and lead-generation strategies. Reflecting on your answers in the course will help you set these goals and for the LOVE OF BEYONCE use the free worksheet that comes with Module 6 on creating your budget!

For my non-Brand Clarity Students: Did you know that there’s marketing support in the course and you can obtain clarity on your brand and biz in 6 weeks for $447!? A brand strategy could be what you business needs to reach more customers and grow your brand in 2022.