Today I wanted to share with you some things to think about and act on when you it comes to managing your business in a difficult time.

Make a conscious decision about how you want to show up during this time of crisis.

For me, I've decided to try and be practical, helpful, calm, positive and patient. Those are my words. What are your words right now – because I think actually deciding how you want to show up during this time makes a difference.
 
Social media is where people are going to be hanging out A lot over the next few weeks, so if you have it in you and it’s not going to be a negative for you then I’m saying – now is the time to show up and be present.

Manage your mind and what you’re consuming so that you can stay informed but not fall down the fear and negativity hole that can easily happen if that’s all you’re consuming.

Diversify where you can.

I've been inundated with direct messages from businesses looking for help to think differently.

• So for kids art classes, I've said to run them online through Zoom so people don't miss out and they can still enjoy the experience from home.
• For a florist who was doing corporate, maybe see if sending flowers and then teaching people to arrange them works and potentially still do home deliveries if you can
• If you can teach something online then go that way.  I'm updating Video Marketing Made Easy online course with additional content on how to create your online content, course or workshop and market it (the name may change!). You can get $50 off if you use the code ‘LETSDOTHIS'.
• If you are a social media manager, copywriter, web designer then keep showing up and sharing what you have. Some people will take this time to get their business up to date and work on it, instead of just in it. I'm going to be creating a whole of new content for YouTube as well as writing blog posts to help drive SEO traffic – there is always something you can do!

Communicate with your audience but be useful

Hopefully you’ve been communicating with your audience regularly so that this isn’t the only time they are hearing from you.  But don’t be scared to let them know what you’re doing and share with them how they can still work with you.  Hopefully if you’re looking at diversifying if you need to then you will have an update for them.

If you’re a physical business then you could still deliver things or post orders.  I actually think that retail may see a boost because people are at home and shopping online if they need things so think about what products may be needed more now that you provide.

Negotiate where you can

I was chatting with a friend who has a friend who has a shop and they felt like they were going to have to close down. If you are renting a space or shop then I think it’s a reasonable conversation where possible to see if there is flexibility in rental agreements, event schedules.  We were going to have confidence rising on the 25th March but I could see that it just wasn’t going to happen so The Prince where we have it has been amazingly flexible and whilst they don’t refund the deposit, we can book another event which I’m totally fine with. They are a business and they need to do what is right for them too.

Spend time upskilling and working on your business

I purchased a small course of something I've been wanting to do for ages the other night for 2 reasons – 1 is because I actually want to continue to support other small businesses where I can and 2, now is a great time to double down and learn something new.

Now is a great time for writing content, creating that course and getting things sorted in your business that you haven’t had the time to do before now or that you’ve been putting off.  Think about what you want to be found for when it comes to your SEO and think about what you can do to strength being found.

Use YouTube to learn what you need to.

NOW is always a good time to build your brand

If you're feeling like you don't know exactly what to do then I'm always going to tell you that now is the time to double down, create content, connect with your audience, help where you can and keep moving.

Nothing creates more negativity than sitting idol and dwelling on things. This could blow over in 6 weeks or it could be six months, so the quicker you start to work out a plan of action and keep building wherever you can the better off you'll be. – Not easy, I know but what else are you going to do??  If you were going to take the most positive course of action – what would it be?

On a more personal note

Stay connected and make the effort
I called a few of my girlfriends this week just to say hello.  Remember when we used to do that.  We chatted and I checked in on them and we had a laugh and it felt good. So maybe put something in the diary every week to connect with someone who makes the world a bit nicer for you and be the person to pick up the phone or set up the zoom wine chat! Don't wait for other people – now is the time for you to lead the way!

[WATCH NOW] HOW TO BUILD A BOLD BRAND, SCALE YOUR BUSINESS & ATTRACT THE CLIENTS YOU WANT

In this video masterclass, I'll share the three key areas you need to focus on to scale your business and build a bold brand so that you attract the client that want what you have!

Access it straight away and start watching and learning today!