Wesley Johnson, Energy Knect
With the evolving COVID-19 situation and its growing financial impact on the economy, it’s critical that companies figure out a way how to remain competitive and increase their revenues, not just resort to cutting costs.
According to McKinsey & Co and their Global B2B decision-maker response to COVID-19 survey, only 50% of companies are holding off on purchases due to the pandemic. This means that there are still 50% of business opportunities out there to be captured. If you are not capturing these opportunities, your competitors are. While the pandemic certainly has its challenges for teams, those that can take advantage of the opportunities available right now will be the most likely to thrive and survive during and after this crisis.
Below, I have highlighted three simple and effective ways that can help companies stay relative and generate new business during the pandemic.
Make industry friends and expand your network
This is the time to ensure that you are utilising all the online networking opportunities that are at your disposal. The benefit that the pandemic has brought to businesses is a window of free or very low-cost online networking and thought leadership platforms. By plugging into these digital opportunities remotely, there are no travel, accommodation and usually very little or no registration costs at all. Take advantage of these very effective virtual networking and conferencing platforms while the industry’s leading conferencing providers battle it out to capture digital market share. Online networking and conferencing platforms are a great opportunity for you to augment your network, stay relevant, make new industry friends, learn the latest trends, engage with the industry’s thought leaders, share ideas and increase your pipeline of prospects in the comfort of your home office. Online conferencing platforms can be just as effective as face- to- face industry events and can deliver the same if not very similar results.
The key is to find the right online events that are best suited for you and your company to ensure that you are using your time and money efficiently and effectively.
Expand your business development resources
Now is the best time to expand your business development resources. According to a recent research survey conducted by McKinsey & Company (Global B2B Decision Maker Pulse Survey), it found that although B2B companies may believe that their focus on liquidity and other short- term concerns are justified, it could be costly. Their research suggests that companies are more likely to thrive if they act aggressively to capture market share during the downturns rather than wait for a recovery to begin. This agility, combined with a focus on customer value and support, often gives companies the first-mover advantage that other players cannot match. Keep pushing and prospecting, and build a healthy pipeline to stay ahead of your competitors.
As a solution to augment your sales function without accruing any additional overhead costs, explore the option to bring on a reputable sales agency to help you increase your sales activities and identify new business opportunities. Sales Agencies typically come at no financial risk to you other than a successful sale, and can be a very effective strategy for you to continue to capture market share, stay ahead of your competitors and be one of the first movers out of the gates when the economy rebounds, as it eventually will.
Turn the crisis into an opportunity
Companies across every industry have the opportunity to come out of the crises as winners. According to a recent BCG study, 14% of companies were able to, not only accelerate growth but also increase profitability during the past four recessions.
The pandemic has created a great opportunity to think about new ways in which we connect with our clients, help them solve their challenges and build stronger relationships. Companies that lead with empathy and genuinely address customer needs, can strengthen relationships.
According to an article by McKinsey, leading organisations are reorienting their customer-experience efforts to meet their client’s primary needs, such as safety, security, and everyday convenience. By consciously providing empathy and care during the crises, companies can build a foundation of goodwill and long-lasting emotional connections with their clients which can set them up for sustained success.
Modern Buyers expect to be treated as partners by your company, rather than targets. What they value right now is your support and advice on how to troubleshoot their challenges, including insights on how their peers are doing. By using a tailored approach, you might just identify many other opportunities that you could add to your existing product or service line, which could encourage additional revenue streams.
With the right approach and understanding of what your clients need right now, companies can emerge from this crisis having strengthened relationships with their clients. Businesses that you want to reach out to are desperate to trade. Why wouldn’t they be? Therefore, one of the best tactics to take during the pandemic is to just push on with lead generation and adapt to the new ways of generating new business. How lead generation techniques will look like post COVID-19 is unknown. For now, however, companies looking to find new business opportunities can make use of platforms such as Energy Knect to help them generate new business.
