Email marketing is a way to market your brand to a wider audience. It gives you the opportunity to build relationships with leads, and strengthen relationships with active and previous customers. And while this remains true during the COVID-19 pandemic, pivoting your email marketing strategy to adapt to the “new normal” of a changing and disrupted market is vital.
Any updates on changes to your hours of operation, new services, new rules and regulations, or if you're closing for a period of time should also be shared both through email and on your business listings. For example, some of our customers have used this time to cross-market and help other small businesses in their area by offering a small discount if a customer brings in a recent receipt from another local small business. Other service businesses have begun selling products and services solely online and shared links to those online stores via email.
It is also incredibly important to keep your customers informed and let them know how they can continue to support your business; local consumers are looking for ways to help businesses they love. Let them know if you’ve started selling gift cards for future services or offer any discounts on packaged products, services, or classes. Keep your business top-of-mind and your customers engaged!
This is also a great time to remind your customers that reviews and referrals are more important to your business now than ever. Consumers are increasingly relying on what they read on Google, Yelp, Facebook, and more to form an opinion about your business. 82% of consumers read online reviews for local businesses (source: BrightLocal), and consumers read around 10 reviews before trusting a business (source: BrightLocal). Make the ask via email! You can send links directly to your happiest customers, or use a system like Signpost that automates the process and is designed to convert your requests into reviews! As a result, positive reviews will help you build your brand, attract more potential clients to your website and, ultimately, help you win more jobs.
Finally, as you’re deciding what messages you want to convey to your customers, you want to remember to do the following:
Communicate honestly, openly, and on a human level
Empathize with their situations
Prioritize clear, concise, and accurate messaging
Thank them for their patronage and support
Putting yourself in your customer’s shoes and being mindful of how they’re being affected right now can help build trust and pave the way for a long-term relationship.
Interested in improving your business's customer communications and online reputation? Request a demo to see how Signpost can help, and learn about our preferred pricing program for Constant Contact customers.
Constant Contact and Signpost have partnered together to share content that benefits Constant Contact users with their online marketing.
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