What a year it was.

As we turn the corner on COVID-19, the lingering question on every business owner’s mind is: how do we adapt?

How can we bounce back to pre-COVID revenues?

What do I need to change about my business model to adapt to our new normal?

In today’s blog, we’re going to give you a few valuable tips on how to approach your business in the post-COVID era, and what you can do now to improve business this year.

Let’s dive deeper!

Tip #1: Reevaluate Your Offering

Ask yourself this:

“What do my customers really want?”

“Have their needs changed since COVID-19?”

It’s important to take a closer look at your business offering in 2021 and make sure it still aligns with what your customers are asking for.

If you’re a doctor who offers in-person sessions, yet your clients now prefer the efficiency of Zoom… there is a sudden disconnect.

If you’re the owner of a real estate firm that usually showcases listings in-person, yet clients now prefer socially-distanced, Zoom showings… there is a sudden disconnect.

No matter the scenario, it’s up to you as a business owner to find these gaps, and bridge them. Otherwise, you may see a steady decline in business as we continue to recover from COVID-19 and not know the reasoning behind it.

If you’re thinking to yourself, “well Samy, I’m not a mind-reader. How am I supposed to know what they’re thinking?”

Ask them! It’s a great time to check in with customers personally and ask how you can tangibly help them more as a business. You’d be surprised how many customers will feel recognized and valued by simply asking the question. 

Another idea? Use social media and email to take a mass temperature check using polls, surveys, and videos.

It’s a great time to increase your exposure online and present yourself as a dominant thought leader in your space. Connecting with your customers online, in places they hang out, is more important than ever for small businesses.

Tip #2: Identify and Prioritize

Find out what makes your business ‘tick’ – and prioritize it.

A great way to do this is to sit down and identify your business goals. These have most likely changed since COVID-19.

• Is your goal to get 50% more clients by the end of the year?
• Or add on another revenue stream to diversify your income?
• Maybe it’s to expand your team so you’re able to grow faster.

As a starting point, we recommend focusing on goals that are connected to profitability. Once you have these honed in, you can prioritize your business functions.

What can you do in your business to cut out the noise and focus specifically on these goals?

Anything you’re doing in your business that doesn’t help you achieve these goals should take a backseat for now.

Tip #3: Focus on eCommerce

If we all learned anything from 2020 and COVID-19, it’s that Zoom calls are here to stay.

Businesses across many industries are making the switch to hybrid models (online and offline) to reach their customers online.

Realtors are holding virtual open houses, therapists are holding Zoom sessions, and large corporates are congregating on Zoom rather than on cross-country trips.

Which is why our third recommendation is to move your business online.

Not totally online, of course. But it’s a great time to add an additional, online revenue stream to your business to expand your reach & revenue.

Is there a product or service that you can offer online?

A course? A webinar?

Training?

A one-off virtual session?

Get creative! These days, you can almost always find a way to add an additional revenue stream for your business online. 

Doing so will keep you ahead of the competition, diversify revenue streams in the business, and give you access to a broader target market that you wouldn’t be able to otherwise reach.

Tip #4: Plan Ahead!

This is a great time of year to take stock of where you are as a company and start planning for the next 12 months ahead.

The best way to do this? Put together a projected P&L for the next 12 months with your expected sales and expenses.

Some people might call this a ‘budget’, but don’t let that put you off!

A lot of business owners these days are understandably unsure about the economic climate ahead. However, very few business owners have sat down to nail down what their newfound financial situation looks like.

A 12-month projected P&L will help you do this.

Ask yourself these two questions:

• How much money is coming in each month?
• How much money is going out?

And write it out on paper.

If the number is currently negative (as it is for many business owners post COVID-19), it’s important to figure out exactly how much time you have left until you burn through your reserves. Do you need a line of credit? Can you raise more funding? Are you able to add new revenue streams?

We recommend focusing on cash flow as a priority now, to put together a plan to mitigate any hurdles moving forward.

We can’t tell you how much better you’ll sleep at night knowing exactly where your finances stand.

In Summary

Well, there you have it! Our 4 tips to help get your business back on track post-COVID-19 and bounce back your revenue.

The most important underlying message is to take stock and analysis of exactly how your business is doing now, so  you know exactly where and what you need to address to make improvements.

Reconnect with your customers. Find out what they need. And match that with what you can offer them in a post-COVID-19 world.

And finally, we recommend stepping back and working with an expert accountant (preferably one that understands your industry) to model what the financial situation looks like going forward for your unique business.

If you don’t have a business accountant who can help you do this, we are more than happy to help or answer any questions you have.

Simply book a quick appointment with one of our accountants here.

In the meantime, check out our blog post on the Employee Retention Credit to see if you qualify for thousands of dollars back from the IRS now. 

See you next time.