Okay. The dust clouds around the coronavirus have pretty much settled. The initial shock and disbelief have worn off. Also for you. Let's take stock.
We know a few things for sure, and the first and foremost is that the virus is not going away anytime soon. Corona is here to stay. Active or passive: the disease will be part of our lives in the coming years. It will not be completely normal. Sooner or later, the people around us will also get sick. A large number of them will recover well, some will recover with difficulty or not at all and some will die. So be it.
What we also know is that some social distancing will become normal. You outer circle will also physically affect you outer circle are. Frequent hand washing becomes a new habit. We unlearn shaking hands.
What we also know for sure is that the economy will eventually be restarted. The dynamics will return. Hospitality, restaurants and cultural centres will start up again. Travel will slowly be resumed. If only for the simple reason that that is part of a society. It will be different, but you will get used to that too.
The last fact is that the pots of money are quickly running out everywhere.
In summary, things are as follows:
· Public health is under threat
· Our behavior changes
· The money is running out
· We need to get back to work
Now that we have this clear, we can focus on the future.
The Future
Am I going too fast for you? Are you still in disbelief mode? Are you living in lethargy? Or are you sometimes in resistance mode? Angry at the government, angry at the RIVM? At the Chinese or the palm oil barons who are massively cutting down primeval forests?
Stop it. Complaining doesn't solve problems.
If you are working on short term strategy and bridging loans: do it. It will help you. But know that you will win a battle, but not the whole war.
Take action. How you do that, of course, depends on the sector and the nature of your business. Somewhat. Not entirely. Because whether you are the owner of a shoe store or the director of a conference center or an architect of insect hotels: there are a number of rock-solid rules of thumb. I can't mention them all in this article. I'll give you three of them. Note: they are universal and ongoing.
Rule of thumb 1: Load your brand
I can't be more clear. You need to reload your brand. Your brand needs to come alive. Shine. Right now. And I see that around me, in companies and entrepreneurs, too little. By reloading your brand you conquer a new place in the mind of the customer.
Loading your brand is a psychological process. The shortest way to the brain is through feeling. That's why you need to connect your brand to value. In this case: to a new value.
So distance yourself from the superficiality of your brand and go straight to the core. What does your product or service really give you?
I myself expect the new economy to be a good health economy becomes. I made up that word myself. My spell checker doesn't recognize it yet. Good health is: finding the good state of the physical body again. Or: maintaining fitness. Good health is also: mental well-being and personal happiness. And it means that we long for a good environment to live, work and recreate in. Your brand must respond to that.
Even BtoB – supposedly the domain of rationalism – is driven by brand feeling. Brand and feeling: let those two words sink in for a moment. By loading your brand, your software package feels more reliable, more stable, more user-friendly and simply much better than that of your competitor. Cash register. The customer rationalizes just as well. After the purchase.
Rule of thumb 2: Communication is cash
Communication is the fuel of every relationship. So also of business relationships. Your situation could be that you have no or hardly any customers at the moment. Not in your building, not in your digital environment. There are no new prospects in your mailbox. Then you can't help but have nothing to do for a few hours.
Hurray! Now more than ever, you have the time to connect with your customers. Time and opportunity.
I understand that this is diametrically opposed to your mood. But your customer's mood is not good either. And you have to brighten that up. With your brand.
Your loyalists, the household names, the faithful faces: call them. Reach out to them on LinkedIn. Send them something to encourage them. By mail or digitally, anything goes. But do it.
Invite them to your empty office with a meter and a half between them and your own coffee. Ask how they are doing. What do they need? What do they need? Remember: communication is cash. Not immediately, but after some time.
Your customers are people too. With work and relationships and a changed existence. With new needs.
There is always a service provider who realizes this. And while you grumble or fall silent or stare at the quarterly figures, another brand steps into the vacuum that you fail to fill.
Some more hard data: McKinsey data shows that companies that survived the previous crisis stayed in touch with their customers during that tough period.
Rule of thumb 3: Be relevant
People are all opportunistic. Consumers connect with you when it is relevant to them. If you know that, then you as a brand play on that. For a brand, continuous and changing relevance is vital.
Global brands have long been prepared for all possible changing relevances. The various future strategies are dust-free and ready on a shelf. You can do that too.
The shoe store I was talking about, it's relevant in a new way. In the new good health economy do your shoes matter. Walking is something we can and may do in abundance. And you do that with great, cool, magnificent shoes. Do you walk enough? I can see that in your shoes.
The conference center is a huge high tech complex that is currently vacant. The head office of a large bank – just down the road – needs extra workspace, divided into units. Teenagers from the neighbourhood who lack room to move around need extra sports accommodation. The conference centre is relevant in a different way.
And as for the insect hotels: Mother Earth is crying out for them. Never before have we realized how important good nature management is.
What was relevant yesterday – the old-style convention center – is dated today. Continued relevance is crucial to the survival of a brand.
The conference centre is on a prime location. Bold proposal: demolish the behemoth and build homes. Relevant.
Finally: Dare to stop in time
Everything has a beginning and an end. Sometimes the end comes sooner than you thought. It takes courage to see that. Lucky you: you are an entrepreneur or manager. You have courage.
Everything you do costs energy. Fine. Energy has the nice property that it can multiply. Is your energy not multiplying? Decide how to proceed.
Energy can therefore multiply. This does not apply to your focus. It is limited. All responsibilities that you have consume part of your focus. If the focus is consumed in parts, then it is less sharp per component. The results are proportionally less good. By shedding responsibilities, the results per remaining component become better. The more often you do this, the easier it becomes. Successful people stop their companies or components or tasks without a cent of pain.
My advice to you: free yourself from diminished energy and sharpen your focus. Ask yourself if you see a future in the enterprise that is yours. Be as honest as you can be. If your answer is 'no', accept that. Let go. Shift your focus to a new challenge in which you see a healthy future.
Persevere and find your success again.
Lifestyle first, business second. You can do it.
Hans Ruinemans, boardroom monk
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