Running a business at the best of times is a hectic process, but with the world locked in a pandemic, being a small business owner has become more challenging than ever before.

Your primary customer base may be confined to their homes with no income. All your usual customer engagement strategies may be gone and you may be left wondering how to stay afloat with no one coming in the door.

Ramping up your digital marketing ideas during this time is more important than ever before. Read on to learn how to target those efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic to make sure your business comes out on top at the end of the quarantine.

Use Social Media

One of the best ways to reach your customers while everyone is at home is through social media. People are taking to Facebook and Twitter looking for information. distraction. and news about family and friends.

They’re turning to Pinterest and Instagram to provide them with home cleaning and organization inspiration and a creative outlet.

Make sure your business is working to connect with customers through social media. These marketing efforts should focus less on selling your product right now and more on meeting your customers’ needs.

Provide them with fun distractions and activity ideas, or put out a set of tips for staying safe when interacting with your industry.

Create a Strong Online Presence

In addition to social media marketing efforts, you also need to make sure your online presence is strong. Your social media efforts should be working to drive customers to your website, where they can learn more about and connect with your business. But in order for that to work, you have to have a solid website.

Take this time to run any updates needed on your website and reevaluate things like your website design and purpose. Try to develop daily content and find new ways to reach your customers online.

If you’ve never had an online purchasing system before, this may be a good time to implement one.

Catch Up on Your To-Do List

One great way to keep your business running during the pandemic shutdown and strengthen your online presence is to spend this downtime catching up on your digital to-do list. Your in-person operations are shut down right now, so take the time to put more effort into your online presence.

Not only will this keep you and your employees busy, but it will also position your business to come out of this crisis stronger than ever.

Have you wanted to redesign your branding or update your website for a while? How about launching a blog or online store or setting up a digital inventory system? Take this time that you aren’t spending on customers to make the changes and improvements that have been sitting for too long.

Create Special Discounts

This crisis has left everyone struggling; businesses are shut down, people are out of work, and the stock market is reaching historic lows. Trying to get people to spend money with you during these times can be tricky.

But you also have some unique opportunities to provide special discounts for your customers.

Consider running a sale that donates part of the proceeds to a COVID relief organization. Offer two-for-one discounts or special sales to healthcare and emergency workers. Work to show your customers that your business is taking care of them during these stressful times and you’ll reap the financial benefits after the quarantine ends.

Focus on Local SEO

Oftentimes, businesses tend to focus marketing efforts on national or international audiences. And in normal times, this is a good strategy; the larger your audience, the more your business can grow. But when people are locked at home, aiming efforts at a national audience may not be the best approach.

Focus your SEO efforts instead on your local market. People in your area will be most likely to buy from you right now, and with the post office in such dire straits, shipping may become more difficult or expensive.

Target social media ads towards local customers, and use local analytics to guide your efforts.

Pivot to Meet Customer Needs

One of the keys to running a successful business is being able to stay flexible. You need to be able to change quickly if a marketing strategy isn’t working or if your customer needs change. That ability will serve you better than ever during this pandemic.

Pivot your business approach to meet customer needs.

Things like curbside pickup, online ordering, and local delivery can make a huge difference both to your customers and to your bottom line. If you can find ways to provide new COVID need-related products such as reusable face masks or hand sanitizer, so much the better.

Use PPC Advertising

During this pandemic, focusing more of your marketing budget towards pay-per-click advertising is a good idea. Budgets are tight, so you want to make sure you’re getting your money’s worth out of every cent.

Pay-per-click advertising is a great way to make sure you’re paying only for the messages that are reaching your customers.

With PPC advertising, you only pay when customers click a link to your website. And thanks to the pandemic, PPC advertising costs are at an all-time low. Boost your web presence and use PPC advertising to make sure your marketing efforts are driving customers to your site.

Discover More Digital Marketing Ideas

With the world on lockdown, having unique digital marketing ideas has become more crucial than ever. Keep your marketing efforts local and be prepared to adapt your business model for the times. Listen to customer needs and use this time to strengthen your online presence.

If you’d like help honing your digital marketing strategies, check out the rest of our site at Source Group.

We can help you create dynamic marketing platforms that integrate live events and media into immersive experiences. Contact us today and discover how we can take your marketing efforts to the next level.