Published by Ram B on March 25, 2020 in LinkedIn Pulse
Selling a product or service has always been a challenge. I am sure everyone will agree to the fact that selling a product or service has become much more challenging today, given the sudden out-spread of Corona Virus and the complete lockdown. This has put companies in a fix. Every company would be serious about their FY closing and would have major plans of pushing their products / services through various activities. The sales campaigns through roadshows etc would have come to a complete halt.
Moreover, what is more taxing for companies is that clients would be conducting series of meetings during March / April to finalize their Annual Operating Plans and choose / change vendors who are the best. But will clients delay their decision in choosing their vendors? If delay, for how long? Can clients afford to delay, given the unpredictable situation that Covid – 19 thrown at them?
We are living in a digital era. Gone are the days where there must be face to face meetings to finalize deals, unless otherwise there is a touch and feel of the product required to finalise. If this doesn’t happen today, it will not take longer to reach there. This holds true more for service sales or Cloud based Products. Covid – 19 amongst its negative effect had also impacted companies positively.
It had made companies to be more efficient, re-imagine the way it conducts it affairs and to push more towards Digitisation.
As there is a complete lockdown, field salespeople cannot make a physical visit to meet clients. But this situation has also provided tremendous opportunities for Digital Marketing. Decision Makers in client companies are at their homes, spending their time in the internet researching on what to do next, connecting with colleagues through Video Conferencing on Annual Operating Plans / Budget meetings to take decisions. There is a sure shot success for Digital Marketing, provided companies put efforts in the right direction, not getting distracted, and fully focused on their DM activities.
Companies can make year long plans. But they need to set clear metrics for March / April on what they are going to achieve against what timelines. However, if companies do not achieve the numbers they had planned against the timelines, they will give their goals a miss. Since April is a critical month, and companies cannot afford to let loose competitors overtake them and influence decision makers to sway the decisions in their favour.
The task in front of companies could be herculean though but sets firm and clear expectations. They should achieve those numbers by all means… by all probabilities. Their ordinary efforts should double, triple and even quadruple.
Marketing departments should think out of the box and come out with strategies to help their companies achieve the defined numbers.
Covid- 19 had changed the way companies function, so does the way it choose its vendors.
Those companies who capitalize this beautiful opportunity, will only succeed.
