Though some folks are still on edge amid swirling reports of “Delta variant” infections rising, we have largely emerged from the Pandemic Pause.

Here in Los Angeles, June 15th (a date somehow a magical ordained as the “all clear” demarcation line by our state government) marked the end of all state-mandated restrictions.

No more masks. No more social distancing. And no more limited capacity.

This also means no more limitations on in-office work or in-person meetings.

But in turn, this leaves many small business owners wondering: “What now?”

Which, of course, is a fair question. But the undeniable reality of the last 18+ months spent in “lockdown life” is things have forever changed.

Sure, certain aspects of life, and business, are likely to “return to normal.” But other elements are destined to be forever changed. Meaning we’re not simply going “back to normal.” Instead, we need to prepare to adjust to a lasting “new normal.”

And this is especially true when it comes to marketing. Many in the professional services game weren’t affected in the same fashion as retail or service-oriented enterprises. But our business has seen a massive shift, too.

How so? And, more importantly, what’s the lingering impact?

From a marketing standpoint, three major factors re-calibrating during the pandemic…

Revisiting Marketing Strategy

For many professional service businesses, especially among sole proprietors and solopreneurs, there is no such thing as “marketing strategy.”

You launch your business. You pick the marketing tactics that occur to you at the moment. And you alternately lean into what works and back off what doesn’t.

Now, for some smaller operations, this approach has worked. It’s not likely to yield the most strident growth. And you’re client acquisitions are more apt to be “taking what you can get” rather than “picking who you work with.”

Amid the pandemic, however, a scattershot approach was infinitely less effective. Many would-be clients were exclusively searching for service providers online.

And this forced many business owners to think through their lead generation and client conversion process.

In other words…

Develop a Marketing Strategy

What does this look like, practically speaking?

Strategy development begins with identifying your ideal client — eCommerce and online retail sales have trained consumers to be very specific, often to the point of conducting granular research when shopping online. Thus, to connect with the best candidates for your services, you need to speak their language. And to do so, you need to know exactly who your ideal clients are and exactly what they want.

Accomplishing this requires creating customer personas that define age, income, needs, wants, worries, and so on. All of which enables you to craft messaging and choose marketing channels to better engage with your ideal clients.

The next step is narrowing your niche — As noted above, online shoppers tend to drill down in pursuit of exactly what they’re looking for. And if your business offers an array of services, your message is less likely to resonate with prospects.

For example, let’s say you’re an attorney, and you offer business formation, real estate, estate planning, and intellectual property law services. Why would a prospect choose you over a specialist in any one of these fields? Thus, the narrow your niche, the more qualified prospects you’re apt to attract.

And the final step is defining your core value — Consumers today lack any semblance of patience and have exponentially decreasing attention spans. They want everything fast, easy, obvious, and as spoon-fed as possible. As such, you need to craft a clear, concise, and easily digested explanation of precisely how your business benefits your ideal prospect.

This message is sometimes called your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) or an Elevator Pitch. And if you can pare this message down to three sentences or less, you’re waaaaaaaaaay ahead of the game!

Levering Technology + Leaning Into Digital Marketing

Research on tactical marketing during the pandemic reveals some striking stats… Over 50% of surveyed businesses implemented new marketing technologies. Nearly 40% added a new marketing channel. And 35% added an online customer service channel.

The implications here? The slow but steady climb toward digital marketing adaption suddenly took off in a STEEP upward trend.

Prior to the pandemic, many businesses were content with a website, playing at Adwords, dabbling in social media promotion, and experimenting with email marketing. But in response to a “locked down” populous turning to the web for just about everything, these same businesses have fully pivoted toward digital marketing.

So, where many businesses ignored SEO, search optimization now ranks among their biggest marketing concerns. Business-based social media activity, including paid promotions, is surging. And email marketing campaign volumes have soared.

All of which makes sense. With everyone sequestered at home, the internet became most folks’ lifeline. The web provided communication, news, and entertainment, along with shopping — hello, Amazon’s biggest earnings ever — and even food service fulfillment via grocery and take-out food delivery services.

Meanwhile, 18 months later, these behaviors have taken root, and consumers are comfortable with the “new normal.” Meaning, the pandemic-borne digital conversion is here to stay.

Monitoring Analytics + Digging Into “The Data”

While many business owners are familiar with Google Analytics tools and have tracking codes installed on their websites, few invest much time monitoring their website traffic.

Similarly, social media engagement analytics and broadcast email open + response rates are often ignored or generally overlooked.

But amid the digital pivot, business owners began to take notice of these factors. Evidence by the fact that implementing new data capture programs ranks as top priority fo many business owners. And monitoring analytics across their various platforms became a priority.

Here again, this shift makes sense. If your promotional activities are focused online, monitoring their performance is critical to measuring their success. And the more data available, the better you’re able to refine your approach and improve your results.

The Takeaway: What’s Next?

The short answer is: Trends noted above are not fleeting. This “new normal” is here to stay.

And if your business is not focused on developing a marketing strategy, pivoting toward digital marketing, and using analytics data to make informed decisions, you’re competitors are going to overtake you.

Need Help Managing Your Marketing in the Post-Pandemic World?

Whether you’re struggling to develop an effective marketing strategy, adapt to digital marketing, or make sense of your analytics data — I got you!

Together, we can ensure your business not only survives the “new normal” of post-pandemic life but thrives.

So, if this sounds like the goal you’d like to pursue, let’s chat! 310.466.7893 | ryan@ryananys.com