Proactive ideas for Industries we believe are going to be majorly affected by COVID-19.
Restaurant or Cafe
Consider selling gift cards and asking your community to support you. Customers can purchase a gift card now to help you weather the storm, then come in for their favourite meal when things settle down.
Don't worry about needing physical cards, you can always provide an online digital gift card.
If you are remaining open, increase your presence on Uber eats, Deliveroo, Menulog and other platforms which are now offering contactless delivery as an option.
Kids Party Entertainment
Consider how you could put together products that can still serve your customer base. For example Face painting kits for parents to entertain their kids at home, Easter Egg hunt packs delivered to parents.
It may be a tough time for parents with young kids, and this can both help them and help your business at the same time.
Events Companies
Increase cleaning of all equipment, and keep your customer base informed. Provide options to help live stream events back to people who cannot attend, like the unwell or the elderly.
If you are servicing a wedding or corporate event, it may be helpful to provide a live stream service for people who cannot attend, especially if they were meant to be travelling from overseas and have to instead be isolated.
Retail businesses
Increase your efforts on social media and making sure you have a comprehensive online store.
We will all have a lot of spare time for online shopping, so make sure your business has a comprehensive and effective online presence.
List your products on new platforms, like Facebook Marketplace, Gumtree, Amazon, Google products etc.
If you don't yet have an online store, take this time to set one up, it can easily be done in one day with platforms like Shopify and Squarespace.
Consulting
Get familiar with online video conferencing platforms. Using Video is far more effective than just voice.
Keep your clients informed with new ways to contact you and get more help. We recommend using Whereby.com which is also free for up to 4 people. Some other video conferencing platforms are Zoom, Skype, Google hangouts etc.
Gyms and Yoga Studios
Start providing your services online, for example live streaming a yoga class for people to do at home, or personal training over video call.
Ask for help from your customer base during this time, and maybe adjust your pricing to reflect the new ways of doing classes. You may even be able to attract new customers if you do this well and provide a useful service for people to stay healthy while in isolation.
For anyone currently out of work
Now is a great time to up-skill or start a side hustle. There are so many awesome platforms out there such as Coursera, Udemy, Google Digital Garage and more which give you the opportunity to learn a new skill like website building, Google Adwords, a new language, programming etc.
Or think of a side hustle! What are you good at? What do you have expertise in? Think of how you can use that to start a business!
What we are doing at Motive
Whilst the number of cases in Australia is still very low (0.002% of the population), we would like to make sure we implement precautionary steps now and continually monitor the situation for the safety and health of our members.
We understand the stress that it is having on communities around the world, we have reminded our Members that at any point they feel necessary they are able to place their memberships on hold until a later date. This includes members who have signed up with us for 3 - 6 month terms in this circumstance. At this point we are encouraging all our members to come to Motive, but we are prepared for any change that may happen in the future. Our highest priority is ensuring that our Workspace is a safe, hygienic place to come to every day.
If you or anyone you know needs support in anyway and believe we can help, please reach out to us.
If you have any ideas of your own that you think businesses can implement, we would love to hear them. Now is the time to be innovative, flexible and supportive. We all play an important part in helping each other through this uncertain time and remember, Don't Panic and always wash your hands.