Ideas to Stay Connected with your Customers & Employees

The spread of the novel coronavirus (CoVid-19) has certainly presented many obstacles for our everyday lives. Businesses themselves have been severely affected, forcing many establishments to close and others to operate with limited staff or remotely. Although we should all remain aware of the potential dangers associated with this virus, and do our part to stop its spread, we should also consider ways to maintain business to the best of our ability, without endangering the wellbeing of others. Below is a shortlist of ideas to help you stay connected with clients and employees during a time of crisis.

Hold Meetings Online

Email is still a predominant form of communication for contacting clients and co-workers alike. Now more than ever, it is imperative that your email list is up to date, including backup up addresses for your most important contacts. Ensure that your email signature is current and shows all correct information, including additional phone numbers you can be reached at (if applicable).

As many businesses move towards online based platforms, phone contact has diminished over the years however they remain a useful resource. Meetings can be held over the phone, allowing users to take part without having to be present in the same room. This is a great alternative for department update meetings, if you need to stay connected with employees and co-workers.

Video Calls are another tool that can help people stay in the loop, while respecting the boundaries of social distancing. There are a number of apps or software that allow you to do this. Check with your organization to determine which of these services are best equipped to handle your needs, as some programs will allow you to share your screen and send files to participants. Messaging apps such as Facebook, WhatsApp or Google Hangouts can be cost effective alternatives that allow you to share video and audio without incurring major costs. They’re also perfect for assisting your customers one-on-one!

Repurpose Branded Products

Perhaps you had pre-purchased some promotional marketing material for an upcoming trade show or conference, which is likely now cancelled. If this is the case, see if you can still make use of the branded products as giveaways or thank you gifts. You can still send products to the intended recipients, but now, instead of giving them out directly, you can send them individually via parcel delivery services or regular mail. We have many individually packaged products which make great gifts at this time. Have any outstanding caps, drinkware or pens lying around? Great! Send them out to your clients and use this opportunity to strengthen your relationship with them, without having to meet in person.

Branded products are also perfect for donating to charitable organizations. Many local charities may find your products useful for fundraisers, perfect for adding to gift bags or raffle prize baskets. If you have promotional items, this is a great way to help your community and help a charitable organization with their promotional material, especially if their budgets are tight. This also helps you get your name out. It’s a win-win! Find a charitable mission you align with and make a connection.

Add a Personal Touch

Another way to stay in touch using promo products is to further personalize items & send them along with hand written notes. Nothing tells your customers and employees that you are thinking of them quite like a product with their name on it, and a personal note. Personalize products that you think would be useful for working from home, and help make their space more work friendly. While many of us have the basic supplies to work from home, the sudden change of plans may have caught people off guard. Send in extra scratchpads, sticky notes, and notebooks so recipients can seamlessly conduct business without having to worry about office supplies.

Stay Connected

Although it may be a while until things are back to “business as usual”, one truth remains: connecting with your customers will always be important and the fundamentals of accomplishing this will never change. We are fortunate to live in an era of digital communication and many businesses can now operate with little to no disruption. For others, this moment provides an opportunity to “get outside the box” and think about new and innovative ways to create and nurture those connections.