Even though many parts of the world are opening up their economies after the longest hiatus in modern history, the COVID-19 pandemic is certainly not over yet. What does this mean for our favorite businesses and brands? How can we navigate the challenges of working from home and social distancing measures and still run a business successfully? We asked marketing strategist, speaker, and #TwitterSmarter veteran Dan Willis to share some ideas. Here’s a summary of our chat.
Guest: Dan Willis
Topic: Running a Business in a World of Social Distancing
Format: Eight questions directed at the guest. Everyone’s welcome to share.
One of the best things that happened as a result of the pandemic is that more and more businesses started social media for what they’re intended. As Dan explained, a lot of brands have taken to social media, prioritizing audience engagement instead of it just being a one-way interaction.
A1 Social media is really returning to its roots. Businesses are becoming far more sociable with clients through #COVID19. #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/hcFxg4uoz4
— Dan Willis #SMWL20 ?? (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 2, 2020
And like John said, people who relied on events have turned to hosting and attending virtual events, powered by live videos, webinars, and training software.
A1: Any business dependent on live events has had to shift to virtual, and many of those are doing it on social platforms. #TwitterSmarter
— John Cloonan (@johncloonan) July 2, 2020
On the other hand, as Deb from Agorapulse and Nathalie pointed out, a lot of businesses are taking this opportunity to help out their employees and serve their communities.
A1. A lot of business are putting their core values into practice while assisting their employees and their communities. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/Oai0pyZusz
— Nathalie Gregg (@NathalieGregg) July 2, 2020
Dan’s top advice is to get face-to-face with your clients. And of course, to do so online. He vouched for Zoom meetings and social media live to stay in touch. Watch the video to hear Dan explain how no matter which platform you choose to do live videos on, it can still help you connect with clients and ensure constant communication.
A2 Get face to face with @zoom_us and live streaming #video! #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/jE102kK5Y7
— Dan Willis #SMWL20 ?? (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 2, 2020
Rob & Kennedy shared a great idea too—sometimes too much of a good thing can become a bad thing. For example, you don’t want to bombard your audience with too many emails or a flurry of back-to-back videos. Instead, use a variety of channels to communicate—a couple of Facebook posts, a few tweets, a webinar here, a video there, and some well-timed emails. That way, you don’t overwhelm your audience but still get your message across.
A2. It's something we are calling Becoming 3D.
Speaking with clients on one channel is no good.
If you email them 4x a day they're going to get upset.
But Some tweets, a Facebook post, an email and a LinkedIn status somehow is okay.#TwitterSmarter
— Rob & Kennedy ? The Email Marketing Heroes (@RobandKennedy) July 2, 2020
Our guest’s preferences, aside from Zoom, are Agorapulse for social media managing, OBS Project for video recording and streaming, and Restream. Watch his answer to understand how he uses Restream to go live at once on multiple social media channels like YouTube, Twitter, Twitch, Facebook, and more to engage with a lot more people than live streaming on a single channel.
A3 I couldn't do what I do without @OBSProject, @Restreamio, @Agorapulse and so many others! #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/2avCFExIRX
— Dan Willis #SMWL20 ?? (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 2, 2020
Di also mentioned a few other important tools like CoSchedule, Google, Tailwind, and everyone’s favorite Tweet Deck.
A3: I use @CoSchedule @TailwindApp lots of @Google services and @TubeBuddy
I'm also reminded today of @TweetDeck and twitter lists! Sheesh I haven't looked at my twitter lists in years! #TwitterSmarter
— Di Hickman (@dihickmanyoga) July 2, 2020
Some other common tools our community members spoke about are Slack for team communication, Asana and Trello for project management, Hootsuite, and Evernote.
Video is a great way to meet your clients without leaving your home. And when you meet them, you get to have a real, human conversation as opposed to them reading a chunk of text. What’s more, a lot of people now worry about what business would be like a few months or years down the lane. Talking to them face-to-face gives you the opportunity to discuss genuinely and reassure them.
A4 It is hands down the best way to stay in constant communication with your clients/customers and help them where they are today! #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/vbkLDkQMSG
— Dan Willis #SMWL20 ?? (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 2, 2020
With most of the world in lockdown, so many museums and art galleries have started doing video tours—another exciting use of the functionality. Our friend from Salt Rank pointed out how the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art showcases their pieces through a clever and relevant, branded hashtag.
A4: It has so many great uses but I have loved seeing businesses, like museums, use it to promote and show off art that people can no longer visit in person. Shout out to @nelson_atkins in KC for showcasing art with their hashtag #NelsonAtkinsathome #TwitterSmarter
— Salt Rank (@saltrank) July 2, 2020
The most valuable thing you can do on social media is to listen. Actively. As Dan explained, most social media channels have excellent search functionalities. Twitter’s advanced search, in particular, is so comprehensive that you can filter conversations by date, hashtags, users, and specific keywords. Use all of this to engage with your audience. Look for users who talk about their problems, and keep an ear out for what they ask for. With that knowledge, you can pitch in as a helpful guide (not salesy!), understand their needs, and have genuine conversations.
A5 This is where #socialmedia search is so greatly underutilized. #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/GJAaJPTvsf
— Dan Willis #SMWL20 ?? (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 2, 2020
A great way to generate new leads and retain your clients at the same time is to share your knowledge online. Not just though articles and text tweets, but as Javier suggested, through more webinars, podcasts, and video conferences.
A5: I've seen an uptick in webinars, which let you present business solutions aim at addressing client challenges. There are a lot of tool to help yo do this nowadays. #TwitterSmarter
— Javier Sanabria (@SanabriaJav) July 2, 2020
It’s important to separate your work and life. As our guest explained, when you have a dedicated workspace, you can direct your complete attention to work. And when you’re away from your workspace, you can give the same attention to your personal life and family.
A6 Dedicated time and space for both is so crucial. #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/1DcSiF2aru
— Dan Willis #SMWL20 ?? (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 2, 2020
As Carlar also said, try and make a to-do list with designated breaks. Just like with going to an office, you should have start and stop times—even if you’re working from home.
A6) Planning the day we'll in advance and following login and logout time; am miserably failing at the latter one. #TwitterSmarter
— Megha (@WanderlustGirl_) July 2, 2020
When you work from home, it’s just so easy to immerse yourself in work and forget yourself. As Alistair from Two Hour Digital reminded us, carve out time in your day for proper meals. Eating with one hand while you work with the other may sound efficient but will only hurt your life balance in the long run. (#NoteToSelf)
A6: By having proper lunches for the first time in years.#TwitterSmarter
— Two Hour Digital (@twohourdigital) July 2, 2020
Dan’s favorite is Nike. Watch his video response to understand how Nike’s been supporting its community throughout the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter protests.
A7 I can't speak higher praises for @Nike. Here is a massive brand that remains in touch with its community's wants, needs, and feelings. Such a powerful example of EQ. #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/I71HbO9m4L
— Dan Willis #SMWL20 ?? (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 2, 2020
Madalyn pointed out how some brands are giving back to their communities. For example, she mentioned Tone It Up who’re doing free live workouts. And Christian Siriano, a fashion designer, has been making masks to be distributed by donation to support their local audience.
A7: Fitness brands like @ToneItUp have prioritized free, live workouts on social media to inspire their community to stay active while at home. And fashion designers like @CSiriano switched gears to create masks for donation. They see it’s important to give back! #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/046GP6ARvU
— Madalyn Sklar – Digital Marketing since 1996 (@MadalynSklar) July 2, 2020
Mel also mentioned that an entire Zara factory is now manufacturing masks.
A7:
The Spanish clothing brand Zara of Amancio Ortega put its entire factory to produce free masks. #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/vjSbMFlWA7— ??? ?ó??? ? (@MGMELSYSTEMS) July 2, 2020
On top of all that, many alcohol brands across the world have gone into making sanitizers to keep up with unprecedented demands.
You bet. Even though it’s been challenging. So many people have gotten used to the idea of flexible working schedules and the comfort of staying at their home office.
Besides, as Manuel pointed out, so many companies have invested in remote tools and home office setups for their employees.
A8: Working from home is here to stay, even when the economy reopens. Many companies have invested in remote work tools, and there’s no indication they’ll be returning to the old way of doing business. #TwitterSmarter https://t.co/XZrsEP2XQd
— Manuel Marcano ??? (@manuelmrcno) July 2, 2020
Christine also explained that now that a lot of companies have been working from home, they’ve realized how unnecessarily expensive a physical office space can be. Besides, after almost three months, most business leaders have developed confidence in their team members to complete their tasks.
A8: 100% yes.
Companies have learned:
❤️ How unnecessary the expense of an office was
❤️ How much they can trust their employees to do good work on their own
❤️ How to use digital means to connect (especially social media and video)#TwitterSmarter— christine gritmon ✨ (@cgritmon) July 2, 2020
We’ve also seen second waves of Covid hitting many countries, as Dan pointed out. This means that businesses won’t be in a rush to get back to the office. Plus, remote working has opened up a lot of opportunities and we’re connecting with people across the world unlike ever before. All that’s here to stay, folks.
A8 With wave 2 of #covid19 inbound I think #remote is here to stay! #TwitterSmarter pic.twitter.com/vbP7JQ1VpC
— Dan Willis #SMWL20 ?? (@MLLNNLmotivator) July 2, 2020
Well, that’s all from me this week. Thanks for reading, and for more insights from our chat with Dan, take a look at this Twitter Moment that Joana put together.
And if you’ve got time to spare on Thursday, join us for the next #TwitterSmarter chat at 1pm ET.
About me, Narmadhaa:
I write all things—technical and marketing copy to fill the pocket; haiku and short stories to fill the soul. A social media enthusiast, I’m a member of the #TwitterSmarter chat crew, and always happy to take on writing gigs.
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